Absurd Ventures

Principal Rendering Engineer

Absurd Ventures · Santa Monica, CA
Santa Monica, CA was $170K–$230K Closed
Applications are closed for this role. It was originally posted 2026-03-18. It’s no longer accepting applicants — see roles Absurd Ventures is still hiring for →, or browse the live openings below.
Salary
$170K–$230K
Type
Full-time
Experience
10+ yr

Summary:

We are seeking a Principal Rendering Engineer to drive the technical excellence of our rendering systems. Join our world-class team developing a cutting-edge open-world video game that pushes the boundaries of visual fidelity and gameplay immersion.

Core Responsibilities:

  • Be responsible for optimizing and improving rendering infrastructure systems, including texture streaming, virtual texturing, GPU, and shader compilation.
  • Collaborate with technical artists to establish a performant kit of materials and techniques to meet visual requirements.
  • Develop scalable graphics solutions to maximize visual fidelity across a range of targets, from current-gen consoles to cutting-edge PCs and emerging hardware.
  • Drive the development of tools associated with rendering features, ensuring they are user-friendly and meet the needs of our artists.
  • Optimize our skin cache for GPU performance and memory to support rendering many characters on screen.
  • Stay up-to-date on current techniques, research, graphics data, and hardware advancements to inform the development of forward-thinking rendering systems.
  • Define and enforce technical specifications for asset and scene construction in collaboration with the art and design teams.
  • Author new shaders and effects to enhance visual quality.

Core Qualifications:

  • Strong proficiency in C++ and multi-threaded programming techniques.
  • In-depth real-time rendering experience in the games industry or related computer graphics fields.
  • Expertise in GPU architecture and performance characteristics, with extensive use of GPU profiling tools (e.g., PIX, Razor).
  • Experience with Unreal Engine 4 or 5.
  • Thorough knowledge and practical application of 3D math, rendering algorithms, and data structures.
  • Deep knowledge of at least one graphics API (e.g., DirectX 11/12, OpenGL, Vulkan, Metal).
  • Demonstrated skills in performance and memory optimization across various platforms.
  • Experience shipping AAA video games.
  • A proven track record of creating clean, efficient, and well-tested code.

Plus If...

  • Experience with emerging rendering technologies, such as ray tracing or machine-learning-based graphics solutions.
  • Contributions to published research or participation in industry conferences related to computer graphics.
  • Familiarity with mGPU solutions and cutting-edge PC hardware optimization techniques.

Description

  • Full-time job with benefits.
  • Role is on-site in Santa Monica, CA.

The base pay range for this position is $170,000 to $230,000 per year. Actual compensation is based on market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. We also offer a competitive package of benefits including vacation time, sick time, company holidays, parental leave, medical/dental/vision insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, and 401(k) match to regular full-time employees. Certain roles may also be eligible for bonus and equity.

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