DAE Research is hiring a Technical Artist (Houdini) to actively participate in the current research project Testerep.

Are you a technical artist with a passion for learning? Do you want to experiment with various tools and combine them in efficient pipelines to achieve results you can be proud of?

Join our vibrant, growing team of like-minded game tech enthusiasts!

Who we are:

DAE Research is the Applied Research cell of the Digital Arts & Entertainment bachelor’s degree program at Howest University of Applied Sciences in Kortrijk, Belgium.

What we do:

• Trend watching and testing of new game technology (hardware and software)
• Using it as widely as possible through proof of concepts and rapid prototypes to inspire the professional field
• Feeding back new technology and tools to the Digital Arts & Entertainment bachelor’s program
• Ensuring that game tech contributes to innovation at a wide number of Flemish companies, through close collaboration with the companies involved, so that there is more employment for DAE alumni in the long term

What you’d do:

• Keep up with the latest game tech developments in the field through desk research, seminars, etc., and connect the latest innovations to the projects you are working on
• Develop prototypes and proof of concepts to fit the needs of project partners, and to leverage innovative technologies. This is done independently or through co-creation with colleagues and external parties via brainstorming and idea generation.
• Experiment with diverse tools and combine them in efficient pipelines to achieve great results.
• Become an expert in state-of-the-art technologies and a contact for related questions and solutions, while documenting your findings and spreading your knowledge through workshops, lectures, blog posts, demos, etc.
• Delve into Houdini/Houdini engine and other state-of-the-art and procedural techniques and processing questions about applications and pipelines from the field.
• Communicate and report proactively to all stakeholders involved in each project, both within education and research, and be open to co-writing new project applications.

Which sort of degree you’d need:

A Bachelor’s degree Game Graphics Production or equivalent through experience.

If you have a non-Belgian diploma, with the exception of one from the Netherlands, an equivalence certificate from NARIC must eventually be provided.

Which hard skills you’d need:

• Knowledge of the entire game pipeline
• Knowledge of Game Engines (UE, Unity…)
• Knowledge of at least 1 modeling software (Blender, Maya, 3dsMax, …)
• Initial work experience as a procedural technical artist in a professional environment.

Which additional knowledge could be a nice plus to have:

• Experience with research projects.

Which soft skills would be handy to have at DAE Research:

• You are interested in new technologies within the DAE work area (games, animation and VFX industry) and do not shy away from working experimentally with new technology and tools
• You have an entrepreneurial attitude and are not afraid to throw proposals for new projects into the group
• You are able to critically reflect on your own work and work independently
• You can switch between different projects
• You can draw up, adjust and implement a plan
• You are a proactive communicator
• You are result-oriented and can complete projects expertly and on time according to the imposed deadlines.
• You are willing to use your research expertise to guide students in bachelor’s theses, internships and/or group work.
• You are willing to attend further training, seminars and conferences at home or abroad.

Which languages you’d need:

Dutch is helpful as we work closely with the Flemish sector. English skills are essential in the game tech field and are used a lot within the team so don’t let the Dutch requirements stop you from applying.

Which soft skills would be handy to have:

• Professional
• Lifelong-learner
• Open-minded
• Team-player
• Flexible and future-minded
• Socially-engaged
• Networker
• Internationally-minded

What kind of contract you’d start with:

You will be recruited in contractual employment from 01/02/2025 to 31/07/2025. Don’t be scared off by the short contract as it’s just a hiring policy we need to abide by, but an extension is often possible if everyone is happy.

A maximum of 10 years of relevant experience can be included in the financial seniority.

What values are important to Howest:

Howest, the West Flanders University of Applied Sciences, is an atypical, creative, innovative and entrepreneurial university of applied sciences.

We try to put our core values, Serve-Empower-Care, into practice every day. We care for our students and train them to become immediately employable professionals.

Howest is an open and pluralistic university of applied sciences, with respect for diversity. As an agile and decisive organization, Howest offers its employees maximum opportunities to develop themselves. Howest offers a team-oriented working environment.

What it means to be a researcher at Howest:

A project employee/researcher works in a multidisciplinary team on one or more innovative research projects.

You will have the time to familiarize yourself with and delve deeply into new technologies that are used in the digital transformation of companies and organizations.

Attending specialized seminars at home and abroad, following specialized training courses, using the latest tools and platforms and contacts with other academic specialists are examples of how we help to deepen your knowledge. Intensive contact with the business community is enriching and provides a network that offers added value to your further career as a researcher.

Ultimately, practice-oriented research leads to valorization of the acquired knowledge and allows you as a researcher to create an impact that you can be proud of.

Where you’d work:

The DAE Research office is located in Kortrijk, Belgium at Howest – The Square. The job often takes you to other Howest (and project partner school) campuses and to various locations in Belgium for meetings and events. There can also be some EU and international travel for conferences, etc…

Fully remote/hybrid work is not possible for this position but some work from home is.

Want more info:

Before applying, please make sure to have a look at the full job description (in Dutch) here

For job content information, please contact:

Vicky Vermeulen – research coordinator DAE research

For general Howest information, please contact:

Luc Verhalle – director of personnel and HR

How to apply:

Applications will only be accepted electronically via ses.howest.be no later than 08/01/2025.

You register with a login and password. We also ask you to upload your CV, motivation letter and diploma into the system. Once registered, you still need to actually apply for this vacancy.

Candidates will be screened based on their CV and cover letter. Those who qualify will be invited for a selection interview. The selection interview will take place in Kortrijk in the week of 13 -17 January 2025.

We can’t wait to meet you and welcome you to our team!