Riot Games
Associate Art Director, Characters - Unpublished R&D Product
Riot Games, Los Angeles, California, United States, 90079
Associate Art Directors at Riot oversee the quality and management of a team with a focus on Mission, Direction, and Cohesion. Your scope of responsibilities covers the Character Art efforts on a project where you are accountable for your team's deliverables and artistic quality. These responsibilities include overall culture, performance and growth of your direct reports as the team grows through prototype, pre production and production.
As the
Associate Art Director, Characters on an Unpublished R&D Game
you'll be accountable for designing, implementing, and maintaining a healthy organizational structure to meet objectives of the product. You will build a vision for and direct a character team to execute the visual direction, quality, and cohesion of the player characters, gear, and creatures of the world. Additionally, you will find the right balance between creating beautiful characters and the gameplay/product needs. You will report to the Art Director.
Responsibilities:
Create & guide the look/feel of 3D character and creature assets required to realize the the diversity of cultures and creatures in the worldManage, mentor, and review the work of your team to meet quality expectations and performance standardsExplore different development techniques that allow for rapid content creation at scaleUse your understanding of optimized systems for asset creation to take into account efficiency, speed, and cross dependenciesPartner with recruiting to hire world-class artists to build a team that can scale to meet the development goals of the productChampion the development of efficient character art pipelinesCreate a stylized character art approach using current character art production workflowsCreate performance artwork that is modular and is highly readable to maximize gameplay clarityBuild outsourcing strategies and necessary documentation to ensure internal and external teams are set up for successBuild and maintain a diverse, healthy, highly functional Character Art team globally that's strongly aligned with Riot Values, working quickly and effectively to resolve team health issuesRequired Qualifications:
Experience working with modern game engines such as Unreal, Unity, or proprietary technologies10+ years of industry experience5+ years of professional experience as a Senior or Lead Character Artist4+ years of management experienceProficient skills in 3D/2D Software - Maya, 3DS Max, Substance, ZbrushProfessional or personal experience working on stylized game artDesired Qualifications:
Experience working in player character customization systemsDevelopment experience creating materials and PBR assets within Unreal, UnityFamiliarity with the League of Legends IPFor this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!
Our Perks:
Riot has a focus on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy, in addition to other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.
Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the
Summoner's Code
and
Community Code
. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of
thriving together
and our ongoing work to build the
most inclusive company in Gaming
.
It's our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the SanFrancisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.
Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:
Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company dataCommunication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minorsAccessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networksEnsuring a safe interactive environment for players and other RiotersThese duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.
(Los Angeles Only)
Base salary range between $176,400.00 - $245,700.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.
As the
Associate Art Director, Characters on an Unpublished R&D Game
you'll be accountable for designing, implementing, and maintaining a healthy organizational structure to meet objectives of the product. You will build a vision for and direct a character team to execute the visual direction, quality, and cohesion of the player characters, gear, and creatures of the world. Additionally, you will find the right balance between creating beautiful characters and the gameplay/product needs. You will report to the Art Director.
Responsibilities:
Create & guide the look/feel of 3D character and creature assets required to realize the the diversity of cultures and creatures in the worldManage, mentor, and review the work of your team to meet quality expectations and performance standardsExplore different development techniques that allow for rapid content creation at scaleUse your understanding of optimized systems for asset creation to take into account efficiency, speed, and cross dependenciesPartner with recruiting to hire world-class artists to build a team that can scale to meet the development goals of the productChampion the development of efficient character art pipelinesCreate a stylized character art approach using current character art production workflowsCreate performance artwork that is modular and is highly readable to maximize gameplay clarityBuild outsourcing strategies and necessary documentation to ensure internal and external teams are set up for successBuild and maintain a diverse, healthy, highly functional Character Art team globally that's strongly aligned with Riot Values, working quickly and effectively to resolve team health issuesRequired Qualifications:
Experience working with modern game engines such as Unreal, Unity, or proprietary technologies10+ years of industry experience5+ years of professional experience as a Senior or Lead Character Artist4+ years of management experienceProficient skills in 3D/2D Software - Maya, 3DS Max, Substance, ZbrushProfessional or personal experience working on stylized game artDesired Qualifications:
Experience working in player character customization systemsDevelopment experience creating materials and PBR assets within Unreal, UnityFamiliarity with the League of Legends IPFor this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!
Our Perks:
Riot has a focus on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy, in addition to other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.
Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the
Summoner's Code
and
Community Code
. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of
thriving together
and our ongoing work to build the
most inclusive company in Gaming
.
It's our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the SanFrancisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.
Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:
Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company dataCommunication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minorsAccessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networksEnsuring a safe interactive environment for players and other RiotersThese duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.
(Los Angeles Only)
Base salary range between $176,400.00 - $245,700.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.