VFX Lighting Generalist

CoSA VFX; Vancouver; Hybrid; CAD 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

CoSA VFX Vancouver is seeking an experienced Houdini Lighting Generalist for a short-term, immediate need on an in-production project. This 100% remote role accepts applicants legally able to work in Canada.

Role reports to the Global Head of CG and requires current availability to support ongoing production. Strong expertise in Houdini, lighting, and look development is essential to deliver photoreal results for episodic TV or motion pictures.

Qualifications

• 3 years of lighting and look development experience for episodic TV or motion pictures.
• Proficiency in Houdini and industry-standard render engines (VRay, Arnold, etc.).
• Strong understanding of lighting principles and photographic references.

Responsibilities

• Create high-quality, photo-realistic Houdini lighting for CG characters, environments, props, and VFX elements.
• Translate CG/VFX Supervisors' visual goals into consistent lighting across shots and sequences.
• Ensure lighting integrates with plate photography and full CG scenes.
• Collaborate with Render Wranglers and CG Supervisors to optimize render times while maintaining quality.
• Work with the Compositing team to troubleshoot lighting issues and support seamless final renders.
• Look development in calibrated environments using studio lighting setups.
• Fine-tune shaders and material properties for lookdev related to assets.
• Maintain clean handoff of shaders between lookdev and shot lighting.
• Possibly texture assets using Substance Painter or Mari to support lookdev.

Skills

Houdini

Lighting

Look development

Tools

VRay

Arnold

Job description

CoSA VFX Vancouver is seeking an experiencedHoudiniLightingGeneralistfor short-term, immediate need for one of its current projects. For this 100% remote role, we're happy to hear from anyone with the legal ability to work in Canada. Because this role is needed to support an already in-production project, only artists with current availability should apply. This role reports to the Global Head of CG.,

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Create high-quality, photo-realistic Houdini lighting setups for CG characters, environments, props, and VFX elements.
• Translate the visual goals of the CG and VFX Supervisors into efficient, consistent lighting across shots and sequences.
• Ensure lighting setups integrate cleanly with both plate photography and full CG scenes.
• Work with Render Wranglers and CG Supervisors to optimize render times while maintaining artistic integrity.
• Collaborate with the Compositing team to troubleshoot lighting issues and ensure final renders support seamless integration.

Look Development

• Perform look development in calibrated turntable environments using studio-approved lighting setups
• Fine-tune shaders and material properties for characters, props, and environments to achieve photoreal surface qualities
• Maintain separation between look development and shot lighting, ensuring clean upstream handoff of shaders
• Bonus: Ability to texture assets using tools like Substance Painter, Mari, or similar, to support the lookdev proces
• Work with Asset and Modeling teams to ensure clean UVs and material assignments for efficient lookdev handoff

REQUIREMENTS

• A minimum of 3 years of experience in lighting and look development for episodic TV and/or motion pictures
• Proficiency in Houdini and industry-standard render engines (VRay, Arnold, etc.)
• Deep understanding of lighting principles, photographic reference, and integration techniques