Houdini Artist

020 7494 9513

Houdini Artist

We are looking for people with a passion for, and skills in; lighting, rendering, lookdev, and much more in Houdini. We would love to hear from you if you are self-motivated, inquisitive, always looking for new and interesting ways of doing things and have a strong interest in exploring the latest technologies. Previous industry experience is required.

Role Details

The CG Artist - Houdini (CGAH) is a key role in researching and establishing Houdini workflows and implementing their successful use in our productions to help expand the efficiency, breadth and scope of CG work at Union. They will also lead designated projects, help to plan work-flow and technical/creative requirements and manage and oversee other artists to ensure the successful delivery of those projects.

The CGAH will have a strong creative eye and a comprehensive knowledge of complex visual effects and how they fit into the CG pipeline. The role will require strong analytical skills and the ability to translate complex information into practical and efficient solutions.

The CGAH will have an in-depth understanding of programming, workflow and software platforms alongside Houdini including Maya, Nuke, Shotgrid, Python, Mel and Deadline. They will have the experience to ensure the different processes interact seamlessly with each other and our existing pipeline.

The CGAH will be proactive, detail oriented, good at problem-solving and able to work both independently and as part of wider teams. They will have strong people and communication skills, excellent planning and organisational skills and the ability to prioritise. They will be required to engage, keep informed and manage the expectations of all relevant stakeholders, both internal and external, always remaining calm and professional.

They will help troubleshoot technical issues across projects, providing solutions to problems that will improve the production and project efficiency and will work closely with the Technology team to ensure an efficient workflow.  

The CGTS will have a passion for researching cutting edge technology in the realm of CG and assessing how that could be applied to the Union pipeline.   

Responsibilities:

  • Research, develop and implement Houdini workflows for areas including:·          

  • Lighting

  • FX/Crowd/Fur/Cloth

  • Layout

  • Asset building, Env etc

  • Help optimise and set up Houdini templates for shots and sequences

  • Problem solve on complex or problematic shots

  • Deliver assigned shots and as required help take shots to final

  • Manage time effectively to deliver to deadline while maintaining the highest levels of quality

  • Lighting  - match real world scenarios and set up CG lighting 

  • Scene assembly 

  • Basic compositing to ensure correct hand off to 2D

  • Pickup/use CG templates for shots and sequences

  • Attend daily reviews and briefings as appropriate

  • Participate in regular department meetings, provide information on workload and possible issues to HOD

  • Work in coordination with both CG and 2D VFX artists to ensure Union standards are maintained at all times 

  • Apply best practice and adhere to required protocols and security requirements

  • Ensure QC standards are met  

  • In line with Union company values, develop and maintain a positive, inclusive working environment in the department

​Skills, experience and knowledge:

  • Strong knowledge and experience of complex visual effects, CG tools and how they fit into the CG pipeline 

  • Current knowledge of creative techniques and the ability to adapt them to meet project requirements

  • An interest in the research and implementation of new technology

  • Able to collaborate with teams and communicate creative and technical thoughts and ideas clearly

  • A creative problem solver who is organized and able to multi-task and prioritize

  • Able to take direction and feedback positively and maturely and is critical of their own work

  • A positive can do approach and takes responsibility to deliver the final shot/sequence on schedule

  • Knowledge of FX and lighting with rendering in Houdini

  • Experience using Shotgrid or similar project management tool

  • Strong knowledge and experience of coding and coding practices

  • Knowledge and understanding of all things CG with experience in modelling, texturing, look development, layout and lighting

  • Strong experience using 3D softwares ie. Houdini, Maya, Substance Painter, Substance designer, Zbrush, Nuke

  • Experience of Arnold, Renderman, VRay or similar raytracing renderers

  • Knowledge of Python and/or Mel scripting

  • A great eye for detail and an accurate perception of form, scale and proportion

  • Strong understanding of light, colour and composition

  • High standard of quality control

Apply Now

Privacy Policy

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (2016/679 EU) (GDPR), when an employer collects personal data about an applicant during a recruitment process, whether this is directly from the applicant or from a third party such as a recruitment agency, it must provide the applicant with an information notice, also known as a privacy notice or fair processing notice. This notice must set out certain required information, including the purposes for which the data will be processed, the legal bases for processing and the period for which the data will be retained. The employer could provide the information notice on its website, and send a link or copy of the notice in correspondence to individual applicants. Where the employer uses a third-party recruitment portal, it could ensure that the details of the vacancy include a link to the information notice.

Employers should put in place policies setting out for how long recruitment data will be retained. The employer will need to retain some candidate data for the purpose of responding to potential employment tribunal claims arising out of the recruitment process. The employer should retain only the minimum data required for this purpose and only until the relevant limitation periods have expired. If the employer intends to keep the details of unsuccessful candidates on file for future recruitment rounds, it must notify them of this in the information notice. It should either obtain the candidates' consent, or notify them of their right to object (if it relies on its legitimate interests as the legal basis for processing).

The policy should cover how the employer will deal with unsolicited personal data, for example CVs submitted on a speculative basis. The policy could state that if the employer receives an unsolicited CV at a time when it is not recruiting, it will delete the CV and inform the candidate of this. If the employer holds unsolicited CVs on file for future recruitment rounds, it must inform the candidates of this in a privacy notice, along with the other required information.

Candidates have the right under the GDPR not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, for example automated shortlisting where candidates without a particular level of qualification are automatically filtered out before the applications are considered by the recruiters. Under the GDPR, employers can use automated decision-making only if it is:

If an employer does use automated decision-making, it must advise candidates of this in the information notice. It must also provide safeguards for the candidates, by allowing them to contest the automated decision and by giving them the right to an alternative means of making the decision, using human intervention.

If an employer uses third-party recruiters, for example a recruitment agency, where the recruiter processes applicant data on behalf of the employer, the recruiter will be a "processor" and will itself have obligations under the GDPR. The employer must ensure that its relationship with the recruiter meets the requirements of the GDPR, for example it must be satisfied that the processor will implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the protection of the rights of the data subjects.