Senior Art Director

Jackbox Games; Illinois; On-site; USD 112,000 - 158,000; Full time

Job summary

Jackbox Games is looking for a Senior Art Director to guide the visual direction of Trivia Murder Party 3 and future projects. This role demands a creative leader with a strong background in Unreal Engine, tasked with refining visual styles, mentoring artists, and collaborating with game designers. Benefits include flexible work options, generous medical coverage, and an inspiring creative environment.

Benefits

401(k) with matching

100% paid dental and vision insurance

Flexible work schedule

Flexible PTO

Annual stipends for wellness and growth

Creative work environment

Free snacks and meals

Qualifications

• 3-5 years as Art Director or Senior Artist in game development.
• Shipped minimum of 2 commercial titles using Unreal Engine.
• Deep understanding of real-time rendering and optimization techniques.

Responsibilities

• Refine and maintain artistic vision across game projects.
• Manage and mentor a team of artists, ensuring quality of visual assets.
• Collaborate with game designers to align artistic vision with gameplay.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Artistic Vision

Technical Execution

Education

Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, Game Design, or equivalent

Tools

Unreal Engine

Blender

Maya/3ds Max

Photoshop

ZBrush

Job description

Who are We?

Jackbox is a small game studio (:80 people) best known for our Jackbox Party Pack franchise: a set of five social party games released every fall. Since 2014, our games--like Quiplash, Drawful, and Trivia Murder Party-- have been featured on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, by Polygon, and in living rooms and finished basements across the world.

Who are We?

Jackbox is a small game studio (:80 people) best known for our Jackbox Party Pack franchise: a set of five social party games released every fall. Since 2014, our games--like Quiplash, Drawful, and Trivia Murder Party-- have been featured on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, by Polygon, and in living rooms and finished basements across the world.

In 2020, we had over 200 million users. And we have hard evidence that one of those users was Academy Award-winner Charlize Theron.

You can learn everything you ever wanted to know about how our games work (spoiler: your phone is the controller!) and who we are and what we make at jackboxgames.com.

What's the Job?

We are seeking an experienced Senior Art Director with deep expertise in Unreal Engine to lead and shape the visual direction of Trivia Murder Party 3 and future projects. This role requires a creative visionary who can balance artistic excellence with technical execution while mentoring and guiding our art team.

Key Responsibilities

• Refine and maintain the overall visual style and artistic vision for game projects
• Create assets, lead and mentor a team of artists across multiple disciplines including environment, character, and VFX artists
• Lead and mentor a team of artists across multiple disciplines including environment, character, and VFX artists
• Collaborate closely with game designers, producers, and technical directors to ensure artistic vision aligns with gameplay and technical requirements
• Create and maintain art style guides, documentation, and best practices
• Review and provide constructive feedback on all art assets to ensure quality and consistency
• Work hands-on with Unreal Engine to establish lighting, materials, and rendering pipelines
• Manage art production schedules and resource allocation in coordination with project management
• Stay current with industry trends, tools, and techniques to drive innovation
• Present artistic concepts and progress to stakeholders and leadership
• Manage and coordinate with external technical and environmental artists, ensuring seamless integration of outsourced assets while maintaining art quality standards and project timelines
  
  

Required Qualifications

• 3-5 years of professional experience as an Art Director or Senior Artist in game development
• Shipped at least 2 commercial titles using Unreal Engine or comparable modern game engines (Unity, CryEngine, etc.)
• Expert knowledge of Unreal Engine 4/5, including materials, lighting, blueprints, and optimization techniques
• Strong leadership and communication skills with experience managing creative teams
• Proficiency in industry-standard tools including Blender, Maya/3ds Max, Substance Suite, Photoshop, and ZBrush
• Deep understanding of real-time rendering techniques, PBR workflows, and performance optimization
• Strong artistic foundation with excellent eye for composition, color theory, and visual storytelling
• Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, Game Design, or equivalent professional experience
• Experience with multiple game genres and target platforms
• Knowledge of version control systems (Perforce, Git)
• Understanding of technical art pipelines and shader development
• Experience with motion capture and animation integration
• Familiarity with emerging technologies like ray tracing and virtual production
  
  

OKAY, BUT WHAT ARE THE PERKS?!

• Pay range: $112,571 - $157,464. Please note: individual compensation packages are based on factors unique to each candidate and position, including (but not limited to) skill set, experience, and qualifications
• 401(k) with matching and various medical plans. We pay 100% of the cost of premiums for dental, vision, disability, and life insurance for our employees. We also cover a really nice chunk of the cost of premiums for spouse/partner/dependent medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• Flexible work schedule and environment. Currently, our employees are encouraged to work where they feel the safest and most productive. Our office in Lincoln Park in Chicago is open (and fully stocked with snacks) for folks who prefer to work in the office. We also offer remote work in the following states: California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin
• Flexible PTO. Take time off when you need to recharge, take a trip, or just catch up on life
• Annual stipends for therapy, growth, wellness, and home office equipment to encourage our employees' lifelong learning pursuits and support mental and physical health
• Creative work environment. We are lucky to work in a place that is full of talented and innovative folks. Most of the day, the place is pretty quiet (we're a focused bunch), but this is punctuated with hilarious outbursts and general merriment
• Free food either virtually or in the office. We stock our kitchen with snacks as well as offer doordash credits quite frequently
  
  

How To Apply

• Submit your portfolio/reel
• Submit a cover letter that highlights three reasons you think you'd be a great member of our team focusing on how your past work experience has prepared you for this kind of position as well as links to any video or static content that exists online that you've had a hand in. We weigh cover letters heavily.
  
  

On the fence? If you're interested in the job but worried you aren't qualified, we encourage you to err on the side of applying. We'd hate to miss out on great candidates just because they're worried they don't check every box on the job description.

We know it is a time commitment to prepare an application and we respect that effort by thoughtfully reviewing every complete application and responding one way or the other. But that kind of thoughtful review means that it sometimes takes us a while to get back to applicants, so please be patient with us and no phone calls.

Thanks for your interest in Jackbox Games!

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Design

• Industries

  IT Services and IT Consulting

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