Remote Chef d'équipe - Artiste de niveau​/Lead Level Artist

Lead Level Artist

Join us to collaborate on Blood Message, a historical China game, using UE5, co‑developed between Montreal and China.

• Artistic Leadership and Vision:
  Collaborate with the Art Director to define and implement the artistic direction for game levels, ensuring environments are visually striking, authentic to historical China, and balanced with gameplay functionality.
• Research and Cultural Authenticity:
  Conduct research into historical Chinese geography, architecture, and cultural elements to ensure authenticity in level design. Use reference materials to guide artistic license while maintaining a unique and engaging aesthetic.
• Environment Production:
  Oversee the end‑to‑end production pipeline for level art, from concept to final polish, creating lush, pixel‑perfect levels that support the game’s realistic visual style. Ensure environments enhance exploration, storytelling, and gameplay mechanics such as traditional combat and traversal.
• Narrative‑Driven Design:
  Work with Level Designers, narrative teams, and the Art Director to craft environments that support storytelling through details, lighting, composition, and contrast, conveying emotional and narrative depth aligned with the game’s themes.
• Team Leadership and Mentorship:
  Lead and mentor a team of level artists, providing constructive feedback, managing workloads, and ensuring project milestones are met while maintaining visual consistency.
• Pipeline and Workflow Development:
  Establish and maintain efficient art pipelines and workflows for level creation, optimization, and integration into Unreal Engine
  5. Propose innovative ideas to streamline processes and facilitate collaboration with the China‑based studio.
• Cross‑Disciplinary
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Foster communication with Level Designers, programmers, animators, and QA teams to balance gameplay mechanics and visual storytelling. Participate in production meetings to prioritize and distribute tasks, ensuring a smooth workflow and alignment with the China studio’s objectives.
• Problem‑Solving and Innovation:
  Troubleshoot artistic and technical challenges, devise creative solutions to maintain visual excellence and performance, and stay updated on industry trends and UE5 advancements to incorporate cutting‑edge techniques.
• Communication with China Studio:
  Provide regular progress updates, share information, and maintain effective communication with headquarters in China to ensure alignment on artistic vision, cultural authenticity, and project milestones.

• Experience:
  
  5+ years in a Lead Level Artist or similar role with a proven track record on AAA titles; 8+ years overall game development preferred.
• Technical
  
  Skills:
  
  Proficiency in 3D software (Blender, 3ds Max, ZBrush) and game engines (Unreal Engine 5, Unity). Strong understanding of level design principles, environmental storytelling, gameplay flow optimization, and asset optimization across platforms. Expertise in lighting, color theory, composition, and technical constraints such as memory and frame‑rate optimization.
• Artistic
  
  Skills:
  
  Exceptional artistic vision with a keen eye for composition, lighting, and color theory, capable of creating immersive, culturally authentic environments that balance realism with gameplay needs.
• Leadership:
  Proven leadership and mentorship abilities, experience managing teams, providing feedback, and maintaining schedules.
• Collaboration:
  
  Strong verbal and written communication skills to work effectively with cross‑disciplinary teams and the China‑based studio, ensuring alignment on artistic and technical goals.
• Portfolio:
  Robust portfolio showcasing diverse, high‑quality level designs and environment art, demonstrating expertise in realistic visual styles, environmental storytelling, and composition.
• Cultural Knowledge:
  Familiarity with Chinese history, culture, or aesthetics is highly desirable.
• Agile Understanding:
  Strong grasp of Agile methodologies, particularly Scrum, to manage iterative art pipelines and facilitate cross‑disciplinary collaboration. Participation in sprint planning, daily stand‑ups, and retrospectives.

• Insurance coverage and telemedicine from day one
• Transportation and meal allowance
• Referral bonus
• RRSP with employer contribution
• Flexibility to work remotely or in‑office

Open to candidates in Montreal or Toronto.