Freelance Senior Character Hair (Grooming) Artist

Founded in 2012, N-iX Games is one of the biggest game development and art production vendors in Ukraine, working with leading publishers and media enterprises around the globe. The team of 240+ professionals focuses on full-cycle game development, VR solutions, and content creation for all the most popular platforms. The studio has successfully collaborated with over 40 clients, including Paradox Interactive, Tempo Storm, Supermassive Games, and VRChat. At N-iX Game & VR Studio, we strive to deliver AAA quality of our work and are looking for exceptional talent to join us. If you are excited about the opportunity to collaborate and grow among passionate experts, we invite you to our team!We are seeking an experienced Senior Hair (Groom) Artist to join our character art team. Your primary responsibility will be to create high-quality, realistic hair, hairstyles, beards, and fur for the 3D characters. You will work closely with Art Lead and other character artists to achieve an unparalleled level of visual fidelity.The position involves collaboration on a freelance basis.Responsibilities:3+ years of professional experience as a 3D hair (grooming) artist or in a related job. Good knowledge of photorealistic game art. Create realistic hair, hairstyles, mustaches, beards, fur, and other hair-based elements for in-game character models.Work with both spline-based and hair-card-based grooming workflows, including creation, styling, and geometry optimization.Collaborate closely with the character modeling team to ensure seamless integration of the groom with the character model.Identify and resolve grooming-related issues across projects.Optimization of finished objects in accordance with the specified technical limitationsStay current with emerging technologies and trends related to grooming; share relevant information and knowledge with the team to ensure everyone is aligned.Cooperate with other artists to streamline the art creation processWork with the producer to follow the plan and scheduleCommunication in EnglishRequired Skills:Strong knowledge of artistic anatomyStrong knowledge of ZBrush, X-Gen (or similar), Maya, 3ds Max or Blender, Substance Painter, Unreal Engine 5Experience with game engines, specifically Unreal Engine 5, and a solid understanding of real-time materials and lighting.Good understanding of sculpting basics: proportion, shapes, color, and materialGood understanding of composition and lightingAbility to rationally distribute polycount at the facilityKnowledge of modern pipelines and technical limitationsFamiliarity with a game development cycleStrong portfolio showing 3D art skills, Ability to follow and correctly interpret the conceptUnderstanding of modern pipelines and technical limitations for creating 3D modelsGood organization, time management, problem-solving, and communication skillsAs a plus:Character Artist backgroundExperience working on shipped AAA titles.Passion for gamesWe offer*:Flexible working format - remote, office-based or flexibleA competitive salary and good compensation packagePersonalized career growthProfessional development tools (mentorship program, tech talks and trainings, centers of excellence, and more)Active tech communities with regular knowledge sharingEducation reimbursementMemorable anniversary presentsCorporate events and team buildingsOther location-specific benefitsnot applicable for freelancers