Location
Chancery Lane, London, United Kingdom (Hybrid)

Hours
Full Time

Salary
Negotiable

About the Role
The multi-Oscar-winning creative Film & Episodic Studio at Framestore collaborates with some of the greatest storytellers in film today. We work closely with directors and producers throughout the filmmaking process to design, plan, and create beautiful images, focusing on innovative creative solutions that support their vision and set new standards for visual effects in cinema. Framestore combines talent and technology to bring life to everything we create. Driven by creativity and inspired by the future, we set out every day to reframe the possible.

Reporting to the Head of Lighting, the Lighting Technical Director (TD) will oversee look development and shading for high-quality photorealistic CG assets and the final assembly of 3D scenes. You will manage lighting setups and render elements to complete high-end, photo-realistic VFX shots.

Key responsibilities include:
- Implementing lighting for shots as specified by the Lighting Lead, Lighting Supervisor, or Head of Lighting
- Assembling CG scenes and ensuring all required assets from various departments are integrated
- Collaborating with other asset departments to meet look development requirements
- Optimising shading setups to maximise render-farm efficiency
- Applying deep knowledge of physically plausible shading, rendering techniques, and real-world lighting or photography principles
- Collaborating with CG Supervisors to strategise solutions for complex CG challenges and achieve the desired final look
- Working jointly with shot Compositors to develop and refine shots, including rendering additional passes as requested
- Setting up new lighting configurations or adjusting existing setups
- Creating efficient render setups to maximise render farm performance
- Analysing real-world lighting—including colour and direction—and accurately replicating it within the CG environment
- Adhering to production schedules and meeting deadlines while maintaining exceptional quality standards
- Maintaining open communication with Production and departmental leads regarding schedules and deadlines
- Assisting with miscellaneous tasks such as coordinating assets or elements from other departments to ensure timely shot completion
- Submitting shots for review and making revisions based on feedback

This role demands a blend of technical skills, creative collaboration, and proactive communication to drive the production of visually stunning VFX sequences.

Experience
- Previous experience in a similar Lighting TD role
- Proven look development experience on high-end VFX feature film or episodic projects
- Strong knowledge of physically plausible shading and rendering techniques
- Thorough knowledge of lighting techniques and colour-space
- Good knowledge of Houdini
- Basic knowledge of Nuke or similar compositing packages, including use of layers and passes to tweak shots after rendering
- Good understanding of other VFX disciplines including simulation, modeling and UV mapping, texturing, and camera tracking
- Extensive knowledge of production renderers such as Renderman, Arnold, or similar

About you
- Flexible and adaptable with the ability to work within a pre-set workflow or pipeline
- Creative problem-solving skills to work around issues
- Effective time management skills to meet deadlines without sacrificing quality
- Strong understanding of Linux/Unix-based operating systems
- Basic knowledge of Python and/or Mel scripting

Qualifications
- Basic knowledge of physically plausible shading techniques
- Desirable skills include experience with digital paint software such as Photoshop and/or Mari, effects elements and volume rendering, additional render packages, compositing and Nuke, modeling, and texturing