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Unreal Lighting Artist Jobs (NOW HIRING)

The Mill

Technical Artist

Manhattan, NY

$139K - $166K/yr

Lighting - Be well versed in the various lighting techniques in Unreal and instruct the artists in lighting best practices * Optimisation - Optimise content through profiling and enhancing ...

The Mill

Technical Artist

Manhattan, NY · On-site

$139K - $166K/yr

Lighting - Be well versed in the various lighting techniques in Unreal and instruct the artists in lighting best practices * Optimisation - Optimise content through profiling and enhancing ...

Together Group

Senior Unreal Developer

Sarasota, FL · On-site

Our team blends cutting-edge technology with artistic craftsmanship to create immersive, real-time ... Dynamic lighting, time-of-day, and environmental effects. * UMG and in-engine tools for interaction ...

Together Group

Senior Unreal Developer

Sarasota, FL

Our team blends cutting-edge technology with artistic craftsmanship to create immersive, real-time ... Dynamic lighting, time-of-day, and environmental effects. * UMG and in-engine tools for interaction ...

AGBO

Sr. Cinematic Layout Artist

Raleigh, NC

... Unreal Engine's Sequencer. You'll work closely with animation, lighting, and narrative teams to ... Collaborate with animators, lighting artists, and designers to ensure cohesive scene composition

AGBO Films LLC

Sr. Cinematic Layout Artist

Raleigh, NC · On-site

... Unreal Engine's Sequencer. You'll work closely with animation, lighting, and narrative teams to ... Collaborate with animators, lighting artists, and designers to ensure cohesive scene composition

AGBO

Sr. Cinematic Layout Artist

Raleigh, NC · On-site

... Unreal Engine's Sequencer. You'll work closely with animation, lighting, and narrative teams to ... Collaborate with animators, lighting artists, and designers to ensure cohesive scene composition

Epoch Games

Unreal Engine Technical Artist

Winston Salem, NC

$109K - $130K/yr

The game is being developed using Epic Games' Unreal Engine 4 (UE4): For more information about the ... In this volunteer position you will be developing Shaders, Lighting, Particles, Optimization Work ...

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Unreal Lighting Artist information

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$30.5K

$129.5K

$152.5K

How much do unreal lighting artist jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 15, 2026, the average yearly pay for unreal lighting artist in the United States is $129,541.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $127,000.00 and $152,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are some common challenges Unreal Lighting Artists face when working on large-scale game environments?

Unreal Lighting Artists often encounter challenges such as optimizing lighting setups for performance while maintaining visual quality in expansive game worlds. Balancing dynamic and static lighting, managing lightmaps, and ensuring consistency across different levels can be complex, especially when working with a large team. Collaboration with environment artists, level designers, and technical artists is essential to troubleshoot issues and implement efficient lighting solutions. Staying up-to-date with the latest Unreal Engine features and best practices also plays a crucial role in overcoming these challenges.

What is the difference between Unreal Lighting Artist vs Environment Artist?

AspectUnreal Lighting ArtistEnvironment Artist
Primary FocusLighting setup, mood, and atmosphere in Unreal EngineCreating detailed 3D environments and assets
Skills & ToolsUnreal Engine, lighting techniques, shaders3D modeling, texturing, environment design
Work EnvironmentGame studios, VR/AR projects, real-time renderingGame studios, film, visualization projects

While Unreal Lighting Artists focus on lighting and atmosphere within Unreal Engine, Environment Artists create the detailed 3D assets and environments. Both roles often collaborate but have distinct skill sets and responsibilities in the game development pipeline.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as an Unreal Lighting Artist?

To thrive as an Unreal Lighting Artist, you need a strong understanding of lighting principles, color theory, and real-time rendering, often supported by a degree in art, design, or a related field. Proficiency with Unreal Engine, including its lighting tools (such as Lightmass and Lumen), and familiarity with 3D modeling software like Maya or Blender are typically required. Creativity, attention to detail, and effective communication help artists collaborate with multidisciplinary teams and achieve project vision. These skills are crucial for creating immersive, visually compelling environments that enhance the overall quality and realism of interactive experiences.

What does an Unreal Lighting Artist do?

An Unreal Lighting Artist specializes in creating, adjusting, and optimizing lighting within Unreal Engine to achieve realistic or stylized visual effects in games, films, or virtual productions. They work closely with other artists and designers to enhance mood, atmosphere, and readability of scenes using various lighting techniques. Their responsibilities include setting up light sources, baking lighting, troubleshooting visual issues, and ensuring performance standards are met. Mastery of Unreal Engine's lighting tools and a strong understanding of color theory and real-world lighting principles are essential for this role.
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Unreal Lighting Artist jobs near you
Infographic showing various Unreal Lighting Artist job openings in the United States as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 85% Full Time, 14% Part Time, and 1% Contract. Highlights an 95% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 3% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $129,541 per year, or $62.3 per hour.

Lighting Artist / Technical Director - ILM San Francisco (Project Hire)

The Walt Disney Company

San Francisco, CA

$103K - $132K/yr

Full-time

Re-posted 20 days ago

Walt Disney Company rating

7.7

Company rating: 7.7 out of 10

Based on 128 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

5th of 52 rated entertainment

Job description

Job Posting Title:

Lighting Artist / Technical Director - ILM San Francisco (Project Hire)

Req ID:

10152348

Job Description:

Position Summary

ILM's Interactive team advances the studio's legacy of innovation by developing original immersive experiences across virtual reality, augmented reality and location-based platforms. Known for blending best-in-class visuals, sound and narrative, the team has delivered award-winning projects such as What If...? - An Immersive Story, Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series and the Oscar-winning CARNE y ARENA. Our work continues to push the boundaries of immersive entertainment and redefine how audiences engage with story.

We are seeking a Lighting Artist who reflects the innovative spirit, creative talent, production excellence, and passion for great storytelling that defines ILM.

The Lighting Artist is responsible for bringing the best out of our environments and to combine artistic talent and technical ability. You would be working closely with the Department Supervisor of Lighting and development/production teams on the design and implementation of lighting setups and lighting pipelines.

What You'll Do

  • Work with Art Directors, Lighting Leads and Concept Artwork to design lighting setups for environments, characters and interactive game assets.

  • Have a deep understanding of lightmap baking, dynamic lighting tools, image based specular lighting, indirect light probes, post-process volumes and real-time rendering

  • Work with environment, character and VFX artists in the lighting design to achieve the desired targets for aesthetics and performance through material shader and geometry work

  • Partner with level designers to animate via level blueprint or sequencer dynamic lighting or transitions

  • Actively participate in improving workflows, optimizations and best practices

  • Identify, triage, and fix bugs as required working with engineering and relevant departments

  • Take final project to a high degree of polish and optimization

What We're Looking For

  • 5+ years experience as a Lighting TD/Artist in AAA game development or animation/vfx/film

  • Strong aesthetic sense for lighting and color theory

  • Strong technical knowledge of current real time lighting tool sets including atmospheric effects, post processing, color grading and HDR IBL workflows

  • Able to effectively take direction and know what looks good and why

  • Experience with Unreal/Unity or equivalent game engine including dynamic and baked lighting workflows, physically-based rendering, and basic level blueprint scripting

  • Shaders: in-depth knowledge of real-time shader implementations, limitations of shaders in VR, strong knowledge of PBR pipelines, and subsurface shaders

  • Materials: experienced in the development, authoring & organization of efficient materials via the UE4 material editor

  • Fluency in working in Windows, JIRA, Perforce or equivalent OS, workload and data management tools

  • Excellent communication, organization and problem-solving skills and self-motivated

  • Bonus points for:

    • Strong traditional art, photography or film studies background

    • Proficient with profiling tools to examine & diagnosis performance issues related to lighting

    • Experience with one or more of the following: Maya, Unity, Substance Designer / Painter, Zbrush or Mudbox, Houdini, Mari, 3D StudioMax, Photoshop, Nuke

    • Interest and capacity to work with proprietary toolsets

* A portfolio / reel submission - including a detailed breakdown of your work in each section - is required with all applications.

JoinILM

The hiring range for this position in San Francisco is $103,812 to $132,930 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate's geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

Job Posting Segment:

ILM San Francisco

Job Posting Primary Business:

ILM San Francisco

Primary Job Posting Category:

Lighting Entertainment - Studios

Employment Type:

Full time

Primary City, State, Region, Postal Code:

San Francisco, CA, USA

Alternate City, State, Region, Postal Code:

Date Posted:

2026-05-26

What Walt Disney Company employees say

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Benefits

Hours and flexibility

Workplace

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About Walt Disney

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

At Disney, we're storytellers. We make the impossible, possible. We do this through utilizing and developing cutting-edge technology and pushing the envelope to bring stories to life through our movies, products, interactive games, parks and resorts, and media networks. Now is your chance to join our talented team that delivers unparalleled creative content to audiences around the world. "We create happiness." That's our motto at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. And it permeates everything we do. At Disney, you'll help inspire that magic by enabling our teams to push the limits of entertainment and create the never-before-seen!

Industry

Amusement, gambling, and recreation

Company size

10,000+ Employees

Headquarters location

Burbank, CA, US

Social media

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