Lead Lighting Artist

2K • Burnaby • 2w ago

WHO WE ARE

Founded in 2023, 2K Sports Lab is the newest stand alone studio at 2K looking to push game development boundaries to bring 2K's next groundbreaking sports franchise to life. We're building a world-class team at our new Vancouver, BC location where our goal is to deliver an exceptional experience through bold ideas, technical excellence, and creative collaboration. We're seeking passionate and driven professionals across all areas of game development to help shape this ambitious vision. If you’re interested in tackling unique challenges and think you have what it takes to level up our team, we encourage you to apply!

WHAT WE NEED

Can you craft emotion through light? Do you see lighting not just as realism but as a powerful narrative tool? We're looking for a Lead Lighter who brings both artistic vision and technical proficiency. Drawn to the challenge of storytelling through color, light, and shadow and love collaborating across teams this could be your next challenge.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Define the lighting direction in tight-knit collaboration with the Art Director.
Design and implement real-time lighting using Unreal Engine, balancing visual fidelity with performance.
Turn concept art and mood boards into cinematic, atmospheric in-game lighting.
Work with material, environment and technical artists to ensure assets respond appealingly and believably to light.
Build lighting that supports gameplay, narrative, and atmosphere—not just physical accuracy.
Guide and mentor other artists chipping in to lighting.
Maintain visual consistency and clarity across the environments, promotional material and cinematics.
Review and refine lighting pipelines and tools to support scalable workflows.
Collaborate with the cinematic teams to build standout key art and sequences.

WHAT WILL MAKE YOU A GREAT FIT:

You’ve shipped at least one AAA game or worked on a project with comparable scale and quality.
Deep knowledge of real-time lighting in Unreal Engine
Strong grasp of color theory, light behavior, and emotional tone.
Deep understanding of real-world lighting principles, including the difference between luminance and illuminance, and how they apply in Unreal.
Proven knowledge of exposure settings (aperture, ISO, shutter speed) and their impact on physically accurate lighting workflows.
Skilled in interpreting mood boards, photography, and cinematic references.
Collaborative attitude - you're used to working closely with engineers, artists, and tech teams.
Clear communicator and thoughtful feedback-giver.
A portfolio that showcases your range, quality, and storytelling through light.

The pay range for this position in British Columbia at the start of employment is expected to be between CAD $96,400 and CAD $142,660 per year. However, actual pay offered is based on market location and may vary further depending on individualized factors for job candidates, such as job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and other objective business considerations. If hired, the company reserves the right to modify base pay (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation or benefit program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, company or individual department/team performance, and market factors.

As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to ensuring that individuals with disabilities are provided suitable accommodations to enjoy equal employment opportunities, including the ability to participate in the job application or interview process,. Please contact us if you need an accommodation as part of your application process or otherwise have questions about the Company’s accommodation policy and review process.

Please be aware that 2K does not conduct job interviews or make job offers over third-party messaging apps such as Telegram, WhatsApp, or others. 2K also does not engage in any financial exchanges during the recruitment or onboarding process, and will never ask a candidate for their personal or financial information over an app or other unofficial chat channel. Any attempt to do so may be the result of a scam or phishing attack, and you should not engage. 2K’s in-house recruitment team will only contact individuals through their official Company email addresses (i.e., via a 2k.com email domain).