Lighting TD - Junior

Framestore; City of Melbourne; On-site; AUD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Framestore in Melbourne is seeking a Lighting TD for a six-month contract (Oct 2026–Mar 2027) to light and render elements for high-end VFX shots. You will collaborate with the Visual Effects/CG Supervisor and CG team to achieve the final look.

The role requires strong Houdini and Maya skills, a solid understanding of colour space, and the ability to work under deadlines while maintaining quality. Work rights in Australia are required for this assignment.

Qualifications

• Experience with lighting for high-end VFX shots.
• Ability to interpret lighting briefs from supervisors.
• Strong collaboration across CG and compositor teams.

Responsibilities

• CG scene assembly and lighting shots as briefed by the supervisor or sequence lead.
• Render non-lighting passes as required by the shot compositor.
• Collaborate with CG supervisors to determine best approach and final look.
• Develop shots with the shot compositor to ensure coherence of lighting and rendering.
• Submit shots for review and address notes to keep to schedule.

Skills

Houdini

Maya

Colour space

Lighting techniques

Simulation

Modeling

UV mapping

Texturing

Camera tracking

Communication

Deadline driven

Tools

Nuke

Job description

The multi-Oscar-winning creative Film & Episodic studio, at Framestore has worked with some of the greatest storytellers in film today. Collaborating with directors and producers across the complete filmmaking process to help design, plan and create beautiful images, we focus on finding innovative creative solutions to support their vision and set new standards for visual effects in cinema. Framestore combines talent and technology to bring life to everything we create. Driven by creativity and inspired by the future, we set out every day to reframe the possible.

This role is a six month contract October 2026 - March 2027 and would require candidates to have work rights in Australia.

About the role

Lighting TDs are responsible for the lighting and rendering of elements required to complete visual effects shots for high-end photo-realistic VFX films.

Responsibilities

• CG scene assembly including the correct assets from applicable departments
• Lighting shots as briefed by the Visual Effects/CG Supervisor or Sequence Lead
• Working closely with CG Supervisors to determine the best approach to solving CG challenges and developing the final look
• Developing shots in collaboration with the shot Compositor
• Rendering non-lighting passes as required by the shot Compositor
• Creating lighting set ups and/or working with current set ups
• Creating efficient rendering set ups in order to optimise render farm usage
• Scrutinising the colours and directions of all light sources in the real-world scene and replicating them in CG
• Staying on schedule and meeting set deadlines while maintaining the highest levels of quality
• Ongoing communication with Production and leads regarding schedules and deadlines
• Other duties as required including wrangling assets or elements of a shot from another department to ensure shots are completed to schedule
• Submit shots for review and follow through with notes as required

Essential Skills

• Knowledge of Houdini and Maya
• A good understanding of colour-space
• Knowledge of lighting techniques
• A basic knowledge of Nuke or similar compositing package, including how to use layers and passes to tweak a shot after it has been rendered
• Basic knowledge of other disciplines within VFX including simulation, Modeling and UV mapping, Texturing and Camera Tracking
• Excellent organisation, communication and interpersonal skills
• Creative problem solving and attention to detail
• Able to work well under pressure and meet deadlines
• Reliable, with good time keeping and the ability to meet deadlines
• Flexible and adaptable with the ability to work within a pre-set workflow or pipeline but also have the creativity and problem solving skills to work around issues

You might also have Basic knowledge of either Renderman, Arnold or similar production renderer Basic knowledge of physically plausible shading techniques Basic knowledge of Python and/or Mel scripting An understanding of Linux/Unix based operating systems

Accessibility Statement

Our Melbourne studio is fully accessible, with step-free entry and quiet spaces available. We are committed to supporting disabled colleagues and providing an inclusive workplace for everyone.