Lead Character Artist

Placements24; Randburg; Presencial; ZAR 600.000 - 900.000; Jornada completa

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid time off

Professional development

Team-building events

Descripción de la vacante

Placements24 is seeking a Lead Character Artist to guide the character art team in Randburg. You will set artistic direction, oversee production, and ensure characters are visually striking and engine-ready.

That role blends hands-on creation with leadership, pipeline oversight, and cross-team collaboration to deliver high-quality assets for upcoming AAA titles. You will mentor artists and drive character aesthetics and performance.

Formación

• Minimum 6 years in 3D character art for video games.
• Proven leadership or senior-level experience guiding artists.
• Expert in 3D modeling and texturing with major packages.
• Strong knowledge of anatomy, form and material definition.
• Experience with modern game engines and asset pipelines.
• Excellent communication and problem-solving skills.

Responsabilidades

• Lead and mentor a team of character artists with artistic and technical direction.
• Create high-quality 3D character models, including sculpting, retopology, UVs and textures.
• Establish character art style guides and ensure consistency.
• Collaborate with concept artists, riggers and animators to ensure production readiness.
• Optimize assets for performance and memory on target platforms.
• Review work, provide feedback and conduct quality control.

Conocimientos

Leadership

Creative direction

Strong communication

Problem solving

Mentoring

Team management

Herramientas

ZBrush

Maya

3ds Max

Substance Painter

Photoshop

Unreal Engine

Unity

Descripción del empleo

About the Role

Our client is seeking a talented and experienced Lead Character Artist to guide their character art team in bringing memorable personalities to life for their upcoming games. Based in our Randburg studio, you will be responsible for establishing the visual quality and artistic direction for all character assets. This role involves a blend of hands-on artistic creation, team leadership, and pipeline management. You will work closely with character designers, art directors, and engineers to ensure characters are visually stunning, technically sound, and perform optimally within the game engine.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and manage a team of character artists, providing artistic and technical direction.
• Create high-quality 3D character models, including sculpting, retopology, UV mapping, and texturing.
• Establish and maintain character art style guides and ensure consistency across all character assets.
• Collaborate with concept artists, riggers, and animators to ensure characters are production-ready.
• Optimize character assets for performance and memory usage on target platforms.
• Review work, provide constructive feedback, and conduct quality control for the character art team.

Requirements

• Minimum of 6 years of professional experience in 3D character art for video games.
• Proven experience in a leadership or senior role, guiding other artists.
• Expert proficiency in 3D modeling software (e.g., ZBrush, Maya, 3ds Max) and texturing tools (e.g., Substance Painter, Photoshop).
• Strong understanding of anatomy, form, proportion, and material definition.
• Experience with modern game engines (Unreal Engine, Unity) and their asset pipelines.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills.

Benefits

• Highly competitive salary and performance-based bonuses.
• Opportunity to work on exciting, AAA game titles in our Randburg studio.
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• Generous paid time off and holiday schedule.
• Professional development opportunities and access to industry training.
• Team-building events and a collaborative studio culture.