Senior VFX Artist

Lighthouse Games; Royal Leamington Spa; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 Days Holiday

Studio Shutdown between Christmas and

Discretionary Bonus Scheme

Private Pension Scheme

Private Healthcare

Health and Well-Being Benefits

Dental Care

Optical treatments

Mental Health Support

Job summary

Lighthouse Games, a new AAA studio in Leamington Spa, is seeking a Senior VFX Artist to push photoreal visual effects in our upcoming titles. You will lead the creation of believable in-game effects and mentor junior artists within a collaborative, hybrid work environment.

You’ll work with cross-disciplinary teams to design, implement, and optimize VFX, drawing on real-world references and state-of-the-art tools to elevate gameplay and immersion while balancing performance.

Qualifications

• Proven experience creating photorealistic VFX for games.
• Strong understanding of natural phenomena and real-world reference.
• Ability to mentor junior artists and communicate across disciplines.

Responsibilities

• Design and deliver photoreal VFX grounded in real-world reference.
• Create high-fidelity effects for rain, smoke, fire, dust and atmospheric systems.
• Develop and optimise VFX assets for performance and fidelity.
• Collaborate with technical artists and engineers for seamless integration.
• Mentor junior artists to raise the team’s overall quality.

Skills

Photorealistic VFX

Real-world grounding

Reference-driven detail

Collaborative teamwork

Tools

Houdini

Maya

Unreal Engine (Niagara)

Job description

Lighthouse Games is a new AAA studio in Leamington Spa. We are defined by our pedigree of talent and serious ambition to build a new best-in-class game. When you join us at Lighthouse, you'll create the best work of your career within a collaborative, hybrid working environment. You'll learn from the best and work alongside the future greats of the gaming industry. As a Senior VFX Artist, you will be at the forefront of enhancing our games' visual experiences through cutting-edge effects that captivate our players.

In this role, you will collaborate with various teams to conceptualise and implement high-calibre visual effects that align with our artistic goals. Your expertise will not only help shape the aesthetic of our projects but also serve as a guiding light for our junior artists, helping them grow and thrive in their roles.

Key Responsibilities:

• Work alongside the Lead VFX Artist and interdisciplinary teams to design and deliver photorealistic VFX grounded in real-world reference, elevating both gameplay and immersion
• Create high-fidelity effects representing natural phenomena - including rain, smoke, fire, dust, and atmospheric systems, with a strong focus on believability, physical behaviour, and material response
• Develop and optimise VFX assets using industry-standard tools, ensuring a balance between visual authenticity and real-time performance
• Study and apply real-world reference, motion, and physics to inform the behaviour, timing, and interaction of effects in-game
• Contribute to the refinement of VFX workflows and pipelines, improving both quality benchmarks and production efficiency
• Mentor junior artists, helping them transition from stylised approaches toward physically grounded, photoreal execution where required
• Collaborate closely with Technical Artists and Engineers to ensure seamless, performant integration of effects within the game world
• Participate in creative reviews, consistently pushing toward a best-in-class, photoreal visual standard across all VFX

Requirements

• Proven experience creating photorealistic VFX for games, supported by a portfolio that demonstrates strong real-world grounding (e.g. smoke, fire, weather systems, destruction, environmental effects)
• Deep understanding of natural phenomena and physical behaviour - how elements such as fluid, gas, heat, and particulate systems behave and interact
• Strong eye for reference-driven detail, with the ability to translate real-world observation into convincing in-game effects
• Proficiency with tools such as Houdini and Maya for simulation and content creation
• Experience implementing and optimising VFX in Unreal Engine (Niagara) or similar real-time engines
• Solid understanding of performance constraints and how to achieve high visual fidelity within them
• Ability to work collaboratively across disciplines, with clear communication around both artistic intent and technical constraints
• Passion for mentoring and raising the overall quality bar within a team

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with Unreal Engine, particularly the Niagara VFX system
• Experience with Houdini and EmberGen for advanced visual effects
• Knowledge of shader programming (HLSL or visual scripting for UE4/5) for creating custom effects

Benefits

• 25 Days Holiday, plus 1 day for your birthday
• Studio Shutdown between Christmas and New Year
• Discretionary Bonus Scheme
• Private Pension Scheme
• Private Healthcare
• Health and Well-Being Benefits
• Dental Care
• Optical treatments
• Mental Health Support