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Cesar Saez

London, UK - hi@cesarsaez.com

Engineering Manager & Technical Leader

Engineering leader with 10+ years building the core technology behind commercial DCCs, real-time virtual production, and applied AI. I lead the teams that turn complex R&D into reliable software, bridging technical execution with strategic roadmap delivery to cultivate scalable systems and top-tier engineering cultures.

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Skills

  • Engineering Leadership: Org Scaling & Multi-Team Management, Technical Hiring Frameworks, Mentorship & Culture Building, Agile Delivery
  • Architecture & Strategy: System Architecture, Developer Experience (DevEx), Roadmap De-risking, Cross-Functional Alignment (Product/UX)
  • Technical Domain: C++ & Python, USD (Universal Scene Description), ML/AI Infrastructure, Performance Optimization (Concurrency, Build Tooling)

Experience

Foundry, London

Lead Software Engineer, Katana

Jul 2025 – Present

  • Lead a cross-functional Scrum team responsible for the technical evolution of Katana's core features, driving deep Universal Scene Description (USD) integration.
  • Drove a cross-team Developer Experience (DevEx) initiative spanning 3 Katana engineering groups. Championed the adoption of ccache, reducing local build times by 50–90% (saving up to 18 minutes per build) and accelerating wider organizational velocity.
  • Maintained ahead-of-schedule feature delivery for the Kraken team, absorbing broader architectural responsibilities during organizational restructuring to stabilize the product roadmap.
  • Elevated baseline engineering quality across the wider Katana group by standardizing code review practices, establishing architectural guidelines, and mentoring peers through technical influence.
  • Partner closely with product and UX leadership to de-risk complex technical features, translating high-level vision into predictable engineering phasing.

Foundry, London

Lead Research Engineer, AI

Jul 2022 - Jul 2025

  • Led two AI Research teams to successfully integrate machine learning features (e.g., CopyCat, Inference, Cattery) into Foundry's flagship commercial product.
  • Played a key role in scaling the AI Research department from 1 to 4 teams, aligning agile practices and leading cross-team sprint reviews to maintain technical cohesion.
  • Line-managed 6 direct reports, conducting performance reviews, advocating for promotions, and cultivating a culture focused on continuous professional growth and psychological safety.
  • Co-developed a standardized technical hiring framework adopted across the entire R&D organization, significantly improving candidate evaluation consistency and scalability.
  • Architected a shared ML infrastructure library (exchange formats, inference abstractions) enabling AI feature integration across multiple Foundry products.
  • Created a C++ onboarding video series adopted globally by Foundry Engineering, reducing ramp-up time for new hires.

Foundry, London

Senior Research Engineer, Real-Time

Sep 2020 – Jul 2022

  • Co-led applied R&D and technical prototyping for Nuke Stage, engineering a commercial virtual production solution focused on real-time compositing and GPU-driven effects.
  • Engineered early prototypes for Nuke's USD-based 3D system, establishing the architectural foundation for the redesigned 3D system shipped in Nuke 14+.

DNEG, London

Software Engineer, R&D

Aug 2019 – Sep 2020

  • Built core libraries and asset resolution systems for the Scene Description platform, based on Universal Scene Description.
  • Collaborated across pipeline, layout, and tools teams to support studio-wide workflows.

Animal Logic (now Netflix Animation Studios), Sydney

Software Engineer, R&D

Feb 2016 – Aug 2019

  • Developed and maintained in-house rigging and authoring frameworks used across feature animation.
  • Developed scalable production pipelines using USD, enabling more flexible asset interchange and studio growth.

Earlier Career in Animation/VFX

Senior/Lead Character TD, Rigging Supervisor

2005 – 2015

  • Held lead and supervisor roles on multiple feature film and TV projects across high-end animation and VFX studios.
  • Led cross-functional teams of riggers, animators, and tools developers, often balancing creative demands with technical constraints.
  • Oversaw delivery of character setups, tools, and workflows under tight production schedules.
  • Introduced and documented standards that improved artist efficiency and reduced shot revisions.
  • Collaborated with directors and production to ensure delivery under tight schedules.

Recommendations

Cesar is a skilled software engineer who believes in the craft of coding and has a great understanding of how software fits together. He doesn't settle for what's worked in the past, but is an innovator who searches for newer, better and cooler ways to do things.
– Eoin Murphy, Senior Software Engineer at NVIDIA
I had the pleasure of working with Cesar for The Lego Batman movie and Lego Ninjago Movie. He was a great problem solver and was always looking for ways to improve our processes and pipeline. I depended on him to assist our more entry level team members and he did a great job teaching us new ways to produce better code.
– Josh Murtack, Senior Creature Technical Director at Weta FX
The best assets of Cesar are their creativity in front of problems and his increidble human touch. During his time as Lead Character TD, he worked to provide flexibility and reliability to the rigs, as well as tools for all the departments. Then, he took the helm of the rigging department and thanks to him we were able to work as a solid team, bringing solutions for all the studio, and facing long-term goals for next productions. And after all this, it seems that we only scratch the surface of his ideas and potential.
– Ricard Miras Bellavista, Character TD and Developer at 23lunes
Cesar has an excellent balance of innovation and productivity. He is always thinking about faster, cleaner and reusable ways to achieve things but never forgets that his tools and rigs will be used by people in a real production. Furthermore, he likes teamwork and is willing to help colleagues. I am lucky to be working with him.
– Angel Pavon, Core Development Manager at Raw Gaming Group

Education

Universidad Central, Chile

B.Sc. in Construction Engineering

2000 - 2005

Passed with Distinction

Social Links

  • Github: https://www.github.com/csaez
  • Mastodon: https://hachyderm.io/@cesarsaez
  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cesarsaez
  • Website: https://www.cesarsaez.com