FX & Comp Supervisor

At Brown Bag Films, our motto is simple: “We love animation.” In fact, we love it so much we trademarked it! 'We Love Animation™.’ We are one of the world’s most exciting, original and successful creative-lead animation studios with studios in Toronto, Dublin and Bali.

We now have an opportunity for an experienced FX & Compositing Supervisor to join our creative team where you'll lead a team to craft breathtaking visual effects, blend character, background and special effects to create dynamic and seamless visuals that bring our films to life!

Purpose: Why you’re here at Brown Bag Films

• To oversee the creation of FX & Comp Assets across a specific production within the studio and its overseas partners, maintaining quality and an efficiently managed workflow.
• To manage the department through support, training, collaboration and leadership.
• To lead, manage and mentor the FX& Compositing team to achieve the required level of artistry required for the project
• To ensure the compositing team meets and maintain the production schedule and quality of work

Delivery: What you produce

• To create Artistically and technically accurate FX & Comp assets and shots in collaboration with the Art Department and Animation Department.
• Managed solutions to problems including tool & artist development
• Technical documentation to guide artists through the creation of FX & Comp assets.
• To create episodic lists of effects based on the leica.
• Reviewing Leica with the whole show team.
• Review dailys.
• Final images with combined layers of previously-created material, including computer animation, effects and backgrounds.
• Polished animated scenes (cinematic) (ex. Extra lighting, shadows, blurs glows, parallax, lens artifacts, particles, procedural fx brighter colors)
• Mentorship and Compositor development

Measurements: How we measure it

• Completion of tasks within agreed schedule
• Feedback from Producer, Technical Director, and Art Director
• Handling of revisions and tweaks effectively
• Team development, quality of work & technical capability within team
• Managed tool development for the department
• Creating an efficient re-use library
• Client feedback

Key Responsibilities

What you are regularly responsible for doing:

• Managing the delivery of FX & Comp assets through the daily supervision of the FX & Compositing team of the show using tools that are required for the show and maintaining quality and style required under the technical specifications of the project.
• Conducting technical reviews for the in-house and overseas assets.
• Providing creative and technical leadership and support for the in-house FX & Comp team.
• Proactively problem solving; creating the IT and pipeline tickets to address any technical problems for the department.
• Collaborating with the production, art and animation teams.
• Tracking progress of weekly episode goals and milestones, identifying issues (such as vacations, sick days, missing assets, shot difficulty, etc.) and collaborating with the Art Director, Director and Production for larger consideration.
• Working closely with Technical Directors to create tools and streamline the compositing process
• Communicate clearly and regularly with Series Producers, Directors and Art Directors on the production status and attend meetings as required
• Promote and facilitate effective communication regarding the FX & Compositing assignments between Art directors, Production Management and your team

Key Requirements

Things that help you do your job (what is essential and what is desirable)

Knowledge:

• Strong understanding of elements animation principals (fire, water, air, earth and magic).
• Strong draftsman skill and good design skills.
• Proficient in Harmony.
• Mentoring and teaching elemental animation.
• Knowledge of software applications such as After Effects, Nuke, Blender, etc.

Experience:

• Proven track record in leading a group of FX and Comp Artists in long form animation production or in feature film work.
• Experience working on a broad variety of show styles.
• Experience of coaching or mentoring artists.
• Experience of remote and/or outsource management with an emphasis on clear communication and follow-through.
• Experience with asset tracking systems (e.g. shotgrid) (desirable).
• Extensive experience in compositing using software’s such as Toon Boom and Harmony
• Experience in development and maintenance of Compositing pipelines

Technical skills:

• An excellent working knowledge of creating FX & Comp in Harmony.
• Strong understanding of elements animation principals (fire, water, air, earth and magic).
• An excellent and creative artistic ‘eye’ with a solid understanding of composition, light, color, and film production concepts (ie. camera moves, lens artifacts, terminology, etc.)
• Must be able to communicate in an articulate and positive manner
• Strong ability to come up with creative, out-of-the-box, and efficient solutions to benefit the requirements of the project

Applicants need to be legally eligible to work in Canada.

We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

9 Story Media takes diversity and inclusion seriously and we are committed to ensuring equity in the recruitment process. Candidates from diverse backgrounds, including but not limited to, Indigenous peoples, Racialized and LGBT2SQ+ communities, candidates from a range of ages and religious beliefs and people with disabilities, are encouraged to apply.

Should you require accommodation throughout the recruitment process, please let us know your requirements when contacted.

As a company, we deliver high-quality kids' content, and we seek to have diverse characters so that all our audience feels represented. We also want the same for our own workforce, and 9 Story Media is committed to looking for all kinds of talent to build a diverse workforce in which all identities are represented and respected.