3D Environment Artist (Unity, World Building & Scene Development) - Volunteer Role

3D Environment Artist (Unity, World Building & Scene Development)

The Donovan’s Venom (501c3 Nonprofit)

Department: Interactive Media Studio (Game Development)

Location: Remote

Position Type: Volunteer Role

Reports To: Video Game Art Manager / Game Development Leadership

Position Overview

The 3D Environment Artist (Unity) is responsible for creating and assembling immersive game environments, including landscapes, interiors, and world elements.

This role focuses on building cohesive scenes by combining modeling, texturing, lighting, and composition while ensuring environments perform efficiently in Unity.

Operating at the intersection of environment art, level composition, and real-time engine implementation, this role is critical to delivering visually engaging and immersive game worlds.

Key Responsibilities
• Environment Creation & World Building
• Design and build 3D environments, including:
• Outdoor landscapes
• Interior spaces
• Set pieces and world elements
• Create immersive and visually cohesive worlds
• Scene Assembly in Unity
• Assemble environments within Unity
• Place assets, configure scenes, and organize layouts
• Ensure environments function correctly in-engine
• Composition & Visual Storytelling
• Use composition techniques to:
• Guide player attention
• Enhance storytelling
• Create visually compelling scenes
• Lighting & Atmosphere
• Set up lighting in Unity to:
• Enhance mood and tone
• Improve visual quality
• Balance lighting with performance
• Texturing & Material Application
• Apply textures and materials to environment assets
• Ensure visual consistency and realism (or stylized direction)
• Performance Optimization
• Optimize environments for real-time performance, including:
• Polygon counts
• Level of detail (LOD)
• Texture sizes
• Maintain smooth performance
• Asset Integration
• Integrate assets created by:
• 3D modelers
• Texture artists
• Ensure proper scaling, placement, and functionality
• Collaboration with Teams
• Work with:
• Art team (style and assets)
• Developers (technical constraints)
• Designers (level and gameplay alignment)
• Ensure environments support gameplay
• Iteration & Feedback
• Revise environments based on feedback
• Improve scenes through iteration
• Adapt to evolving project needs
• Documentation & Organization
• Maintain organized scene files and assets
• Follow naming conventions and workflows
• Document environment setup processes as needed
• Problem-Solving & Constraints
• Adapt environments based on:
• Technical limitations
• Performance requirements
• Balance visual quality with efficiency
• Continuous Improvement
• Improve environment design techniques
• Stay current with Unity and environment art trends
• Enhance overall world-building quality

Volunteer Commitment Expectations
• * Estimated Commitment: 10-15 hours per week
• Flexible schedule
• Participation in art and development meetings required
• Fully remote

Minimum Qualifications
• * 1–3 years of experience in:
• 3D environment art
• Game art or level design
• Experience with:
• Unity
• 3D modeling tools (e.g., Blender)
• Understanding of:
• Scene composition
• Lighting basics

Preferred Qualifications
• * Experience with:
• Game asset pipelines
• Level design collaboration
• Experience working on game projects (indie or academic)
• Experience in collaborative or remote teams

Core Competencies

Environment Art & World Building
• * Creates immersive and cohesive environments
• Designs visually engaging scenes

Unity Scene Development
• * Builds and organizes scenes in-engine
• Integrates assets effectively

Composition & Lighting
• * Uses visual techniques to enhance environments
• Creates atmosphere and mood

Performance Optimization
• * Balances quality and performance
• Prepares environments for real-time use

Collaboration
• * Works across art, design, and development teams
• Aligns environments with gameplay

Attention to Detail
• * Maintains quality and consistency
• Ensures precision in scene setup

Work Environment
• * Fully remote
• Collaborative game development environment
• Creative and production-focused workflow

Important Disclaimer

This is a volunteer position and does not constitute employment.

We are onboarding individuals who are ready to contribute immediately.

Please only apply if you are prepared to begin within the next 14 days.

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