TechNICAL ART COURSE
Technical Art spans a wide range of skills across art, code, and real-time systems.
At Hard Edge, you’ll be mentored by a Technical Art Director working in AAA, learning exactly what studios expect from day one.
This is the only Unreal Technical Art Course you will need.
We focus on building:
Practical, production-ready skills
Strong portfolio work
The mindset required to operate in a real team
What You’ll Get
Targeted training in Shaders, Blueprints, Performance Optimisation, and Tools Development
Personalized mentorship to build studio-ready projects
CV and portfolio reviews based on real hiring standards
Interview preparation tailored to Technical Art roles
Core Skills Covered
Shaders & VFX
Blueprints (gameplay systems and tooling)
Performance optimisation and profiling
Python and C++ for tools and pipelines
LEARN FROM SOMEONE
WHO DOES THE JOB.
FILIPE STRAZZERI
FOUNDER · TECHNICAL ART DIRECTOROver 15 years working at the intersection of art, engineering and production — building pipelines, developing tools, solving technical challenges and helping teams deliver ambitious projects.
I've worked with teams across AAA games, film and VFX, including Guerrilla, ZeniMax, Sony and Epic Games. My experience covers everything from Unreal Engine and C++ to shader development, performance optimisation, technical art pipelines and production workflows.
MORE ABOUT MY APPROACH
Technical Art is about far more than knowing which buttons to press. It's about understanding how artists, engineers and production teams work together — and knowing how to solve problems that affect the whole project.
Throughout my career, I've developed production tools, extended Unreal workflows, supported artists, profiled performance and helped solve complex technical challenges.
That's exactly how I teach. We build real things, investigate why they work, challenge assumptions and develop the technical judgement needed to contribute confidently in a professional studio.
Shaders 101
Learn a core skill for a tech artist, making art with math.
Start from the very basics to understand the building blocks of computer graphics.
From emulating blending modes found in photoshop to gerstner waves for ocean simulations, there is a lot to cover in this module !
Progress then to creating particle systems and understanding how you can integrate them with your newly found shader skills to build interactible effects.
Learn the Unreal Shader Graph
Translate it to HLSL
Implement Niagara particles and connect them to blueprints!
Modules
Student Artwork by Kyle Landon
Blueprints / Tooling
A capable tech artist must be comfortable navigating multiple disciplines, blueprints are an incredibly important part of the Unreal Engine.
Take a step above the training you can find elsewhere, learn programming patterns and correct workflows.
Avoid common pitfalls that will endanger performance.
Build a small game prototype from scratch then optimize it !
Create UI with UMG and shaders
Enhance design speed with Editor Utility Widgets / Blueprint tools
Take advantage of Procedural Content Generation (PCG)
Student Projects by Kyle Landon & Aden Thompson
Optimization & Profiling
Tech art is the first line of defence for performance and optimization issues.
A strong pipeline and validation structure is key for success.
Learn how to use Unreal Insights and how to inspect a rendered frame with Render Doc.
Take the game you’ve just created and learn the how’s and why’s of improving its performance.
Detect bottlenecks, squash spikes and eliminate hitches.
Understand Unreal’s Threading Architecture
Learn how to use Unreal Insights
Build Benchmark Systems and Generate reports
Create Engine Validators
Nativizing Blueprints to C++
Learn Python
Automation is one of the most important skills to learn as a tech artist.
There is no better tool to save time and build efficient workflows than the Python programming language.
Learn how to program from scratch, build time saving tools and demonstrate to hiring manager that you know exactly what it takes to help a production run smoothly.
Automate time consuming tasks
Build tools for DCCs (Maya / Blender / Houdini)
Learn UI / UX for tooling using PySide6
Implement Python in Unreal
Learn to build automated rigging systems, tools for export/import into Unreal and more !
Built Around Real Life
Hard Edge includes dedicated Break Weeks every 2 weeks.
Life happens. Projects evolve. Feedback needs time to sink in.
These weeks are designed to help you catch up, refine, ask better questions, and maintain momentum—without burnout.
TECH ART DISTILLED INTO ITS PUREST FORM.
A structured, production-focused programme designed to give you the practical technical art skills studios actually expect.
DURATION
12 months of structured learning, with weekly live classes of roughly 2 hours per session.
- Weekly live classes
- Classes are recorded
- Built for steady long-term growth
VIDEO CONTENT
Every module is supported by pre-recorded content to reinforce the live sessions and deepen understanding.
- Shaders
- Tools & pipelines
- Python & Unreal workflows
- 20+ hours per module
CAREER COACHING
We support you beyond the technical work, helping you position yourself properly for studios and job applications.
- CV and portfolio review
- Mock interviews
- Application support
- Continued guidance after the course
REAL WORLD SKILLS
We teach the things technical artists actually need in production — not fluff, not filler, and not disconnected theory.
- Day-to-day studio relevance
- Practical problem-solving
- Confidence with the tools and topics
COMMUNITY
Learn alongside other motivated artists in an active Discord community where feedback, collaboration and support are part of the experience.
- Share your work
- Get feedback
- Stay inspired and accountable
INDUSTRY SPEAKERS
Get access to guest sessions and insights from experienced industry professionals who can help sharpen your perspective and edge.
- Exclusive sessions
- Professional insight
- Direct exposure to studio experience
look at what our awesome students can do WITH OUR training !
Student Artwork : Melvin Wee
Student Artwork: Tassja Falcatan
Student Artwork: Kyle Landon
Student Artwork: Aden Thompson
YOUR JOURNEY STARTS HERE.
A focused, selective approach to professional training.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
We want to know who you are and where you want to go.
- Submit a detailed application.
- If selected, you'll be invited to a 1:1 call.
- We'll discuss your goals, assess the fit and see how we can help you progress.
SMALL INTAKES.
BIG ATTENTION.
We deliberately limit the number of students we take on.
- Weekly direct mentorship from industry professionals.
- Tailored feedback on your work and progress.
- Real production-style learning, not passive tutorials.
WHAT DOES IT COST?
Professional training built around your development.
- 12-month programmes: up to $7,000.
- Bootcamps and accelerators: up to $2,500.
- Live sessions, structured curriculum, deep dives and industry guests.
- Payment plans available.
REGISTRATIONS ARE OPEN
JAN 19th 2027
duration - 12 Months
Next Cohorts:
May 2027
September 2027
Frequently asked questions
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Technical Art is a specialized discipline within game development.
This course is built for artists who already understand 3D modelling, materials, and PBR workflows, and want to take those skills further into production.
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Yes all lessons are recorded, we ask that you download the archives right away as they will get removed from our cloud after 6 months.
Our classes are delivered via Zoom and pre made videos are using vimeo.
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What careers can I apply for?
The Tech Art Track is designed to prepare you for roles such as:
Technical Artist
Shader / Materials Artist
Tools / Pipeline Developer
VFX Technical Artist
Gameplay / Systems-focused Tech Artist
We focus on building well-rounded generalists, giving you the flexibility to work across multiple areas while still allowing you to specialize over time.
Studios value technical artists who are proactive, adaptable, and comfortable across disciplines — that’s exactly what this track is built for.
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Classes run on weekdays for 2 hours - Once a week.
6PM UK Time (GMT)
11AM LA Time (PDT)
(Guest speaker sessions will be extra to this)
Our instructors work in the industry during the day, they moonlight here to provide you with expert content.
Your pod will be assigned a slot, on a weekday that best fits your schedule, we try and group students in similar timezones.
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Feedback is delivered live during each session, where we review work, answer questions, and address individual needs.
You’ll also receive additional feedback through:
Written notes on Discord
Audio messages
Private 1:1 calls when needed
If you can’t attend a live session, you won’t fall behind — we make sure everyone receives the feedback they need.
To maintain quality, classes are kept small (max 10 students).
In some cases, individual feedback may be provided separately to ensure both teaching and feedback remain focused and effective.
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Most courses teach tools.
We train production-ready technical artists.This is a mentorship-driven program, with consistent feedback and support every step of the way.
We work in the industry. We hire.
Everything we teach is based on what actually matters in production. -
Our content is taught 2 weeks on one week off.
We know life can sometimes get in the way, our training is different and accounts for that.
All video content and live lessons are available to you and so if you cannot continue the course for whatever reason it is possible for you to learn at your own pace.
We will also make sure you get all the career advice / coaching needed if you fall out of pace with the rest of your group.
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You’ll only get out what you put in.
We recommend at least 1-2 hours per day during the week to make real progress and reach industry level.
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Zoom
Unreal Engine 5
Visual Studio Code / PyCharm (Python)
Visual Studio / JetBrains Rider (C++)
Optionally your 3D application of choice (Maya/ Blender) if you wish to produce custom content during the course.
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If you aren’t able to pay in full or in 12 installements please get in touch via the contat form and let us know your situation.
We are flexible and would like to help.
Lets talk and see what we can do.