Senior Technical Artist

Keywords Studios Plc; Madrid; Hybrid; EUR 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

22 days holiday +5 Bank Holidays

Company Pension Scheme

Flexible Working Hours

Private Medical Insurance - BUPA

Anti-crunch ethos

Job summary

d3t Studio, part of Keywords Studios Group, is looking for a Senior Technical Artist to lead art pipelines and tooling. The role combines technical leadership with hands-on shader creation, performance profiling and cross-team collaboration.

The position offers hybrid working at UK sites with a no-crunch ethos, supporting world-class co-development for major AAA titles. Applicants should be passionate about staying current with game art techniques.

Qualifications

• Enjoy the technical challenge and constraints of real-time game art.
• Strong understanding of rendering, shading and lighting techniques.
• Proficient in Maya and/or 3DS Max with Python knowledge.
• Excellent communication and organisation within a multidisciplinary team.
• Proven leadership or mentoring ability in an art role.
• Solid grasp of a PBR workflow and console limitations.

Responsibilities

• Establish and maintain project art pipelines from inception to project life-cycle.
• Support art and animation teams and resolve technical issues.
• Create and integrate in-house toolsets and materials/shaders.
• Ensure artwork meets memory and frame rate guidelines.
• Mentor and lead other Technical Artists and share knowledge.
• Keep up to date with industry trends and share insights with the team.
• Update Jira and manage deliverables, ensuring proper task sequencing.
• Advise on resourcing and production risks to Technical Art Leadership.

Skills

Rendering knowledge

Performance focus

Communication

Leadership

PBR workflow

Unreal/Unity familiarity

Problem solving

Time management

Collaboration

Tools

Maya

3DS Max

Python

Job description

Requirements

d3t is at the forefront of videogame technology and creativity, delivering experienced co-development services to some of the biggest AAA clients in the world. Our studio, part of the global Keywords Studios Group, works on multiple exciting projects at any one time, offering plenty of variety and involvement.
Our studio projects have included EA SPORTS FC™ 26, Hogwarts Legacy, Exoborne, Mafia: The Old Country, Alan Wake Remastered, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Vampire The Masquerade - Blood Hunt, Mafia II: Definitive Edition, and Assetto Corsa Competizione. We also work in partnership with our global clients including: Playground Games, EA and Archetype Entertainment.
The d3t studios are based near Daresbury (Cheshire), Newcastle (Tyne & Wear) and Madrid (Spain) where we offer an amazingly professional and supportive working environment. We are passionate about what we do and pride ourselves on our anti-crunch mentality, mentoring ethos and have been awarded ‘Best Places to Work' multiple times by gamesindustry.biz. In addition, we won ‘Best Creative Service Provider' at Develop 2022 and were nominated in 2023 & 2024.
This opportunity will be a 12 month fixed-term contract (with possible extension) based in either of our UK studio sites (Daresbury or Newcastle), on a hybrid working basis. Working pattern - 3 days per week in the studio: Wednesday, Thursday and another day of your choice.
d3t's Art team blends technical excellence with a passion for the craft of game development. Our expertise spans the full development cycle—from co-development on features and content to benchmark creation and work on remakes / remasters. We deliver world-class content across Environment, Character, VFX, and Animation. We don't just create art; we build the tools and pipelines that power it. We are expanding our studio and looking for a Senior Technical Artist to help us redefine what's possible.

The Role - Senior Technical Artist:

• Establish and maintain project art pipelines from inception and throughout the project life-cycle
• Support the art and animation team requirements and assist with resolving technical issues
• Creating and integrating in-house toolsets and creation of materials/shaders
• Ensure all artwork hits memory and frame rate guidelines/restrictions by means of performance profiling
• Collaborate with the artists and feedback on how they can improve the performance of the in-game assets while maintaining visual fidelity
• Able, when required, to take ownership of specific features of the game
• Ensure all artwork adheres to guidelines regarding naming conventions, texture layering structures etc
• Keep up to date with industry advancements and technologies and share knowledge with the art team
• Add to our library of tutorials, documents and technical guides to improve efficiency in the art pipeline and be proactive in finding solutions to technical issues
• With a professional and organised approach, you adhere to schedules and promptly feedback concerns regarding any aspects of the project
• Ensuring the right tasks are tackled in the right order, updating Jira, communicating progress and helping to manage team deliverables
• Advise the Technical Art Leadership of resourcing concerns and production risks
• Encourage and mentor other members of the Technical Art Team
• Self driven, autonomous and confident, demonstrate responsibility for work quality and processes for both yourself and other members of the tech art team, actively contributing fresh ideas and encouraging the team
• Confident with motivating Tech Artists, inspire colleagues to flourish and help promote a culture of collaborative innovation

Requirements

Essential Skills:

• Enjoy the technical challenge and constraints of real-time game art and have some understanding of modern rendering, shading and lighting techniques
• Must be performance and quality focused
• Must have an excellent working knowledge and proficiency in Maya and/or 3DS Max and an excellent in-depth knowledge in Python
• Excellent communication and organisation skills and confident working within a multidisciplinary art team
• Evidence of being an enthusiastic leader or role model in intermediate art role
• Able to create materials/shaders and a good understanding of a PBR workflow
• Excellent understanding of the technical limitations of current console hardware
• Practical and methodical approach to technical and creative problem-solving. Demonstrate dependability and commitment to projects and tasks, and a hunger to learn and improve as a Technical Artist
• Flexible and calm approach with the ability to adapt to change
• Ability to deliver quality work within fixed time constraints
• Strong knowledge of modern game engines such as Unreal Engine Or Unity
• Excellent knowledge of current game development practices and terminology and a passion for staying up to date with latest technology and embracing new game art techniques

Desirable Skills:

• Knowledge of other scripting languages is advantageous
• Knowledge of the Maya API and programming in C++ or C# is advantageous
• Some understanding of various other tools and software used in development, Photoshop, Substance, Houdini etc is also advantageous

We work flexibly, but value in-person collaboration: this position is offered on a hybrid basis only at either of our UK sites (3 days per week working in the studio: Wednesday, Thursday and another day of your choice). We value work/life balance and have a discretionary flexible hours system and operate a no-crunch policy as a studio.

Benefits

d3t Studio Benefits & Perks:

• 22 days holiday +3 Festive Studio Closure + Bank Holidays
• Company Pension Scheme
• Flexible Working Hours
• Private Medical Insurance Scheme - BUPA
• Anti-crunch ethos - a professional, fun and supportive working environment!
• Free Parking
• Company Socials, Monthly Lunches + Annual d3t Events
• Breakout Areas - filled with perks such as games, BBQ area, complimentary snacks to suit all dietary preferences etc

First interviews will be help by video call, followed by second interviews on-site. Don't meet every single requirement? Not a problem. At d3t we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace and culture. If this opportunity excites you but your current skills or past experience don't align perfectly with the job description, we encourage you to still apply. You may just be the right candidate for this or other roles within our team.