Special Effects Artist jobs

Welcome to Warner Bros. Discovery… the stuff dreams are made of.

Who We Are…

When we say, “the stuff dreams are made of,” we’re not just referring to the world of wizards, dragons and superheroes, or even to the wonders of Planet Earth. Behind WBD’s vast portfolio of iconic content and beloved brands, are the storytellers bringing our characters to life, the creators bringing them to your living rooms and the dreamers creating what’s next…

From brilliant creatives, to technology trailblazers, across the globe, WBD offers career defining opportunities, thoughtfully curated benefits, and the tools to explore and grow into your best selves. Here you are supported, here you are celebrated, here you can thrive.

Rocksteady Studios is an award-winning, critically acclaimed video game developer. Founded in 2004, we are home to the widely celebrated Batman: Arkham series of games. Our philosophy for game development is all about treating people well to create quality entertainment that stands the test of time. We’re a one-project studio that built our success by combining genre-defining gameplay and character-driven cinematic narrative with AAA production values. Born in the heart of London, our multicultural team takes inspiration from the culture and history of our home in one of the most diverse cities in the world.

SENIOR LIGHTING ARTIST

Rocksteady is looking for a talented Senior Lighting Artist to join our team and help bring our game worlds to life. In this role, you'll create compelling lighting scenarios that enhance mood, atmosphere, and storytelling, showcasing your creativity in experiences enjoyed by millions of players around the world.

As a Senior Lighting Artist, you'll have significant creative ownership and a direct influence on the visual quality of the game. Working closely with the Lead Lighting Artist and the wider art team, you'll craft distinctive, high-quality lighting that balances realism with a subtle stylised edge, helping to deliver stunning and immersive player experiences.

This is a permanent position, and we offer hybrid working arrangements to support a healthy work-life balance. This includes two days working in office on a Tuesday and Wednesday, and three days working remotely.

Responsibilities:

• Work collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams, including Designers, Artists, Technical Artists, and Engineers, to define, create, and optimise real-time lighting solutions that enhance visual quality, support gameplay, and perform within platform limitations.
• Be a key point of contact with other departments and support the Lead Lighting Artist.
• Partner with the Lighting Lead, Art Director and Cinematic Director to realize the project’s artistic vision ensuring lighting brings up the quality of the art assets.
• Drive the creation of high-quality lighting content that balances artistic excellence with technical performance requirements.
• Optimise lighting solutions to meet budget targets and provide mentorship and oversight to other Lighting Artists in the effective management of lighting budgets.
• Responsible for mentoring junior and midlevel Lighting Artists to develop their skills, whilst delegating tasks to them where appropriate.

Requirements:

• Completed at least one full AAA production cycle on current-generation console hardware, with at least two shipped titles as a dedicated Lighting Artist.
• Comfortable working with and adapting to a range of lighting and shading techniques, including baked lighting, dynamic deferred lighting, IBL, and real-time and offline global illumination, with a strong understanding of how to get the best from each system.
• Ability to use lighting to support readability and enhance the player experience, rather than distract from or hinder it.
• Highly proficient in Unreal Engine 4 and 5, with experience using Blueprint.
• Excellent knowledge of lighting, colour theory, and image composition, demonstrated through a strong portfolio.
• Knowledge of PBR shading in current gen games. Must know how light and materials behave in the real world and how this applies in game.
• Excellent communication skill and a proactive attitude towards teamwork.

Hybrid Working - This role is advertised as a Hybrid work model, that combines remote and in-office work, following our current company policy and to be agreed with your Line Manager. Subject to any applicable laws, WBD / your Line Manager reserves the right to change this working agreement where this is essential to business needs and upon reasonable notice to you.

How We Get Things Done…

This last bit is probably the most important! Here at WBD, our guiding principles are the core values by which we operate and are central to how we get things done. You can find them at www.wbd.com/guiding-principles/ along with some insights from the team on what they mean and how they show up in their day to day. We hope they resonate with you and look forward to discussing them during your interview.

Championing Inclusion at WBD

Warner Bros. Discovery embraces the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects a wide array of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit, regardless of sex, gender identity, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, disability or any other category protected by law.

If you’re a qualified candidate with a disability and you require adjustments or accommodations during the job application and/or recruitment process, please visit our accessibility page for instructions to submit your request.