Technical Artist

Get to know The Pokémon Company International

The Pokémon Company International, a subsidiary of The Pokémon Company in Japan, manages the property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand management, licensing, marketing, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokémon website. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular children's entertainment properties in the world.

Learn more online at corporate.pokemon.com and pokemon.com. And check out Twitter (twitter.com/pokemon), LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/Pokemon), YouTube (youtube.com/pokemon),  and Instagram (instagram.com/pokemon).

Get to know the role

• Job Title: Technical Artist
• Job Summary: The Technical Artist role will serve to connect our artists and engineers enabling our team to maintain and improve the efficiency and the efficacy of our content pipelines and workflows. The primary role is to develop tools, scripts, and plugins to facilitate art asset integration into the Unity engine. In addition, this role will regularly work to enhance workflows with animation controllers, character rigging, shaders, UI systems and perform regular performance optimization.
• FLSA Classification (US Only): Exempt
• People Manager: No

What you’ll do

• Work closely with Art Leads, Engineers, Animators, VFX and UI artists to support and improve workflows, pipelines and processes.
• Develop tools, scripts and plugins to improve and streamline art asset integration into the Unity build environment.  
• Set up animation controllers, state machines, triggers, events and timeline sequences.
• Efficiently and proactively solve problems, analyze performance metrics, perform optimizations and diagnose technical issues.
• Support the art team and designers by developing tools and processes to help prototype new concepts and ideas.
• Research and develop new tools and technologies.

What you’ll bring

• Five (5) to seven (7) years of relevant professional experience or a demonstrated equivalent level of expertise.
• Professional Unity experience with a thorough understanding of the engine’s framework.
• Highly proficient with high-level coding and scripting languages (C#, Python, etc).
• Strong working knowledge of industry standard DCC tools (Max, Maya, ZBrush, Substance, Photoshop, etc.)
• Can demonstrate a core understanding of 3D development, including modeling, texturing, materials, lighting, rendering, VFX and UI workflows.
• Experience with mobile gaming pipelines and efficient management of poly counts, texture memory, bone counts, render calls, and other technical considerations.
• Experience using Perforce version control and automation server environments like Jenkins.

How you’ll be successful

• Passion for Pokémon: Develops an understanding of the Pokémon brand, the impact it has on our people, culture, business, fans, and communities, and applying that knowledge and passion to everything you do.
• Challenging the Expected: Approaches challenges with curiosity and creativity, embracing the possibility of failure as an opportunity to learn something new, develop innovative ideas, solve complex problems and identify unique opportunities.  
• Integrity and Respect: Demonstrates integrity and respect by leading with empathy, listening to others, seeking out different perspectives, and taking personal responsibility for decisions, actions, and results.
• Dedicated to Quality: Takes ownership to maintain and promote high standards, looks for new ways to learn and improve, and embraces a growth mindset to seek and apply feedback from others in an effort to continuously improve. 
• Building Relationships: Develops and strengthens relationships, adopting a “team first” mentality and working collaboratively to solve problems and meet shared goals.  
• Delighting Customers: Listens and understands the interests and needs of our customers and stakeholders, making them feel heard and important, and embracing these learnings to continue delivering a unique Pokémon experience.

What to expect

• An employee first culture
• Company events that celebrate the spirit of Pokémon
• Competitive cash-based compensation programs
• Base salary range: For this role, new hires generally start between $91,000.00 - $108,300.00. The full range is $91,000.00 - $137,000.00. This range is applicable for the labor market where the role is intended to be hired. Final base salary is directly related to each candidates' qualifications and professional experience uniquely.
• 100% employer-paid healthcare premiums for you
• Generous paid family leave
• Employer-paid life insurance
• Employer-paid long and short-term income protection insurance
• US Employees: 401k Employer Matching
• UK/IRE Employees: Pension Employer Contributions
• Fitness reimbursement
• Commuter benefit
• LinkedIn learning
• Comprehensive relocation package
• Hybrid work environment

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this role. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required. Employees may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities from time to time, as needed. For roles in the United Kingdom, candidates will need the right to work. In some cases, and for some roles, the Company may be able to arrange a visa. For roles in Ireland, this role requires candidates to have the right to live and work in the Republic of Ireland. However, we welcome applications from all nationalities and may consider supporting an employment permit application, in appropriate and suitable cases.

#LI-JL1 #LI-Hybrid