Overview

A project such as PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, which by definition brings together elements ranging from an incredibly wide range of artistic styles, requires a strong and unifying vision to present a cohesive and polished product. The Art Director is responsible for defining this vision, guiding the creation of art assets from concept through completion while helping develop new technology to facilitate this and maintain proper performance. In addition, the Art Director is responsible for guiding the overall advancement of the Art Department, through skills development of art teams and with an eye to the future across multiple projects. He or she will work with the art leads to guide all visual aspects of the game, including UI, front end shell, concept art, environments, characters, animation, effects, and cinematics. He or she will work with the programming leads in the planning, prioritizing and implementation of new technology. He or she will also represent SuperBot to external vendors, IP holders, and the publisher, explaining and demonstrating the vision and how individual characters, environments, or other assets will fit.

To fulfill this role, we are looking for someone with a strong background in formal, traditional art training, refined by years of experience working with teams to ship artistically successful titles, and supported with a comprehensive knowledge of both established and cutting edge technologies available to creators of console games. Candidates should be well-versed in video game aesthetics, with a particular emphasis on the history of PlayStation titles and characters. We are a team organized around a group of strong leads in every discipline, with talented developers throughout. Candidates need to be able to work in this environment, collaborating with leads and utilizing their talents and experience to shape the look of the game. We rely on team members to be aware of a wide range of tools and technologies available to them. Similarly, the Art Director must be more than passingly familiar with our internal engine and pipelines, as well as continuing to look forward to new tools and techniques emerging in the field.

RESPONSIBILITIES

● Define the game’s visual look and lead the team to delivering a consistent artistic vision
● Establish a collaborative art culture that engages creative talent and maximizes team potential
● Lead inter-department communications as they relate to art
● Understand and communicate the technical implementation of the visual design
● Research and encourage the team to develop new technologies and pipelines necessary to achieve a greater visual aesthetic
● Produce artwork and push for technologies based on current trends in game visuals and other runtime mediums
● Act as a bridge between the technical staff and art staff
● Interact with management to keep abreast of the objectives of assigned processes/projects
● Provide input to strategies and objectives of major processes, projects, and milestones
● Review work and make informed decisions regarding priorities based on current milestones
● Provide technical and aesthetic guidance to Artists and Programmers throughout the product development process
● Ensure that the end product meets defined technical, aesthetic, and quality standards
● Recommend tools, workflow, pipelines, and runtime components relevant to implementing the art direction of the game (includes research and development on commercially available tools)
● Help resolve art pipeline issues (build systems, batch files, file conversions)
● Encourage resolution to conflicts through identifying positive steps and responsibilities

REQUIREMENTS AND SKILLS

● Demonstrated ability to direct and multi-task effectively under pressure, while balancing speed and quality of the work
● Successful track record in developing and managing multidisciplinary art teams
● Outstanding interpersonal skills with an ability to communicate clearly and concisely and a willingness to share ideas with individuals at all levels
● Exceptional presentation and communication skills
● Strong conceptual thinking – both visual and interactive
● At least 3 years experience as a Lead Artist or Art Director
● Recognized as a resource in art and related design technologies used in product development
● Excellent leadership, communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills
● Working knowledge of 3DStudioMax, Maya, or an equivalent 3D package.
● At least two published games holding the role of Lead Artist or Art Director

If you feel like this is a fit for you, please submit your resume and brief introduction.

This job listing originated on Gamasutra.com, the game industry's leader.