Senior Technical Artist

The gaming studio behind: ⚽ Football Manager.

Founded in 1994, Sports Interactive (‘SI’) became a wholly owned subsidiary of SEGA Europe in 2006. Based at the Here East technology hub in Stratford, East London, the SI team continues to expand as we bring our titles to an ever-growing audience across an increasing variety of platforms.

To support our growth, we welcome the opportunity to connect with passionate people with the drive to match our ambitions and initiative to realise your individual potential.

We are looking for a Senior Technical Artist with a strong Unity background to join our Art & Animation Team, working on Football Manager™.

Our Tech Art Team comprises hybrid creative and technical operators who liaise between the art and the programming teams. They have visual skills as well as programming and product knowledge to understand each discipline and problem solve between departments.

Senior Technical Artist is a multifaceted role responsible for bridging artistic vision and technical expertise in a game development environment. They comprehend the functional impact of artistic development across the business, possesses cross-team knowledge, and communicate effectively with various teams and specialities.

By staying up to date with industry trends and technologies, the Senior Technical Artist ensures seamless integration of art assets and fosters a culture of innovation and progress. The role reports to the Art & Animation Producer, as well as the Principal Technical Artist, but also maintains regular contact with the Lead Environment Artist, Principal Animator and Senior Character Artist.

• Understand the functional impact of artistic development in other areas of the business; identify potential bottlenecks and blockers to artistic progress at an early stage and communicate clear ideas and concepts to the Principal Technical Artist/Art & Animation Producer.
• Keep abreast of technologies and methods to ensure we are following best practise at a minimum, look to develop methods where possible.
• Development of tools, workflows, and technologies to help support the Art Team.
• Monitor product lifecycles and technologies to recommend improvements.
• Help define and develop a coherent artistic vision, support documentation through design blueprints and collaborate with discipline leads/Art & Animation Producer to drive artistic direction.
• Help and assist in onboarding and mentoring staff, providing a cross functional liaison between specialities.

• Implement advanced rendering techniques to optimise performance and visual quality.
• Lighting and atmosphere development from an artistic and technical perspective, supporting visual fidelity and optimisation.
• Assist with the maintenance of texture, shader, and material libraries.
• Identify and troubleshoot technical issues in the Art pipeline.
• Design and create high-quality game assets while adhering to/implementing technical standards.
• Collaborate with the wider Art & Animation team to provide assets compatible with Animation/Match Team pipelines.

• 4+ years’ experience using Unity and strong working knowledge of best practices within it.
• C# scripting within Unity is essential – Python within 3D applications is a bonus.
• Fluent in a range of software, including Maya and Substance.
• Knowledge of Z-Brush, Houdini or Blender not essential but would be a bonus.
• Ability to produce realistic assets, including environments, props. Characters experience is not essential but is a bonus.
• Strong communication skills essential.
• Passionate about art and user experience in games.
• Interest in Football Manager and the wider world of football is very beneficial.

• A flexible working policy to best suit you and your team 🏠
• Subsidised mental health, therapy and coaching sessions are available 😌
• Contributory Pension Scheme (up to 7% of annual salary) 🏦
• Free onsite evening bar in the Sports Interactive London HQ 🍹
• A well-stocked breakfast bar with cereals, fruits, teas, and coffees 🥣
• Regular events in collaboration with our partnered football clubs 🏟️
• Access to our on-site physical and massage therapist services 💆
• Multiple clubs and societies to join e.g., book club and art workshops 🫶
• Free access to games released under the SEGA Europe umbrella 🕹️
• A range of Gym Membership options through our Benefits partners 🏋️
• Fully Subsidised Healthcare and Dental Plans 🦷
• Free Travel Insurance for yourself and your family ✈️
• A personalised football shirt upon passing probation 👕

We approach everything with passion, whether that is making our mark on the gaming and football industries or doing our bit for the world around us. We want to share that outlook with everyone who shows up to work here each day.

For us, talent wins games, but teamwork wins titles. Collaboration is the key to constantly topping our best. We believe everyone matters, no matter which part of the business you are in, so we encourage and support our people in driving your own growth and realising your full potential. But, more than anything else, we are a team. A team with a down-to-earth dynamic, that has a lot of fun doing what we do.

And whether that’s technical tweaks or fine-tuning our creative process, everything is geared at producing the best game possible for our players. To do that, we need to be tenacious and move quickly, and not be afraid of switching things up. It is these principles that have enabled us to produce a game that has defined year after year, and that will continue to push us for many more to come.

Our flexible working culture gives you the opportunity to optimise your workload, with in-office, hybrid, and remote working options dependent on role. So, if you want a work/life balance, we are behind you. Because while we live to create extraordinary games, we know that is not all you have got going on. You can trust that we always keep things in perspective, fostering an environment where work can be more than just a job.

We’re also a London Living Wage employer, boast one of the lowest staff turnover rates in the industry and are proud to have won the ‘Best Places to Work’ award by Gamesindustry.biz in 2023.

We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from any relevant candidate irrespective of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, religion, or belief. SI is proudly a Disability Confident Committed employer, and we are dedicated to ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible. Our studio has disabled access and facilities but please ensure you advise us if you require any other reasonable adjustments to be made to support you during the recruitment process.

• Keep collaborating: We know that talent wins games, but teamwork wins titles. We encourage a level playing field, where no matter the department, title or niche, ideas belong to everyone. And because we have each other's backs, no-one needs to look over their shoulder. It's what brings us success, without the stuffiness.
• Be agile: The football world never stands still and neither does the entertainment industry. We have to stay ahead as the beautiful game changes and keeps innovating. We can't be afraid to switch things up. To pitch 'out-there' thinking and put ourselves out there. Think fast and adapt faster.
• Stay Tenacious: We don't overlook the details. Think dog. Think bone. Whether it's technical tweaks or fine-tuning our creative process, everything we do is about producing the best game possible. In other words, never settle. It took tenacious spirits to create a game that defined decade after decade. It'll take tenacious people to push us for decades to come.
• Show Ambition: We're not lone wolves, we know a pack mentality makes magic happen. But it doesn’t hurt to let your own drive lead the way. That energy is infectious... show up and share it with your team. Make the studio's purpose personal. Your individual outlook can give everyone the edge.
• Bring the Passion: Don't be fooled, what we do is not a game. We have the power to make our players' passion come to life and make their lives better. And with great power comes great... you guessed it. We take that responsibility seriously, even if we have fun doing it. We want people to love our games, so we need to feel the passion too.
• Consider the Bigger Picture: There's more at play than just selling games. We want our impact to be a positive one. From the flexibility that brings our team members a better work/life balance, to initiatives that make our studio kind to the planet whilst fighting against discrimination and trying to help make the world a better place, we keep things in perspective. And we give a damn about giving back. It makes our wins mean even more when we pay it forward.