Job Description

In Microsoft Mixed Reality, people—not devices—are at the center of everything we do. Our tech moves beyond screens and pixels, creating a new reality aimed at bringing us closer together—whether that’s scientists “meeting” on the surface of a virtual Mars or some yet undreamt-of possibility. To get there, we’re incorporating groundbreaking technologies, from the revolutionary Holographic Processing Unit to computer vision, machine learning, human-computer interaction, and more.

We’re a growing team of talented engineers, program managers and artists putting technology on a human path across all Windows devices, including Microsoft HoloLens, the Internet of Things, phones, tablets, desktops, and Xbox. Our team has people from a wide variety of backgrounds, identities, previous work histories, life experiences, and we are eager to maintain and grow that diversity. Our varied backgrounds and unique experiences enable us to be better at building the best solutions for our customers and make for dynamic and joyful collaborations with colleagues!

We are looking for a motivated Technical Artist to come join us in delivering the next wave of Mixed Reality experiences in an exciting new project. You are drawn to working on the latest and most innovative products in the world. You seek projects that will transform how people interact with technology. You have a drive to grow your skillset by finding unique challenges that have yet to be solved. If this sounds like you, we invite you to apply today!

This team supports our employees in all locations around the country. This job has the option to be remote or located in one of our hubs.

Responsibilities

• Execute the artistic vision of the project and applying your experience directly to the creation of solid artist-driven workflows, automation tools, content pipelines, and asset management that are vital for the design team to deliver highest quality industry content
• Work with multiple disciplines of the design team and be able to understand the needs of each unique area
• Identify, implement, and/or invent the correct technical approach to be able to execute the project vision on target
• Be a positive and creative force in the team
• Ideate, prototype and ship delightful immersive experiences that work across a variety of form factors
• Develop new interaction techniques for different input modalities
• Build delightful end to end flows and UI control libraries
• Proactively share information with the technical art staff across the organization to improve the craft and accelerate growth
• Support the content creation teams with tools, workflow, and pipelines to aid generation and implementation
• Create task lists & estimates as well as milestone documentation
• Responsible for meeting project deadlines and milestones
  

Qualifications

• BA/BFA in visual arts, computer science or equivalent industry experience
• 5+ years technical artist experience working with Unity or an equivalent engine to design user interfaces for games, interactive experiences, and/or apps
• Great communication, interpersonal, organizational, and collaboration skills across multiple disciplines - this role works with developers, designers, and artists.
• Agile, flexible, and comfortable dealing with the ambiguity of incubation work
• Collaborative and self-motivated; able to partner effectively with others while also making smart, strategic decisions and working independently
• A fundamental understanding of digital art processes and production - how do artist’s work
• Deep understanding of the technical requirements of real-time content development for both current-gen and mobile platforms
• Proficient with various professional 3D software packages for asset content production (ex: Zbrush, Substance Painter , Maya, Houdini, Modo, Motion Builder, , etc.)
• Working knowledge with 3D Asset modeling and UV creation
• Tool development in C++ and Python
• In depth knowledge of software and real time lighting and texturing techniques
• Experience with performant real time Visual Effects and Post Effects
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Designed and shipped VR or AR experiences
• Animation - You can bring intimate objects to life
• Mobile App Development - You have created great experiences within the technical confines of a mobile platform
  

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request via the Accommodation request form.

Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.