Please note that this role is only available to candidates currently located in Berlin, Germany.

The Technical Artist will build and maintain the rendering pipeline for The Conformist, translating 2D art direction into a functioning 3D visual system within Unity. The role focuses on developing shaders, materials, lighting setups, and post-processing solutions that produce a consistent stylized look inspired by 1930s propaganda posters. The Technical Artist will work closely with the Lead Artist to establish the visual style in-engine and create artist-facing tools and workflows that allow the team to bring assets into the game at scale. The role collaborates with production, design, and art to ensure the rendering pipeline supports development schedules and gameplay requirements. 

Essential qualifications

• Proven experience building shaders, materials, and rendering pipelines for stylized or non-photorealistic games. 
• Strong ability to work from 2D concept art and art direction references and translate them into in-engine rendering solutions.
• Strong proficiency in Unity (custom shaders, lighting, scene setup, optimization)
• Solid understanding of lighting and shadows
• Experience building material and shader systems that can scale across a full production 
• Strong understanding of lighting, color, and post-processing as stylistic tools 
• Familiarity with Blender-to-Unity asset pipelines 
• Experience with asset management, optimization, and Unity profiling tools
• Strong organizational skills and comfort working with documentation and task-tracking tools such as Miro, Notion, or Codecks. 
• Strong communication and documentation skills in cross-disciplinary teams
• Interest in political, historical, or propaganda-era visual aesthetics

Preferred qualifications

• Prior experience working on stylized, non-photorealistic, or art-directed games with a distinctive visual identity. 
• Experience building global lighting and material control systems (palette shifts, mood changes across environments) 
• Experience creating VFX (water, fire, smoke, particles) within a stylized visual framework 
• Experience in rigging, skinning, animating or technical character work.
• Background in 3D art or animation.
• Background in art direction or experience defining the visual rendering approach for a project
• Experience with tooling and automation.
• Experience working within long-term production schedules.
• Familiarity with The Conformist's themes or comparable narrative-heavy, politically themed settings.
• Interest in political, narrative-driven or systemic simulation games.

Job responsibilities

• Develop and maintain the game's rendering pipeline in collaboration with the Lead Artist, including shaders, materials, lighting, and post-processing.
• Translate concept art and art direction references into in-engine rendering solutions that match the target visual style. 
• Explore and prototype VFX solutions (environmental effects, dynamic set dressing) that fit within the established style. 
• Collaborate with the artists to iterate on the visual style based on in-engine results.
• Integrate and optimize assets within Unity pipelines.
• Develop art workflows in collaboration with the artists and build artist-facing tools
• Collaborate with engineering to develop tools and improve production processes.
• Coordinate regularly with the Senior Producer to align technical art work with scheduling, priorities, dependencies, and delivery expectations. 
• Review and revise rendering solutions based on internal playtests, QA findings, and team feedback to improve visual quality and performance. 
• Provide technical guidance to other artists.
• Maintain clear documentation for pipelines, standards, and workflows.

Job benefits

• Health & Wellbeing. Free Urban Sports Club membership for all Berlin-based permanent employees.
• Public Transportation. Fully covered Deutschland-Ticket (BVG) for nationwide public transport.
• Flexible Hours. Start your day between 8:00–10:00 CET with core hours from 10:00–15:00 CET.
• Hybrid Work. We embrace a hybrid work schedule, requiring in-office presence on 3 days, with the flexibility to work remotely for the remaining 2 days of the week (calculation is based on full-time position).
• Work from Abroad. Up to 10 remote work days per year from outside Germany.
• Team Events. Regular team events and access to the NLND community network.
• Feedback & Growth. Regular feedback sessions to support your development.
• Annual Bonus. Performance-based annual bonus.
• Vacation. 24 paid vacation days (full-time).

Additional Details:

• Location: Berlin, Germany
• Contract type: On-Payroll, Full-time (40h/week), fixed-term contract (with a strong possibility of extension or conversion to permanent employment based on performance and project requirements)
• Compensation: The expected annual gross salary range for this role is approximately 50.000 - 60.000 EUR, depending on experience and qualifications.
• Expected Start Date: 01.06.2026