Senior VFX Rigger
This position is based in Vancouver, BC. (Some remote work may be considered within the BC area). All applicants must reside in the lower Mainland of BC, Canada.
About Zoic
Zoic Studios is a Visual Effects company that specializes in high end visual effects for television, film, and advertising. Our mantra is Visual Evolution - we focus on every part of the process, from the final picture to the pipeline used to create them.
Are you looking for your next creative and technical challenge? Come join our team!
Why Join Zoic?
- We are an Artist owned and operated VFX studio.
- We love what we do and always stay curious about new technology and techniques.
- We respect work/life balance in a hectic industry.
- We work with a team from all walks of life and backgrounds.
There’s an exciting new project that we’ll be working on at Zoic. It's a stop-motion animated feature that will be starting up in June 2024 and will continue on into the Fall of 2025.
For this particular show most of the Zoic employees assigned to the project will be working within our Zoic Vancouver Studios. Coming together as a team within our studio will help create the excitement and positive work environment we want for this special project.
General Summary
The Sr VFX Rigger is responsible for the creation, delivery and maintenance of high-level rigs. This position works closely with project leadership to determine topology requirements and provides technical assistance and expertise to facilitate animation workflow.
Job Functions
- Create, maintain, improve and support rigs through production, including any necessary scripts and tools to facilitate any animation requests.
- Ability to create and maintain the existing Python code base used in rig creation.
- Develop flexible and rebuildable rig modules that integrate with the existing Python code base.
- Work across multiple departments such as modeling, animation and character effects in order to trouble shoot creative and technical issues.
- Perform modeling and animation tasks for rig development, as needed.
- Work with crowd team to support rigging needs for large crowds, and work with the motion capture expectations to support rigging needs for shoots.
- Communicate effectively with production and leadership regarding asset performance expectations, pipeline compatibility and deadlines.
- Assist to ensure the team meets production deadlines as established by production.
- Assist with mentoring, training and development of talent within the department.
Qualifications
- 5 years of CG/Visual Effects feature rigging experience on theatrically released films.
- Strong knowledge of rigging in Maya, Python, Maya node networks, how they relate to rigging, and how to effectively debug at a node/connection level.
- Proven ability developing Python scripts, tools and/or C++ plugins within a CG animation pipeline. MEL, PyQt, bash, a plus.
- Strong understanding of Motion Capture integration for rigs and related workflows.
- Strong understanding of scripted rig build systems, animation/rigging pipelines and manual rigging techniques.
- Experience building a wide variety of rigs (organic/mechanical/prop/body/face/costume, etc.).
- 3D math knowledge and strong understanding of geometry, kinematics and deformation.
- Background in visual arts/design with a strong understanding of form and movement, preferred.
- Modeling skills and ability to understand and troubleshoot polygonal mesh flow for deformation.
- Proficiency working in a Linux environment.
- Expertise running cloth, nCloth and hair simulation, a plus.
Additional information
- British Columbia Employees Pay Range: $45 - $65 (The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and if applicable, the location of the position)
- Candidates MUST be located in the Lower Mainland, British Columbia. This Role requires the candidate to work onsite, within our Vancouver Studio in Gastown. Some remote work may be considered..
- Zoic does not cover relocation costs.
- Any and all remote positions require the candidate to have a reliable internet connection via ethernet and work on Pacific Standard Time.
- This job description contains the basic requirements for the position and is NOT intended to be a complete list of responsibilities; other duties may be assigned.
- Due to the sheer volume of applications we receive, we regret that only those selected to interview will be contacted.
This position is based in Vancouver. All applicants must reside in British Columbia.
Permanent Residents and Canadians only, please.,
Top Skills
What We Do
"Visual Evolution" is our mission-to evolve the story, art, and technology of the moving image, and through this evolution, broaden the audience for moving images.
Partnership, integrity, and enthusiasm are the key founding principles at Zoic. Our projects are born in think tanks, where every idea has value and potential. Good ideas are fleshed out, and a plan for achieving a visual representation of the idea is set early in the creative process. During production we remain accountable to our word and, as changes occur, we change together. We believe that partnerships that remain intact finish with integrity. Most importantly, we love what we do.
Zoic is a company of accomplished artists and producers who understand story, process, and relationships. Our team has a proven record of success. They are masters in their fields of 3D, Compositing, and Production Management. Their reputations, in turn, attract additional talent and encourage a strong work ethic.
We have built a digital infrastructure, which is flexible and strong to support the staff. It is a "liquid" pipeline, designed by our team for rapid expansion and contraction. It is resolution- independent and changeable based on project needs. Leading visual technology firms provide additional support and insight to the latest methods. We work with these partners as we do with our creative partners: by promoting visual evolution as fast as technology allows.
What we do can seem complex and foreign--even incomprehensible. It is our intention to educate and encourage others to embrace this change and together create something new.
