Cinematic Artist I or Cinematic Artist II (Contract) Job at Idol Minds LLC in Br

Deck Nine Games seeks a passionate Cinematic Artist to craft unforgettable interactive narratives. This demanding role requires a keen eye for visual storytelling, a strong understanding of cinematic language, and expertise in Unreal Engine. You'll collaborate with a talented team to bring compelling stories to life through expert camera work, dynamic editing, and evocative lighting.

As a Cinematic Artist, you are responsible for using your skills in storytelling through cinematography, lighting, dialog, animation, and sound to create compelling dramatic cut scenes for the game. The ideal candidate has a a clear understanding of staging, camera work (animation basics), pacing, editing, lighting and sound. Your demo reel may not be extensive but will show a passion for telling stories and an understanding of the art and craft needed.

This is a contract position. The anticipated duration of this assignment is 5-7 months. Salary and Title depends on experience and will be decided upon with the final candidate. All applications must be submitted through ADP.

Responsibilities & Duties:

• Utilizing our in-house tools & Unreal Sequencer, create unforgettable cinematics with an acute emphasis on the edit, camera work and final dramatic performance.
• Work closely with directors, leads, writers and designers to understand the story and emotional beats of each cinematic sequence. Translate scripts and storyboards into compelling visual experiences.
• Collaborate with animators, environment and VFX artists to ensure a cohesive visual style and seamless integration of cinematics into the game.
• Ability to take direction and implement feedback.
• Diagnose and address technical issues & bugs with ones own work.
• The ability to switch quickly between mindsets and responsibilities and balance both equally under tight, high pressure deadlines.
• Manage and intimately understand complex branching logic and game flow required in telling narrative driven games.
• Actively engage in the game development process, providing feedback on narrative and gameplay elements.

Lighting responsibilities:

• While this is not a full-fledged lighting position, you will be required to assist in in lighting cinematics under guidance of the Art Director and Lead Lighting Artist.
• Preferably previous experience with Unreal Engine and/or Lumen as a lighting system.
• Core understanding of basic lighting principles.
• Ability to learn and apply lighting knowledge quickly with a focus on lighting characters in cinematic sequences.
• Accept and implement critical feedback from the Art Director and Cinematic Lighting Lead.
• Collaborate/iterate until hitting a polished shippable quality identified by the Art Director.
• Develop & maintain an innovative and creative eye for lighting .
• Understand and adhere to an established lighting style core to the IP.

Qualifications:

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively within a remote team environment.
• Proven ability to create high-quality, emotionally resonant in-game cinematics and lighting.
• Strong understanding of cinematography principles, including composition, camera movement, lighting, and editing.
• Experience with Unreal 4/5 sequencer producing cinematic content for a previous game.
• Past experience working with mocap, sound design, lighting, or tool work a plus.
• Passion for narrative adventure games and interactive storytelling.
• Must be online and available between Deck Nine's core hours of 10am-4pm MST while maintaining a full 8 hour working day.
• Must have online demo reel.