Senior Technical Artist - Tools and Pipeline - World of Warcraft

Do you find yourself in between art and engineering? Are you passionate about software development best practices and have an unstoppable urge to ensure Artist workflows are constantly improving? If so, the World of Warcraft Technical Art team would love to talk to you.

In this role, you'll be collaborating with Artists, Engineers, and Technical Artists to find day-to-day improvements and achieve long term goals. We're looking for someone with good interpersonal skills, a phenomenal team-player attitude, and willing to dive deep into anything necessary. And we mean anything!

We're a multi-disciplinary team that blends deep knowledge of the 3D art creation process and general software development to build customer-focused solutions to problems. We strive to build tools that exceed the quality expectations of the artists who use them, so they can create the most beautiful art for our game in the most efficient way possible.

We operate in a hybrid workplace with 2 days working from home and 3 days in office. The home studio for this role is Irvine, CA.

What you will do…

• Build, implement, and improve art tools across the art pipeline.

• Design and integrate automation systems to streamline repetitive tasks

• Develop strong relationships with both artists and engineers to better understand their needs and collaborate on workflow improvements.

• Provide technical support to artists using tools and actively collect data to provide recommendations for improvements.

• Actively engage with the Tech Art team on World of Warcraft, participate in craft-focused meetings, and mentor fellow Technical Artists to further improve their craft.

• Demonstrate extensive technical expertise in current industry-standard content creation workflows, tools, and automation.

To succeed, you must have…

• Strong communication and collaboration skills, especially across disciplines.

• Experience performing as a Technical Artist or higher while working on Tools and Pipelines.

• Proficiency in content creation software, especially 3dsMax, Maya, Houdini, or Blender.

We’re also interested in hearing stories you may have about…

• Developing asset management tools

• Designing complex tools and pipeline architecture while prioritizing artist/designer-friendly workflows, maintainability, and scalability.

• Experience in developing automation systems and streamlining production workflows.

• Fluency in Python or C++

• Experience working with Qt and ImGui

Please send us…

• Resume

• A demo reel/website link

• Cover letter which should include:

  • Why you are interested in working at Blizzard

  • What games you are currently playing

Your Platform

Best known for iconic video game universes including Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, and StarCraft®, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard, which was acquired by Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment experiences. Blizzard Entertainment has created some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed and genre-defining games over the last 30 years, with a track record that includes multiple Game of the Year awards. Blizzard Entertainment engages tens of millions of players around the world with titles available on PC via Battle.net®, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.

Our World

Activision Blizzard, Inc., is one of the world's largest and most successful interactive entertainment companies and is at the intersection of media, technology and entertainment. We are home to some of the most beloved entertainment franchises including Call of Duty®, World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, Candy Crush™ and Bubble Witch™. Our combined entertainment network delights hundreds of millions of monthly active users in 196 countries, making us the largest gaming network on the planet!

Our ability to build immersive and innovative worlds is only enhanced by diverse teams working in an inclusive environment. We aspire to have a culture where everyone can thrive in order to connect and engage the world through epic entertainment. We provide a suite of benefits that promote physical, emotional and financial well-being for ‘Every World’ - we’ve got our employees covered!

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 love hearing from anyone who is enthusiastic about changing the games industry. Not sure you meet all qualifications? Let us decide! Research shows that women and members of other under-represented groups tend to not apply to jobs when they think they may not meet every qualification, when, in fact, they often do! We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and strongly encourage you to apply.

We are committed to working with and providing reasonable assistance to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you are a disabled individual requiring an accommodation to apply for an open position, please email your request to accommodationrequests@activisionblizzard.com. General employment questions cannot be accepted or processed here. Thank you for your interest.

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.

Rewards

We provide a suite of benefits that promote physical, emotional and financial well-being for ‘Every World’ - we’ve got our employees covered! Subject to eligibility requirements, the Company offers comprehensive benefits including:

• Medical, dental, vision, health savings account or health reimbursement account, healthcare spending accounts, dependent care spending accounts, life and AD&D insurance, disability insurance;

• 401(k) with Company match, tuition reimbursement, charitable donation matching;

• Paid holidays and vacation, paid sick time, floating holidays, compassion and bereavement leaves, parental leave;

• Mental health & wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free and discounted games, and a variety of other voluntary benefit programs like supplemental life & disability, legal service, ID protection, rental insurance, and others;

• If the Company requires that you move geographic locations for the job, then you may also be eligible for relocation assistance.

Eligibility to participate in these benefits may vary for part time and temporary full-time employees and interns with the Company. You can learn more by visiting https://www.benefitsforeveryworld.com/.

In the U.S., the standard base pay range for this role is $92,920.00 - $171,814.00 Annual. These values reflect the expected base pay range of new hires across all U.S. locations. Ultimately, your specific range and offer will be based on several factors, including relevant experience, performance, and work location. Your Talent Professional can share this role’s range details for your local geography during the hiring process. In addition to a competitive base pay, employees in this role may be eligible for incentive compensation. Incentive compensation is not guaranteed.