UK Only | Mid 3D Lighting and Compositing Artist

Blue Zoo Productions; Greater London; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Awards & recognition

Social events

Wellbeing programme

Profit sharing

Employee discounts

Comprehensive benefits

Job summary

Blue Zoo Productions in the UK is seeking a Mid Lighting & Compositing Artist to shape lighting, colour, and final composite for episodes. You will create lighting in Maya, then composite in Nuke, balancing quality with deadlines within a collaborative team.

The role requires you to work across lighting and compositing, with flexibility for hybrid or remote options. Start date is mid-October 2026, and the team values attention to detail and proactive problem solving.

Qualifications

• Experience with Maya and Nuke for lighting and compositing.
• Knowledge of lighting for stylised animation briefs.
• Understanding of 3D rendering, bias rendering and Redshift-like pipelines.
• Ability to optimise sampling to reduce noise and artefacts.
• Solid grasp of colour theory, aesthetics and composition.
• Familiarity with utility passes for compositing in Nuke.
• Awareness of camera depth of field and shot consistency.
• Strong problem solving and ability to take feedback.
• Team player with independent working capability.
• Previous L&C artist experience on animation productions.

Responsibilities

• Create lighting scenes in Maya using assets from animation and effects.
• Composite renders in Nuke to achieve final shot look.
• Tune light rigs and render setups to meet look and deadlines.
• Monitor render time budgets and maintain quality.
• Collaborate with team leads and supervisors, communicate progress.
• Solve issues and address notes efficiently while managing time.

Skills

Maya & Nuke

Lighting principles

PBR rendering

Global illumination

Ray tracing

Noise optimization

Colour theory

Utility passes (Z/Position/Normals)

Depth of field

Troubleshooting

Team collaboration

Independent working

Attention to detail

L&C animation experience

Tools

Python scripting

Job description

Our Mid Lighting and Compositing Artists (“L&C”) are wonderful visual storytellers. They define the mood and atmosphere of our narratives, and highlight the charming details of our characters, props and environments. They are the savants of light, colour and creative problem solving.

Your day-to-day will focus on creating the lighting of our episodes, finessing the colours in compositing, whilst always maintaining the right balance between the highest quality and meeting deadlines.

This opportunity requires talent to be based in the UK and will require the right to work in the UK.

We are very happy to discuss flexible, hybrid and remote working options for all our vacancies.

Please note that this vacancy can close early if we receive a high number of applications.

This role is due to start from Mid October 2026.

Day to Day:

• Creating lighting scenes in Maya with assets from the animation and effects departments and then compositing these rendered shots in Nuke to create the final shot
• Tweaking provided light rigs, render set-ups and compositing templates to achieve the required look of your shot
• Monitoring your renders to ensure they are within a given render time budget
• Working as part of a team of lighting and compositing artists, and regularly communicating with your Team Lead and the Lighting & Compositing Supervisor
• Managing your time efficiently to meet the deadlines of your assigned shots
• Problem solving to fix errors and glitches and addressing notes efficiently

About You

Must Have:

• Ability to demonstrate experience of both Maya & Nuke software
• Knowledge of lighting principles and how light is used to meet a creative brief, especially in stylised animation
• Technical understanding of how lighting works in 3D rendering - different types of lights, render setups, physically based rendering, ray tracing and global illumination - using Maya and a render engine comparable to Redshift
• Technical understanding of biased rendering to optimise sampling, making your renders efficient and avoiding noise and artefacts
• An understanding of colour theory, aesthetics and composition
• Technical understanding of utility passes (Z, Position and Normals) and how they are used in compositing using Nuke
• Understanding of camera depth of field
• Problem solving skills to find the best approach to meeting the brief as well as troubleshooting issues and asking questions if unsure
• Having an eye for detail for scrutinising final shots for any errors or inconsistencies
• Good communication and being a team player, sharing your knowledge and skills with other team members
• Able to respond positively to feedback
• Working independently. Being diligent, taking initiative and being reliable
• Being organised and managing your time efficiently
• Previous experience as a L&C Artist on an animation production

Bonus Points:

• Knowledge of Python scripting
• Knowledge of After Effects
• Experience using FTrack
• Knowledge of shading
• Understanding of a 3D production pipeline

About Us

Blue Zoo is a leading animation studio in the UK, with a world-class reputation as the go-to place for creating bold, fun and characterful animation. Established in London in 2000, the studio has grown to become the largest dedicated CG animation studio in the UK, picking up a shelf full of BAFTAs, an Annie and an Emmy along the way!

We couldn’t be prouder that Blue Zoo is the first major animation studio in the world to receive B Corp certification. We’ve been independently certified by B Lab, a non-profit organisation who award the B Corp certification. The certification verifies companies who are working to improve the lives of employees as well as industries as a whole. The certification process involves over 170 rigorous metrics to improve the lives of our staff, customers, suppliers, and the local community, ensuring we are not just saying we are ethical with empty gestures, but independently evidencing it.

We are going through an exciting period of growth and are building a studio that is full of amazingly talented, happy artists, making work they are proud of, which in turn makes a small contribution to a happier world. Blue Zoo believes that a healthy balance in our lives - whatever our situation - is key to supporting the wellbeing of our staff. We offer flexible working to support this.

We look for people who have expertise, enthusiasm and are motivated to make things better. You’ll work alongside a talented and diverse group of people who respect each other's differences and seek to understand and embrace fresh perspectives.

What we’ve got for you:

• Winner of Broadcast Best Places to Work in TV 2019, 2020, 2022, 2024, 2025 & 2026.
• Inclusive self-funded shorts programme.
• Many fun in person and remote social events throughout the year.
• Bi-monthly employee feedback and engagement programme.
• Comprehensive benefits package, including loads of discounts and offers.
• Online wellbeing programme.
• Profit share (for employees who have been with us for 2+ years).

Blue Zoo is committed to creating and nurturing an inclusive studio that promotes and values diversity and invites everyone to ‘bring their whole selves’ to work. We believe that companies that truly embrace and value diversity, and create an environment where everyone from any background can do their best work, are better companies.

To be engaged our people have to feel included and valued. We work hard to build and nurture a culture where inclusiveness is embedded in the way we work, not just an initiative. We strive to engender a studio community that feels a deep sense of pride and commitment that transcends any role, department or level and works together to produce excellent and engaging work.