Senior Lighting Artist in Toronto

Sledgehammer Games is a leading developer in the video game industry, best known for its work on the Call of Duty franchise. Since our inception in 2009, the studio has delivered iconic titles including Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Call of Duty: WWII (2017), and, most recently, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III. As industry leaders in first-person shooter development, our commitment to excellence is reflected in every detail of our games, from highly polished multiplayer experiences to emotionally engaging single-player campaigns.

We are excited to invite a talented and passionate developer to join our growing team as a Senior Lighting Artist based in our Toronto, CA studio. In this role, you will work collaboratively with our talented teams across the globe, including our locations in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom. This is a hybrid position based in our Toronto Studio, offering flexibility with a combination of in-studio and remote workdays. Permanent remote work is not available for this position.

Your Mission:

• Are you a video games enthusiast who enjoys first-person-shooters and has a passion for digital lighting, art, and photo realistic quality? The lighting team are the gatekeepers of mood, visual storytelling, and are one of the primary drivers of player emotion.
• Responsible for creating game-play and in-game cinematic lighting based on direction from the Art Director.
• Ensure that lighting assets meet runtime and disk budgeting requirements.
• Anticipate, identify, and report any potential production problems and communicate those to the Lead.
• Work collaboratively with other departments: Character, VFX, and especially Environment Art.
• Work independently and with other leads and directors to create an optimal lighting pipeline for the product.
• Stay current with industry lighting techniques.
• Work with Rendering engineers to push our engine further.
• Create workflows and best practices for the lighting team.
• Mentor other Lighting artists, and help build an environment of creativity, trust and excellence.

Minimum Requirements:

• Extensive experience in a Lighting role in the gaming industry (+8 years).
• Excellent working knowledge of Maya and Photoshop or equivalent.
• In-depth knowledge of physically based lighting.
• Strong understanding of advanced lighting fundamentals.
• Strong sense of lighting theory; color space, exposure, light fixtures, natural light, reflections etc.
• Proven track-record of leading and inspiring teams.
• Understanding of composition and the ability to enhance mood with lighting.
• Effectively use color grading and post effects to enhance the final image.
• Working knowledge of industry standard rendering concepts and processes.
• Experienced with Unreal, Unity, or other proprietary engines.
• Experience with PBR & HDR lighting.
• Familiarity with ray tracing/path tracing systems.
• Ability to use AI as a development tool.

Extra Points:

• Experience with one or more scripting/programming languages.
• Experience with Houdini.
• Knowledge of photography principles and image correction techniques.
• Experience playing Call of Duty or similar FPS games.

We love hearing from anyone who is enthusiastic about changing the games industry. Not sure you meet all qualifications? Let us decide! At Activision Blizzard, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and strongly encourage you to apply.

Ready to Activate Your Future? The videogame industry and therefore our business is fast-paced and will continue to evolve. As such, the duties and responsibilities of this role may be changed as directed by the Company at any time to promote and support our business and relationships with industry partners.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status, among other characteristics.

The standard base pay range for this role is $130,140.00 - $171,960.00 CAD. These values reflect the expected annualized base pay range of new hires in Ontario, Canada. Actual amounts will vary depending on experience, performance, and location. In addition to a competitive base pay, employees in this role may be eligible for discretionary incentive compensation.