Art & Animation Director

About the Company: Founded in 2007, Ill Fonic is an independent video game developer and publisher with studios in Lakewood, Colorado and Tacoma, Washington. Our staff is composed of video game, music, and technology veterans redefining how indie and middle-market games are made and marketed. Current and past titles / collaborations include Halloween: The Game, Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game, Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed, Arcadegeddon, Predator: Hunting Grounds, Friday the 13th: The Game, Dead Alliance, Star Citizen, Evolve, Armored Warfare, and Nexuiz.

Responsibilities: Define and maintain cohesive, high-fidelity visual styles and artistic direction across all game assets and disciplines Provide high-level creative direction and leadership across Environment, Tech Art, Outsourcing, VFX, Tech Animation, Animation, Lighting, Characters, UI/UX, and Concept Art teams Partner with Chief Creative Officer, Design Leads, and Engineering to unify creative vision with gameplay and technical goals Manage, mentor, and guide art leads and individual artists, fostering professional growth and strong team culture Evaluate and optimize art production pipelines and workflows to improve efficiency, performance, and asset quality Oversee external art outsourcing partners and asset leads to ensure visual consistency and high visual fidelity Collaborate to establish art benchmarks, visual target renders, and style guides for internal and external development Actively review and critique real-time lighting, shaders, environments, character models, animations, and visual effects in engine Participate in hiring, staffing plan reviews, and resource allocation across Art and Animation departments Requirements 10+ years of professional experience in video game art production, with 5+ years in Art Director roles Multiple shipped console and PC titles as an Art Director Proven track record leading multidisciplinary teams of artists across characters, environments, lighting, animation, and VFXExpert understanding of 3D modeling, sculpting, texturing, animation, lighting, and real-time engine workflows (ZBrush, Maya, 3ds Max, Substance Painter, Photoshop, Unreal Engine)Demonstrated expertise in building and streamlining art pipelines for high-fidelity real-time rendering Experience directing persistent world or live-service visual content and world building Strong portfolio/artstation demonstrating exceptional visual benchmark creation, character/environment design, and creative vision Cultural Fit Collaborative leader who thrives in cross-functional team environments Passionate mentor dedicated to developing artist talent and raising team quality standards Resourceful problem solver with a hands-on approach to artistic and technical pipeline challenges Excellent communicator capable of inspiring artists and aligning multi-discipline stakeholders Bonus Prior experience working with and expanding existing intellectual property Deep familiarity with Unreal Engine