CFX Artist: MID/SR

Note: At this time we are only accepting applications from those artists residing in Quebec Canada. Must be legally eligible to work in Canada.

Please only apply once to the best suited job by your current residency location.

About Barnstorm

Barnstorm is an Emmy and VES-nominated visual effects studio with locations in Burbank, CA and Vancouver, BC. We provide photo-realistic visual effects for television and streaming projects across genres. Our studio culture is built on creativity and collaboration. As we grow, we are committed to preserving our nimble, artist-driven DNA while evolving our structure, workflows, and leadership.

Who You Are

You are a CFX artist with a strong Houdini foundation (Maya skills are a plus) who’s eager to keep learning, problem-solving, and growing in a collaborative environment.

You’re hands-on and proactive — whether it’s simulating cloth, hair, or feathers, troubleshooting a tricky shot, or building your own templates to speed up workflows. You’re not afraid to dig into technical challenges, and you’re excited about pushing your skills further on every project.

Feather work or rigging experience will make you stand out, but your real strength is your curiosity, persistence, and readiness to figure things out.

What You’ll Do

Shot Work & Simulation (70%)

• Create and run high-quality cloth, hair, and feather simulations using Houdini
• Handle shot-based CFX tasks including deformation fixes, collision cleanup, and integration with animation and grooming
• Prep assets for simulation, ensuring proper rig/sim attachments and clean caches
• Debug simulation issues and ensure clean, efficient publishes into the pipeline
• Use ShotGrid (or equivalent) to track your work and communicate progress

Problem-Solving & Tool-Building (20%)

• Build and refine Houdini templates or tools to streamline shot work
• Debug and optimize sims for speed and stability
• Work with leads and pipeline teams to improve workflows and solver setups
• Explore new techniques for feathers, rigging integration, and cloth layering

Collaboration & Growth (10%)

• Work closely with animation, groom, and lighting to ensure shots hold up downstream
• Ask questions, seek feedback, and actively grow your skill set
• Share tips, templates, and learnings with other CFX artists

What You Bring

• Houdini proficiency is a must (Maya is a plus)
• Strong understanding of cloth and hair simulation; feather experience is a big plus
• Rigging knowledge or experience is a strong plus
• Ability to debug and optimize simulations
• Willingness to build your own tools/templates to work smarter
• Smart, curious, and eager to keep learning and growing
• Comfortable receiving and applying feedback in a collaborative environment
• Able to work efficiently in a fast-paced production setting

This is a remote based role. Project and staff positions available with extended health benefits and opportunity to participate in RRSP programs. Note: At this time we are only accepting applications from those artists legally eligible to work in Canada. (Eg. Canadian or PR and are residents of Montreal or BC)

The posted pay range is aligned with what we believe is fair pay at the time of posting this role. An applicant’s relevant education, experience, skills and qualifications, location and currency may all be considered when deciding pay position within the range. Pay ranges may change.Benefit plans are dependent on the local plan offering and employment status but all US and Canada plans include a comprehensive health insurance plan, retirement savings, and paid time off.Barnstorm VFX is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive team that provides a meaningful work environment free of discrimination and harassment. We seek to recruit, develop and retain the most talented people from a diverse candidate pool. Indigenous people, people of color, people of all genders or non-genders, and people with disabilities of all types are encouraged to apply. We thank everyone for their interest and application, however only those selected for an interview will be contacted.