Visual Quality Expert (Film, VFX & Animation)

What you'll do

A leading AI lab's generative AI team needs people who can see what most viewers cannot. You evaluate high-resolution video and stills, often enhanced or upscaled by a model, frame by frame, and decide whether the result actually holds up against professional image-quality standards.

The defects you are hunting are the ones a supervisor catches in dailies: compression artifacts, noise, aliasing, banding, inconsistent grain structure, and over- or under-sharpening.

Beyond spotting them, the role has three other parts:

• Designing and refining evaluation templates and rating guidelines so other reviewers apply the same bar, including on edge cases
• Turning what you see into precise written language for data captions and templates
• Generating your own visual samples with AI tools for targeted tests and side-by-side comparisons

That last point means the role goes beyond passive review: you are expected to be comfortable driving generative tools yourself.

Who fits

• 5+ years of high-end visual evaluation in film, VFX, animation or professional photography
• Direct experience in at least one named seat: VFX supervisor, rendering supervisor, lighting supervisor or artist, colorist, DP or cinematographer, effects or surfacing artist, high-end photographer, director (especially crowd and background action), or digital projectionist
• Training from a well-regarded film, VFX or digital media program
• Reliable access to a 4K monitor
• Familiarity with AI tools and workflows
• 20 hours a week, with working hours inside the Pacific-to-Eastern window
• Fluent English and the ability to describe visual detail precisely

Employment terms: read these twice

The ad contradicts itself. Its body describes a part-time W-2 employment position with Cincinnatus LLC, a staffing company acting as employer of record, with placement at the AI lab as extended workforce. The listing is labelled an hourly contract, and the standard Mercor footer says you will be an independent contractor paid weekly via Stripe or Wise.

W-2 employment and independent contracting are different things for tax, benefits and paperwork. Confirm which one applies before you sign. The footer also excludes H-1B and STEM OPT candidates.

What it pays

$60–90 per hour, Mercor's published figure. The ad does not say what sets your rate within the band.

Worth knowing

Good:

• Rare listing that values a trained eye over a technical degree
• Creative, hands-on sample generation, not just rating queues
• Possible W-2 route, which would mean payroll and benefits via Cincinnatus
• A clear 20-hour weekly shape

Less good:

• US-only, and working hours must overlap PST to EST
• 4K display is on you
• W-2 versus contractor status is unclear from the ad
• The 5+ years and named-seat requirement shuts out junior artists
• Projects can be extended, shortened or ended early

About this listing

Posted by Mercor for United States residents, confirmed open on 24 September 2026. Pay, qualifications, hours and the Cincinnatus arrangement are the ad's own. See Mercor.