Sr. 3D Design Technologist

Job Qualifications: 8+ years working in a computer-graphics-related field (VFX, Games, Film, Simulation, Robotics, Digital Twin) in a similar role (Tech Artist, Pipeline TD, Pipeline Engineer, Art Tools Engineer, Simulation Content Engineer). Partner with scientists and researchers to innovate on emerging techniques — neural reconstruction, generative world models, learned asset synthesis — and translate research prototypes into production-grade pipeline components.

Position Title: Sr. 3D Design Technologist

Position Description: Protingent Staffing has an exciting contract opportunity for a Sr. 3D Design Technologist with our client in Bellevue, WA

Job Responsibilities:

• Act as a bridge between 3D art, simulation engineering, and robotics disciplines to solve multi-disciplinary problems
• Seek out and develop solutions to resolve pipeline bottlenecks or asset quality issues through standardization and automation, with a particular focus on USD workflows
• Collaborate with other Design Technologists, simulation engineers, and roboticists to build and maintain a centralized suite of content creation tools that feed into Isaac Sim
• Partner with scientists and researchers to innovate on emerging techniques — neural reconstruction, generative world models, learned asset synthesis — and translate research prototypes into production-grade pipeline components
• Develop pipelines for ingesting and processing data including GIS data, robot sensor data, drone imagery, and photogrammetry into simulation-ready assets
• Work with technical leadership to research and implement the latest industry trends (NeRF/3DGS reconstruction, procedural generation, GenAI-assisted asset creation) that expand our production capabilities
• Advise on the creation and maintenance of asset pipelines for partner teams looking to author content for the simulator

Job Qualifications:

• 8+ years working in a computer-graphics-related field (VFX, Games, Film, Simulation, Robotics, Digital Twin) in a similar role (Tech Artist, Pipeline TD, Pipeline Engineer, Art Tools Engineer, Simulation Content Engineer)
• Deep understanding of 3D asset creation and delivery pipelines, ideally including USD/OpenUSD
• Proficiency in Python and at least one other modern programming language
• Experience building and maintaining internal pipelines and toolsets, including user documentation and education
• Experience designing and building artist tools that extend DCC software (Maya, Blender, Houdini, etc.)
• Understanding of real-time rendering, PBR materials, and shader techniques
• GenAI exploration and continuous curiosity about how generative tools fit into a production pipeline
• Bachelor’s Degree

Preferred Job Qualifications:

• Hands-on experience with NVIDIA Isaac Sim, Omniverse, or comparable robotics simulators (CARLA, Gazebo, Drake, Applied Intuition)
• Strong USD/OpenUSD skills — composition arcs, layering, custom schemas, Python API
• Experience with Houdini for procedural environment generation (LOPs/Solaris, VEX, HDAs)
• Experience with Blender Python API and USD import/export workflows
• Familiarity with GIS data (shapefiles, GeoJSON, OSM) and geospatial Python libraries (Shapely, GDAL, rasterio)
• Familiarity with ComfyUI and modern GenAI workflows for texture, material, or asset generation
• Experience with render farms, distributed processing, and cloud architecture (AWS preferred — EC2 GPU, S3, Lambda, Batch)
• Experience extending creative project management or asset tracking tools (Perforce, ShotGrid, Jira)
• Experience working with global outsourcing and contract-based content creation teams
• Background or interest in robotics, autonomous vehicles, or perception/ML training data generation

Job Details:

• Job Type: Contract, Full-Time
• Location: Bellevue, WA
• Pay Rate: $75 - $100/hr
• Must be authorized to work in the U.S. for any employer.

About Protingent: Protingent is an award-winning provider of top-tier Engineering and IT talent, trusted by companies at the forefront of innovation—from Software and Aerospace to AI, Clean Tech, Medical Devices, and Connected Technologies. We're passionate about connecting exceptional talent with meaningful opportunities and helping our clients build the future.