Unreal Engine Technical Artist

Embraer•Melbourne, FL

About The Position

We are seeking an Unreal Engine Technical Artist (7+ years' experience) to drive the visual and technical quality of high-end, real-time VR experiences. This role is critical in bridging the gap between art and technology—ensuring that all visual elements not only achieve the highest level of realism but also perform efficiently in real-time environments. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in Unreal Engine 5, including materials, lighting (Lumen), geometry systems (Nanite), VFX, UI, and optimization, while also understanding the technical constraints behind each system. You will work closely with artists, designers, and technical teams to build workflows, systems, and tools that enable the creation of photorealistic, high-performance VR experiences.

Requirements

7+ years of experience in real-time 3D production, with a strong focus on Unreal Engine.
Expert-level proficiency in Unreal Engine (UE4/UE5)
Strong experience with: Material creation and shader workflows
Strong experience with: Lighting (Lumen or equivalent real-time GI systems)
Strong experience with: Geometry systems (Nanite or high-poly real-time workflows)
Strong experience with: VFX (Niagara or similar systems)
Deep understanding of real-time rendering principles and optimization techniques
Experience balancing visual fidelity and performance in real-time environments.
Strong Blueprint knowledge and ability to support technical systems in-engine.
Proven ability to troubleshoot and solve complex technical art problems.

Nice To Haves

Experience working on high-end VR experiences
Experience with 3ds Max and asset integration workflows.
Familiarity with Perforce or other version control systems.
Understand rigging, physics, or animation systems.
Exposure to scripting (Python, HLSL, or similar) is a plus.
Experience working in visualization industries such as: Aviation, Automotive, Architecture / Interior Design

Responsibilities

Act as the technical authority for Unreal Engine across the visualization team.
Bridge the gap between artists and technical requirements, ensuring visual quality meets real-time performance targets.
Establish best practices for asset creation, scene setup, and Unreal workflows.
Design, build, and optimize complex Unreal materials and shaders using the material editor.
Ensure accurate PBR workflows and consistent material behavior across projects.
Develop reusable material systems and libraries for scalability.
Optimize material performance while maintaining visual fidelity.
Own and refine lighting workflows using Unreal Engine Lumen for dynamic global illumination.
Balance visual realism vs performance, especially for VR applications.
Develop lighting presets and standards for consistent, high-end visual results.
Leverage Nanite to manage high-quality geometry efficiently while maintaining performance.
Define strategies for mesh optimization, LOD workflows (when needed), and asset scalability.
Collaborate with artists to ensure assets are built correctly for Unreal ingestion.
Develop and optimize Niagara-based VFX systems.
Support rigid body simulations, physics interactions, and animation systems within Unreal.
Ensure all effects and simulations are performing and stable in VR environments.
Build and refine UMG-based UI systems, including operator-driven interfaces.
Support development of external control systems (e.g., tablet/iPad control panels driving VR experiences).
Ensure UI logic is clean, modular, and scalable.
Diagnose and resolve performance bottlenecks related to: Materials, Lighting, Geometry, VFX, Memory and draw calls.
Use Unreal profiling tools to maintain real-time performance standards.
Ensure all experiences meet high-fidelity VR performance targets.
Improve and maintain 3D pipeline workflows from 3ds Max into Unreal Engine.
Establish asset standards (naming, scale, pivots, materials, polycount, etc.).
Build tools, guidelines, and documentation to improve team efficiency.
Mentor artists transitioning into Unreal workflows.