Senior & Lead Look Dev Artists

WETA DIGITAL; Wellington; On-site; NZD 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading visual effects company in Wellington is seeking Look Dev Artists at Senior and Lead levels for exciting upcoming projects in 2026. Candidates should have strong artistic skills and experience in providing surfacing solutions for both shading and texturing tasks. The roles require collaboration within a highly creative environment, emphasizing problem-solving and strong communication. The ideal candidate will have at least 5 years in the industry and be familiar with various tools such as Katana and Houdini.

Qualifications

• At least 5 years of experience in feature film or comparable work.
• Ability to manage multiple assets and render efficiently.
• Cover letters should include a shot breakdown of materials.

Responsibilities

• Provide surfacing solutions for shading and texturing.
• Work with proprietary tools and support other departments.
• Paint textures for characters, props, and environments.

Skills

Strong artistic skills

Look Dev skills for photo-realistic films

Problem-solving skills

Creative rendering solutions

Organisational skills

Communication skills

Familiarity with Linux and Katana

Tools

Houdini/Solaris

Mari

Python scripting

Substance Designer

Substance Painter

Zbrush

Job description

Wētā FX is accepting applications for Look Dev Artists at Senior and Lead level, for exciting upcoming projects in 2026.

These roles will be in Wellington, New Zealand.

The Look Dev Department at Wētā FX is responsible for providing surfacing solutions (both shading/materials and texturing) for the company.

Shader/Material artists should expect to work with our proprietary tools, manipulate shading networks, deal with both asset centric and in-shot scenes, debug rendering setups and provide support to other departments (Lighting, FX, etc).

Texture painters should expect to paint textures for a variety of assets from characters, creatures, wardrobes, props to full environments. We're happy to consider candidates who are either specialised in a single discipline or can seamlessly span both.

Candidates will ideally have at least 5 years of feature film or comparable experience and display the following attributes.

Required Skills:

• Evidence of strong artistic skills as presented in portfolio/showreel, either on texturing or shading tasks
• Strong Look Dev skills (both artistically and technically) for photo-realistic feature films, with an excellent understanding of physically based shading & rendering
• Have strong initiative and problem-solving skills to work efficiently and maintain deadlines under pressures. Be able to work from reference as well as interpret artistic direction
• The ability to come up with creative, efficient rendering solutions for a wide variety of assets
• The ability to manage multiple assets at the same time, and put them seamlessly together in a visually coherent solution
• Familiarity with Linux and Katana
• Experience with all aspects of the rendering pipeline
• Strong communication, task management and organisational skills

Preferred skills:

• Working knowledge of Houdini/Solaris
  
• Working knowledge of Mari
• Working knowledge of Python scripting
  
• Familiarity with USD
  
• Experience leading teams or small groups of artists
  
• Experience using Substance Designer, Substance Painter, Zbrush or other similar software

The Look Dev Department is a highly collaborative space, being a team player will be key to your success. A detailed shot breakdown of all material on reel must be provided with application.

At Wētā FX we celebrate our diversity and believe in creating an environment where all our crew feel welcomed, respected, supported and appreciated. We define ourselves by the quality of our work, and we’re striving to build a workplace experience that’s second to none. Here at Wētā FX we value open minds and encourage our crew to be themselves.

We aim to provide a discrimination-free experience, beginning from the moment you apply for a role with us. If there is anything we can do to make the recruitment process easier, please let us know at: [e-mail]