FX Animator / FX Artist

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
  • Designs and creates images, elements and effects (such as fire, smoke, crowds)
  • Solid understanding of Maya to be able to use it for particle systems, fields, expressions, MEL scripts, soft bodies, rigid bodies, cloth dynamics and particle instancing/flocking
  • Develop EFX system independently for production use
  • Effectively use in production an EFX system that another FX Animator developed (i.e. bubbles, Creatively solve problems and achieve art direction given to them for a shot
  • Work with other departments and other FX animators to achieve the goals of art direction given
  • Solve minor problems independently 
  • Strong artistic vision and ability to be creative and expand upon the art direction given
  • Strong sense of design and composition
  • Strong understanding of Animation and how things should look, feel and move
  • Some experience writing scripts and/or programming is preferred
  • Ability to multi-task on multiple shots whether similar or different
  • Prioritize tasks
  • Work on shots independently and efficiently
  • Patient and willing to answer questions and mentor other artists
  • Stays abreast of current technologies and attempt to implement them effectively
  • Shows follow thru and is punctual at dailies


Qualifications, Education and/or Experience
  • Experience involving simulations of natural phenomenon, particle systems, procedural modeling, procedural animation, hard and soft body dynamics and other similar effects
  • Must have visual and technical skills 
  • Ability to work collaboratively in a high-end software and production environment
  • A background in computer programming, preferably in C or C++ and UNIX
  • An understanding of physical dynamics and natural phenomena is key