Sr Producer (Narrative)

Join the award-winning team that created God of War

Santa Monica Studio is seeking an experienced Sr. Producer for our Narrative team in the development of a new, unannounced title!

The Production Team at SMS excels at creative problem solving and communication. We thrive on being at the intersection of people and productivity as the glue that holds the studio together. Whether by being leaders of the craft of project management or partners who will clear the path ahead, the production team is here in service to the studio, to move development forward and achieve quality.

A Senior Producer for the narrative team is relied upon to own strategizing, lead long-term planning efforts as well as to direct ground level production activities around narrative realization across disciplines. Responsibilities include partnering with the lead producer, creative directors and leads, guiding and directing other producers and collaborating with studio managers to own the creation, maintenance & execution of a project plan to determine resource, budget and schedule needs.

Responsibilities

• Run the production pipeline for narrative throughout all phases of the product development cycle from design through final approval
• Craft and maintain a comprehensive project plan, schedule, scope and resource forecast for multiple disciplines along a complex production pipeline
• Manage day-to-day production issues to allow the team to achieve the highest possible game quality. Schedule and maintain tasking of departmental and interdisciplinary teams
• Lead and direct other Producers and Associate Producers to balance resources and ensure correct prioritization to ship our games to quality, schedule and budget
• Break down large complex initiatives, features and challenges into manageable portions and actionable steps
• Assimilate diverse information and assess the impact on each phase of production and on the project as a whole
• Identify all groups that may be affected by a goal, actively solicit their input and follow up by strong execution
• Ensure a common understanding and agreement on project scope, objectives and impact of any changes
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with internal development team, primarily partnering with the game director, discipline directors and leads
• Collaborate with managers concerning personnel issues and team member individual growth, such as meeting task expectations, actively tasking individuals toward determined growth goals
• Contribute to the development of new theories, methodologies and approaches in collaboration with creative partners. Support the creative vision by utilizing curiosity, judgement and anticipating change in order to direct or redirect efforts as needed to achieve results

Requirements

• Experience with traditional Waterfall production management techniques along with Agile techniques, including SCRUM or Kanban. PMP or equivalent certification a plus
• Excellent organizational & prioritization skills, attention to detail, process knowledge and ability to multi-task
• Experience with Microsoft Office (emphasis on Excel), Hansoft, JIRA, Confluence and other project tracking and bug database software
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to communicate effectively across product development and management teams
• Experience working with high performing creative teams and demonstrated ability to partner effectively in a high pressure, collaborative environment
• Proven conflict management skills with a strength in mediation leading to resolution of risk and roadblocks
• Minimum 10 years of games industry experience in an internal development environment in a production role
• Direct, hands-on narrative production experience for realizing narrative content in-game from the writing, designing, all the way through to implementation of the narrative content for narrative systems, cutscenes, and banter for AAA games
• Knowledgeable of performance capture pipelines and the preparation needed for motion capture shoots and voice over recording sessions for AAA games
• At least one shipped AAA PC and/or console title as a Senior Producer
• Mastery of a variety of project management techniques in an internal development environment coupled with deep experience building and maintaining schedules
• Previous experience managing, guiding and mentoring junior producers
• Familiarity with various internal game production pipelines and software
• 4 year undergraduate college degree or equivalent skill set

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