Black Forest Games is part of the fastest-growing publisher in Europe, Embracer Group, and the biggest studio of THQ Nordic Vienna. Our last release was the highly successful remake of ‘Destroy All Humans!’.
Here in the south of Germany, directly at the French border, we combine the creative freedom and culture of an independent studio with the financial security of a big publisher. 
We are an international team, and we foster diversity. Sharing this mindset is a must for us. We are happy about every candidate that contributes to the diversity of our team. 

Lead VFX Artist (f/m/d)

We are currently looking for a Lead VFX Artist to work with us on our upcoming projects with Unreal Engine 5.
To create our VFX we are using the tools which Epic provides (such as Niagara, Blueprints etc.) as well as a variety of licensed software (e.g. MAX, Substance Designer, Photoshop, ZBrush and Houdini FX, which become more and more a central part of our pipeline). In general, we are very flexible and open-minded about new techniques and software.
The ideal candidate should have the passion and the skills to support your team members: planning the project, building up the teams, briefing them and helping them develop. For that reason, it is a must that you enjoy communicating openly and helping people bring the best in themselves to work.
As a VFX lead, we are also looking for someone that is eager to create VFX which are visually stunning, well-timed, often interactive, and still performant. We are looking for someone who enjoys pushing for innovation with very strong communication and organizational skills.

Responsibilities: 

• Create Visual effects using Unreal 5 and a variety of technical approaches, matching the visual style of the game.
• Create the required VFX assets (meshes, textures, flow maps, image sequences, vertex animations, etc.)
• Communicate with designers to collect all relevant information for effective creation and to brief team members.
• Work together with the VFX director, Tech Art, and Code to ensure the highest quality and best performance for effects.
• Follow through with an effect and keep it on the radar until it is fully implemented and working as intended.
• Plan and create VFX task lists, assigning tasks and monitoring them until approval.
• Feeding and Maintaining the VFX pipeline with outsourcing companies.
• R&D for the effect pipeline – new tricks and techniques.
• Work on further improvements and customization of our existing effects toolset. (E.g. helping to build a library of useful material functions, Niagara module, VFX blueprints, etc.).
• Manage your team by having 1-t-1, conducting annual reviews and mentoring team members
• Communicate with Art Direction and HR about team-related topics (training, career opportunities, etc.).
• Participate in recruitment processes for the team (evaluate CVs and portfolios, interview candidates, give feedback, assist the decision making)

Requirements: 

• 5+ years experience as a VFX artist in a studio
• Experience with Unreal 5 (Niagara, Blueprints, etc.).
• Experience with Realtime VFX the obstacles and challenges.
• Being capable of VFX asset creation (meshes, textures, flow maps, image sequences, vertex animations, etc.).
• Ability to adapt to visual styles.
• Ability to create custom shaders and post effects.
• Inquisitive mindset and creative approach to work: capable to create effects in a constrained environment (project-specific performance requirements, amount of emitters and particles, etc.).
• Organized and responsible workflow to maintain file hygiene.
• Excellent communication skills and proven ability to work within a team.
• Self-driven mindset and being able to take over complex tasks and construction sites
• Good people skills and the ability to see and develop the talent of team members

Pluses: 

• Experience with video visual effects software particles e.g.  Adobe After Effects.
• Keen interest in CGI effects production.
• Basic programming or scripting skills.
• Passion to grow your skillset and to include a variety of techniques into your effects. (e.g., metaballs, fluid simulation, morphing, complex particle behaviour, etc.).
• Willingness to invest in tools design, further development, and documentation (sending your requests to the tools code team).
• General CG artistic skills, such as animation, camera work, and hand drawing skills.

We would like to see your portfolio and reel.

What else do we offer?

• Flexible working hours
• 30 days of holiday
• Competitive salary
• Green office, fresh fruits, coffee and drinks
• Additional free health insurance
• Pension Plan
• Mental health support
• Free accident insurance
• Fitness area in the studio
• Free English & German language classes
• Stability of a successful publisher paired with the creative freedom of an independent studio

And the chance to work with a great team in an open culture where your opinion and input are welcomed and considered, beyond your dedicated task.

Why join Black Forest Games?

We are a team with a long history of looking for long-term companions – we are hiring for the studio, not for the project. This is an important part of our company philosophy. Talent is always welcome, no matter where you are from. We offer a family-friendly work-life balance and a lot of flexibility. Here you can work on IPs known worldwide and help shape them. 
As a bonus, Black Forest Games is located in one of the most beautiful and wealthiest areas in South Germany, located close to Strasbourg, Karlsruhe, and Basel. Getting here is easy because of the excellent traffic conditions, 3 airports about 30 minutes away, and the Autobahn & ICE station right around the corner. All of this in a region where kids still play in nature and ride to school by bike. 
Love everything about us but you don’t want to live in Germany? No problem, lots of our developers are living across the border in Strasbourg, France and get here easily by train or car. Strasbourg is one of the biggest cities in France with 500.000 citizens. 

Please send your application to jobs@bfgames.biz.