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Hi, I’m Nick Penney, a multidisciplinary artist and technologist who designs and builds immersive interactive experiences, games, and visuals for entertainment, branding, and education. My work spans 3D design, real-time visuals, and software tooling, leveraging Unreal Engine, Blender, Substance Suite, and Python to accelerate content creation and deliver engaging experiences at scale. I love turning ideas into elegant, maintainable systems—whether it’s a VR flight simulator with 90+ FPS, a live broadcast 3D pipeline, or a web-driven design platform. I thrive at the intersection of art and engineering, collaborating with clients and teams to ship compelling experiences and secure new business.…Hi, I’m Nick Penney, a multidisciplinary artist and technologist who designs and builds immersive interactive experiences, games, and visuals for entertainment, branding, and education. My work spans 3D design, real-time visuals, and software tooling, leveraging Unreal Engine, Blender, Substance Suite, and Python to accelerate content creation and deliver engaging experiences at scale. I love turning ideas into elegant, maintainable systems—whether it’s a VR flight simulator with 90+ FPS, a live broadcast 3D pipeline, or a web-driven design platform. I thrive at the intersection of art and engineering, collaborating with clients and teams to ship compelling experiences and secure new business.

Nick Penney

3D Designer, Motion Graphic Designer, Game Developer, +1

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Hi, I’m Nick Penney, a multidisciplinary artist and technologist who designs and builds immersive interactive experiences, games, and visuals for entertainment, branding, and education. My work spans 3D design, real-time visuals, and software tooling, leveraging Unreal Engine, Blender, Substance Suite, and Python to accelerate content creation and deliver engaging experiences at scale. I love turning ideas into elegant, maintainable systems—whether it’s a VR flight simulator with 90+ FPS, a live broadcast 3D pipeline, or a web-driven design platform. I thrive at the intersection of art and engineering, collaborating with clients and teams to ship compelling experiences and secure new business.…Hi, I’m Nick Penney, a multidisciplinary artist and technologist who designs and builds immersive interactive experiences, games, and visuals for entertainment, branding, and education. My work spans 3D design, real-time visuals, and software tooling, leveraging Unreal Engine, Blender, Substance Suite, and Python to accelerate content creation and deliver engaging experiences at scale. I love turning ideas into elegant, maintainable systems—whether it’s a VR flight simulator with 90+ FPS, a live broadcast 3D pipeline, or a web-driven design platform. I thrive at the intersection of art and engineering, collaborating with clients and teams to ship compelling experiences and secure new business.

Available to hire

Hi, I’m Nick Penney, a multidisciplinary artist and technologist who designs and builds immersive interactive experiences, games, and visuals for entertainment, branding, and education. My work spans 3D design, real-time visuals, and software tooling, leveraging Unreal Engine, Blender, Substance Suite, and Python to accelerate content creation and deliver engaging experiences at scale.

I love turning ideas into elegant, maintainable systems—whether it’s a VR flight simulator with 90+ FPS, a live broadcast 3D pipeline, or a web-driven design platform. I thrive at the intersection of art and engineering, collaborating with clients and teams to ship compelling experiences and secure new business.

Skills

Experience Level

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Language

English

Fluent

Work Experience

Senior Technical Artist at Dimensional Innovations

January 1, 2022 - November 30, 2025

Designed and developed interactive experiences, games, and previz renders for major entertainment and hospitality brands using Unreal Engine, Blender, Substance Suite, and custom Python tools. Led technical implementation for 30+ enterprise clients including LEGO, Ferrari, the New England Patriots, the Kansas City Royals, and the University of Miami. Built a 6-seat VR flight simulator for the Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum from concept to deployment while maintaining 90+ FPS. Created novel interaction systems using pose detection, transparent OLED displays, and AR/VR tech for live installations. Developed reusable asset pipelines and modular systems to speed content creation across projects. Created client presentations and technical demonstrations that helped secure $18.4M in new business.

3D Artist at IBM

March 1, 2021 - January 31, 2022

Created broadcast-ready 3D models with PBR textures for a custom render engine powering live weather broadcasts on NBC and Sinclair affiliate stations. Produced high-quality rendered footage for scenarios requiring advanced visual effects, including particle and fluid simulations, volumetric rendering, and physically accurate global illumination. Built comprehensive broadcast packages with animated intro sequences, transitions, network bugs, and lower-thirds graphics. Established streamlined asset creation workflows using Blender, Unreal Engine, Substance Suite, and After Effects.

Director at Allevi

September 1, 2018 - March 31, 2021

Led UX/visual design and software development initiatives for a pioneering 3D bioprinting technology company. Created photoreal product visualizations from engineering CAD models for marketing materials. Produced marketing videos, software demonstration content, and optimized SVG animations for web and application interfaces. Spearheaded a complete redesign of the company’s web presence and e-commerce platform, achieving a 6x increase in monthly organic search impressions year-over-year. Conducted user research and developed personas to guide product design decisions.

Motion Designer at Then Studios

July 1, 2015 - June 30, 2018

Created motion graphics and 3D animation projects for clients including Microsoft, Starbucks, Nintendo, Carnival Cruises, IBM, the Seattle Symphony, and Bill Gates' personal library. Produced promotional videos, explainer animations, software demonstration videos, broadcast bumpers, and animated UI elements. Built complex 3D models, textures, lighting setups, and animations using Cinema 4D, Blender, and Octane Renderer. Developed efficient After Effects and Illustrator workflows for vector animation, compositing, and 2D character rigging.

Full-Stack Developer at Weft

October 1, 2015 - September 30, 2018

Built a browser-based platform for custom fabric design with photorealistic real-time cloth rendering using WebGL. Led UX design for the Weft Create fabric creation module and integrated an e-commerce platform. Developed a responsive, mobile-first front-end architecture using React and Three.js. Engineered a complete back-end content management system and order processing infrastructure using Python and Django.

User Experience Designer at Microsoft

July 1, 2014 - July 31, 2015

Designed the interface for a cloud-based political campaign data management platform. Oversaw design implementation for a 12-member development team to ensure a unified system and consistent user experience across the product. Produced monthly product demonstration videos showcasing new features to executive stakeholders. Wrote, animated, and narrated a promotional explainer video for Microsoft’s 2016 Iowa Caucuses mobile application.

Project Lead Developer at RISD Loomit

September 1, 2012 - May 31, 2014

Designed and programmed a prototype for a browser-based textile design application. Collaborated with a Cornell University research team to implement a novel photorealistic woven cloth rendering system.

Future Experience Researcher at Samsung

August 1, 2013 - December 31, 2013

Envisioned future technology applications and produced short films for presentation at Samsung HQ.

Resident at The Economist Media Lab

July 1, 2013 - July 31, 2013

Proposed innovative products including an AI-powered data analysis tool for 170 years of published content and a daily news briefing application.

Graphics Intern - Workstations R&D at Hewlett-Packard

June 1, 2010 - August 31, 2012

Developed GPU benchmark and stress test applications for workstation hardware validation using CUDA and GLSL. Created utilities for monitoring and logging system performance data.