Description
Electronic Arts creates incredible entertainment experiences that inspire players and fans worldwide. Here, everyone is part of the story, part of a community that connects people globally.
EA SPORTS is one of the most iconic brands in entertainment, connecting hundreds of millions around the world to the sports they love through a portfolio of industry-leading video games.
The EA SPORTS Tech Art team provides specialised technology teams working on modern character articulation and motion, content pipelines and workflows, machine learning, game security, dev ops, as well as long lead feature and technology development for all EA SPORTS titles. As part of EA SPORTS Tech, the Initiatives Team pushes visual boundaries and experiences for players. They invest in future technologies, shared tooling, and production workflows, combining creativity and imagination with technical expertise.
The Role
We are looking for a Senior Technical Artist to bridge the gap between creative vision and technical execution. In this role, you will act as a force multiplier for art teams across sports titles, designing scalable art pipelines, optimising real-time performance, and developing innovative workflows for characters, environments, lighting, or VFX.
Reporting to a Technical Art Director, you will lead complex technical initiatives, mentor junior and mid-level technical artists, and collaborate closely with Rendering Engineers, Art Directors, and Tools Developers to push the boundaries of visual fidelity in sports games.
Key Responsibilities
- Pipeline & Tool Development: Architect, build, and maintain robust, scalable art creation and content integration pipelines using Python, C#, or DCC scripting (Maya, Houdini, Blender).
- Performance & Optimisation: Lead runtime performance profiling (GPU/CPU, memory, draw calls) across current and next-gen hardware platforms, establishing performance budgets and best practices for art teams.
- Engine Integration: Deeply integrate procedural workflows, complex shaders, rigging systems, and visual effects into the proprietary engine.
- Cross-Discipline Collaboration: Work as a primary liaison between artists and software engineers,translating creative needs into technical specifications and engineering requirements into user-friendly art tools.
- Technical Leadership & Mentorship: Guide and mentor mid and junior-level technical artists, advocate for best practices, and contribute to standardising technical art workflows across the Sports Tech organisation.
- R&D & Innovation: Prototype new rendering techniques, procedural content generation setups, and digital human or apparel workflows to elevate visual realism across titles.
Qualifications
- Experience: 6+ years of professional experience in video game production or visual effects, with at least 3+ years in a Technical Art role.
- Engine Expertise: Deep experience working with modern game engines (e.g., Unreal Engine, Unity, or proprietary AAA engines) with a strong understanding of rendering pipelines, lighting, materials, and asset assembly.
- DCC Proficiency: Advanced expertise in Maya and/or Houdini, including scripting and tool creation.
- Programming/Scripting: Strong skills in Python (PySide/PyQt for GUI development is a plus) and familiarity with HLSL/GLSL shader languages or visual shader graphs.
- Performance Profiling: Proven track record of optimising game performance using profiling tools (RenderDoc, PIX, Razor, or engine-native profilers).
- Problem-Solving & Communication: Outstanding communication skills with the ability to explain complex technical concepts clearly to non-technical stakeholders.
Desirable / Bonus Skills
- Experience with procedural workflows (Houdini Engine / PCG).
- Experience with character technical art (rigging, skinning, cloth dynamics, or facial pipelines).
- Familiarity with modern sports tech domains (stadium generation, dynamic crowd systems, realistic biomechanics, or apparel capture).
- Background in C++ development or extending DCC plugins.
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts offers a wide range of games and experiences, locations worldwide, and opportunities within EA. The company values adaptability, resilience, creativity, and curiosity.
Benefits
The company adopts a comprehensive approach with benefit programs focusing on physical, emotional, financial, professional, and community wellbeing to support a balanced life. Packages are customised to meet local needs and may include medical insurance, mental wellbeing support, pension plans, paid leave, family permits, free games, and more.