Postdoctoral Research Associate – Vision and Graphics LAB

The Vision and Graphics Lab (VGL) at the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technology (ICT) is searching for a Postdoctoral Scholar - Research Associate to join our team.  The Academy Award-winning Vision & Graphics Lab has been bringing deep learning research and novel data-driven techniques to advance end-to-end acquisition and content creation, with new capabilities such as deployablilty in the field, full body digitization, and differentiable renderings, and true-to-life real-time performance capture. VGL has been developing fundamental research for emerging applications such as real-time teleportation, interactions with virtual avatars, and VR and AR simulations enabling new training, education capabilities as well as novel command-level decision making tools relevant to the Army’s STE efforts.

This is a one year fixed-term appointment and renewable on the recommendation of the faculty mentor.

Job Accountabilities:

• Help to develop new techniques for creating, rendering and displaying photorealistic human, objects and environments
• Use computer graphics, computer vision and machine learning expertise in cutting edge research to develop methods for acquiring shape, appearance and motion from digital photography and video
• Use computer graphic and vision experience in the area of face/body reconstruction, tracking performance capturing, AR/VR applications and image processing
• Contribute significantly to authoring research publications, reports and proposals.

Preferred Experience/Skills:

• Five or more years of experience with computer graphics, 3D vision, image processing and machine learning.
• Peer-reviewed publications in top-tier computer vision and graphics conferences.
• Proficient in English presentation, communication and academic writing.
• Experience with 3D human, outdoor scene related research topics is preferred.

Preferred Education/Field of Expertise:

• Ph.D. degree in Computer Science

Your work will push the boundaries of how technology benefits society, by accelerating learning, improving communication, and sharing scientific findings with the world. Additionally, the work at ICT will give you the opportunity to meet intriguing people from all walks of life, including technologists, writers, producers, social scientists, military/government personnel, community partners, and philanthropists. We put a premium on satisfaction in the workplace at ICT and encourage all associates to maintain a quality work-life balance.

USC Institute for Creative Technologies: The University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies is where academia, entertainment, and the military meet. Located in the heart of Silicon Beach/Playa Vista, no other institute offers a more diverse collaborative environment where basic and applied research work hand in hand to develop cutting edge technologies. We find ICT to be an exciting place to work and expect you will too.

We are world leaders in virtual human research, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality, computer training simulations, computer graphics, and immersive experiences that improve human decision making, cultural awareness, leadership, and health. ICT employees are encouraged to develop themselves both professionally and personally, through workshops, invited guest talks, movie nights, social events, various sports teams, a private gym and a personal trainer.  The atmosphere at ICT is informal and flexible, while also encouraging initiative, personal responsibility, and a strong work ethic.

The annual base salary range for this position is $75,000-90,000. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

Serves as a research trainee for the purpose of enhancing and developing research competencies. Participates in planning, designing and conducting highly technical and complex research projects under the direction of a supervisor. May or may not work independently. Analyzes research data and provides interpretations. Contributes to the development of research documentation for publication and/or prepares technical reports, papers and/or records. Minimum education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctorate within previous three years Minimum field of expertise: Directly related education in research specialization with advanced knowledge of equipment, procedures and analysis methods.