Groom Artists

Locations: Wellington (NZ), Melbourne (AU), Vancouver (Canada)
Department: Models
Studio: Wētā FX

Job Summary

Wētā FX is seeking experienced Fur and Hair Groom Artists to join the Models team across our hubs in Melbourne, Vancouver, and Wellington. The Models department is responsible for creating digital assets for all productions, including characters, digital doubles, organic and hard-surface models, environments, displacement-ready high-resolution models, previs/crowd assets, and fur, hair, and costume work.

As a Groom Artist, you will create and maintain high-quality hair and fur grooms for characters and creatures using Wētā FX’s proprietary grooming tools. Experience with other grooming systems, along with strong artistic and technical abilities, is essential.

Key Responsibilities

• Create and maintain realistic fur and hair grooms for characters and creatures.
• Work with Wētā’s proprietary grooming software as well as industry grooming systems.
• Collaborate with lighting, rendering, and other asset departments.
• Solve technical and artistic challenges in complex, high-resolution scenes.
• Work independently while responding effectively to direction and feedback.
• Support production timelines through strong organization and task management.

Required Skills & Experience

• Extensive knowledge of Maya.
• Strong artistic eye and reel demonstrating the ability to match photographic reference.
• Solid understanding of lighting and rendering workflows.
• Comfort working in Linux for daily tasks.
• Strong problem-solving, attention to detail, and ability to meet deadlines.
• Ability to balance technical and artistic tasks in complex scenes.
• Strong work ethic and eagerness to learn.
• Understanding of VFX production pipelines.
• Ability to work with intuitive (non-procedural) grooming systems.

Beneficial Experience

• Knowledge of procedural grooming tools.
• Experience grooming feathers.
• Strong UV workflow knowledge for hero assets.
• Scripting skills (MEL and/or Python).
• Additional modelling experience (characters, creatures, hard-surface).

Culture & Inclusion

Wētā FX is committed to fostering an inclusive, respectful, and supportive environment where everyone can thrive. We value authenticity, open thinking, and diverse perspectives. If you require accommodations during the recruitment process, please contact: recruitment@wetafx.co.nz