Real-Time Graphics Engineer

VERSANT (Nasdaq: VSNT) is an industry-changing media and entertainment business and home to trusted brands that shape culture, inform audiences, and build lasting connections. It operates across four core markets: political news and opinion, business news and personal finance, golf, and sports and genre entertainment. These markets are served through a powerful portfolio of iconic and innovative brands, including CNBC, MS NOW, USA Network, Golf Channel, Oxygen, E!, SYFY, and Versant's sports division USA Sports, along with complementary digital assets including Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow and GolfPass. Versant Media has an immediate opening for an experienced real-time graphics engineer to join Real-Time Graphics Support Engineering, reporting to Steve Kang. This is an L2-level role on Versant's Production Engineering career ladder: the engineer in this role owns real-time graphics systems independently, runs live show support without escalation, and is the person the newsroom and control room call on when graphics need to be right, live, on air.  The ideal candidate brings deep, hands-on experience with Vizrt and/or Ross graphics platforms from another broadcast, sports, or live production environment. This role sits on Versant's technical career track, with a defined path to Senior Broadcast Engineer, Principal Engineer, and Distinguished Engineer for candidates who want to keep building depth in real-time graphics over the course of their career.  Responsibilities   Real-Time Graphics Systems Ownership   Own the end-to-end reliability and performance of Versant's real-time graphics systems, including Vizrt (Viz Engine, Viz Trio, Viz Artist) and/or Ross (XPression) platforms.  Run live show support for news, sports, and event broadcasts — template loading, playout, on-air triggering — without requiring escalation.  Own and maintain camera tracking and AR/virtual set systems (ncam, Stype) where deployed.  Design and maintain redundancy and failover architecture for graphics systems supporting live, 24/7 operations.  Installations, Upgrades & Architecture   Lead new graphics system installations, upgrades, and integrations, coordinating with production and editorial stakeholders.  Design and build graphics templates, data links, and automation pipelines that reduce manual operator load during live shows.  Partner with IP infrastructure and broadcast operations teams to integrate graphics signal flow into Versant's SMPTE 2110 environment.  Vendor & Technical Ownership   Own the technical relationship with Vizrt, Ross, and AR/tracking vendors.  Eescalation point for support cases, upgrade evaluation, and licensing questions.  Evaluate emerging real-time graphics and virtual production technology and make adoption recommendations.  Mentorship & Team Development   Mentor L1 Production Support Engineers working alongside the graphics team, raising the technical floor of the group.  Write and maintain SOPs, runbooks, and documentation the team actually uses.  Participate in post-incident reviews for major graphics system failures, owning the learning and follow-through.  Live Operations   Provide surge support for major live events, including election-night and other high-stakes broadcast coverage.  Maintain readiness and coverage for 24/7 real-time graphics operations in partnership with the broader Production Engineering team.  Requirements   3+ years of experience owning real-time graphics systems in a broadcast, sports, or live production environment.  Deep, hands-on, production-level experience with Vizrt (Viz Engine, Viz Trio, Viz Artist) and/or Ross (XPression) graphics platforms.  Demonstrated ability to run live show support independently, under pressure, without formal escalation.  Experience leading graphics system installations or upgrades.  Working knowledge of broadcast signal flow, IP networking fundamentals, and system monitoring. If you're new to Versant, you'll complete a structured 90-day certification of these core broadcast-engineering fundamentals as part of onboarding.  Strong communication skills — able to work directly with editorial, production, and engineering stakeholders during live operations.  Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, 24/7 live production environment.  Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Technology, Computer Science, or equivalent hands-on experience.  Areas of Technical Knowledge   Real-Time Graphics Platforms   Vizrt — Viz Engine, Viz Trio, Viz Artist: cluster operations, template architecture, redundancy design  Ross — XPression: complex show builds, data-linking, integration  Camera tracking / AR & virtual set systems — ncam, Stype: calibration and ownership  Broadcast & IP Infrastructure   SMPTE 2110 — how graphics signal flow integrates with IP production infrastructure  Signal flow fundamentals — video, audio, data, source to destination  Networking — VLANs, multicast, firewalls, DNS, TCP/UDP  Systems & Automation   Windows Server/workstation and Linux environments for graphics rendering  Virtualization — VM/vPod environments  Scripting and automation — Python, APIs, data-driven template pipelines  Monitoring & Documentation   System monitoring and alerting for live graphics operations  Ticket systems — Jira/ServiceNow  SOP and runbook authorship  Preferred Qualifications   Experience supporting graphics for major live news or sports events (election coverage, championship events, and similar).  Experience with both Vizrt and Ross platforms.  Familiarity with virtual production / AR broadcast environments.  Prior experience mentoring junior engineers or operators.  As part of our selection process, external candidates may be required to attend an in-person interview with a VERSANT Media employee at one of our locations prior to a hiring decision. VERSANT Media's policy is to provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, re