3D Animator

About the role

We are seeking a versatile and highly skilled 3D Animator to join our creative Santa Clara team. The ideal candidate should have a high skill ceiling and a solid foundation in video game 3D animation. This position requires expertise in balancing character personality, visual appeal, and gameplay intent across different platforms, including mobile devices.

Key Responsibilities

• Create high-quality, expressive 3D character, Environment & Prop, and non-character Animations.
• Establish weight, timing, and personality to bring characters and other assets to life.
• Evaluate the animation workflow requirements of different game systems such as combat, character intro presentation, progression, and cutscenes across various platforms including mobile.
• Collaborate effectively with different disciplines such as Game Design/ 3D Modeling/ Concept Art/ Engineering/ Tech Art/ Sound/ Narrative, to achieve the user experience goal.
• Document and leverage knowledge of core animation principles during development, work with the Art Director on animation art style consistency, and iterate on animation style guide documents.
• Implement, configure, and test 3D animation assets within the game engine and in builds. Maintain the 3D animation assets in desired quality for build and library for long-term production.
• Serve as the team's animation anchor. Be fully prepared to tackle different technical animation requirements (e.g., complex root motion, logic-driven animations, etc.) as our development goals expand.
• Use and explore AI tools to enhance animation production efficiency.

Requirements

• Proven Experience: 4+ years of professional animation experience in the video game industry, or 2+ years experience with a proven track record of shipping and contributing at least one impactful title as animator.
• Mastery of 3D Animation Art: Exceptional skills in character animation are a strict requirement. You must have a deep understanding of body mechanics, physics, and timing.
• Technical Animation Knowledge: Strong working knowledge of character rigging, skinning, IK/FK systems, constraints, animation controls, and common rig troubleshooting. Able to work closely with technical artists or riggers to identify rigging issues, improve animation usability, and support clean production-ready animation workflows.
• Versatility: A diverse portfolio demonstrating experience across various types of game projects, art styles, and development pipelines.
• Tool Proficiency: Expert-level knowledge of industry-standard 3D DCC software (e.g., Maya, Blender, 3ds Max) and strong hands-on experience with mainstream game engines (Unity or Unreal Engine).
• Experience with video game animation workflow: You should understand the entire process from scratch to shipping in game development, for example how 3D animation works in Unity or Unreal Engine (Animation state blending/ events and notifying system).
• Adaptability: A self-driven professional who thrives in a dynamic environment and is always prepared for the next technical challenge.
• Proven ability to strategically leverage AI-driven solutions to accelerate production pipelines, optimize workflows, and enhance overall efficiency.
• Cross-discipline collaboration experience: Understanding of what other disciplines such as Game Design/ 3D Model/ Concept Art/ Engineering/ Tech Art/ Sound contribute to the user experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Cross disciplines knowledge in areas such as Storyboarding/ 2D art/ 3D art.
• Knowledge of advanced rigging and AI Animating tools.
• Experience with scripting (e.g., Python/ blueprint) to optimize animation pipelines and workflows.
• Experience animating playable characters for mobile RPG, action RPG, hero collector, MOBA, or strategy games.
• Experience creating animation sets for live-service games.
• A passion for the mobile and cross-platform gaming market, with an understanding of what makes a game visually satisfying and globally appealing. Being a Gamer and understanding the latest game trends with player resonance.