Job Summary:

The Technical Assistant I (TA) provides front line rendering and data management support for ILM VFX Production teams and the facility. TAs also manage storage by wrangling data through archiving, removing data and following resource management best practices. The TA team ensures full utilization of the render farm during their shift and communicates as technical issues affecting the throughput the farm arise.

This role is considered Hybrid, which means the employee will work 2-3 days onsite at our San Francisco, Presidio office and occasionally from home.

What You’ll Do

Prioritize overnight renders; coordinate processor allocations with Core Pipeline & Show Production teams; balance processor demands within show, between shows, and as a share of facility poolReport issues with frames post render to the digital artists and CG Supervisors and work to find a solutionWork to ensure full resource utilization during the night. Manipulate priorities to ensure that renders are completed by next business day. Report any machine problems or general issues that hinder the completion of renders to the appropriate departmentMonitor disk usage for the facility, with a particular focus on individual shows, and on a shot-by-shot basis within those shows. Coordinate show storage needs on a long-term basis with Digital Resource ManagerWork with the Digital Resource Manager, CG Supervisors and Core Pipeline team to ensure show follows proper data management proceduresPrioritize, manage, and maintain archives of show data, including creation of archival backups for shows, maintenance of archive databases, storage and retrieval of physical media for recent show archives. Fulfill all data restoration requests, including archival research to locate requested dataMaintain and update department tools. Work closely with Core Pipeline to ensure that code is clean and well maintainedParticipate in development projects; write production and pipeline scripts as required to assist ongoing technology efforts

What We’re Looking For

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Film Production or equivalent degree1+ years relevant work experienceProven knowledge of and experience with Linux, Mac and Windows operating systemsExcellent verbal and written communication skills required. Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to effectively interact with diverse personalitiesStrong time management skills; Ability to multi-task and prioritizeAesthetic eye and/or artistic background highly desiredFamiliarity with film and video post-production and/or computer graphics techniques highly desiredProven ability to work autonomously and in team settingsSelf-motivatedStrong problem-solving skillsAbility to adapt to a high pressure, fast-paced, dynamic environmentAbility to work shift hours as required, including evenings and weekendsNice to have:Strong scripting language (e.g. Python, Shell) is highly desiredKnowledge of, and experience with, 3D animation software (e.g. Maya, Katana) is highly desiredDatabase knowledge preferred (e.g. Oracle, Redis, MongoDB, Cassandra)Knowledge of networking, tape backup systems, hardware a plusVFX, Feature Animation or Episodic production experience a plus

The hiring range for this position in San Francisco, CA is $48,700 to $62,200 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.