Animator, Cinematics - Unannounced Game | Irvine, CA or Albany, NY
About The Position
Your Mission At Blizzard, we craft genre‑defining games and legendary worlds for all to share. Through unparalleled creativity and storytelling, we create immersive universes and iconic characters that are beloved across platforms, borders, backgrounds, and generations – only made possible by building a work environment that nurtures the artistry of game development and unleashes the aspirations of our people. We are looking for an Animator, Cinematics to help craft a new, unannounced game for Blizzard. As a professional‑level individual contributor, you will create high‑quality in‑game cinematics and narrative gameplay moments using motion capture, performance capture, and hand‑keyed animation. You will collaborate closely with artists, designers, engineers, and narrative partners to bring compelling characters, performances, and story moments to life through animation. This role is anticipated to be a hybrid work position, with some work on‑site and some work from home. The potential home studio for this role is Irvine, CA.
Requirements
- 5+ years of experience
- Professional experience creating character or creature animation for games, film, or interactive media.
- Experience working with motion‑capture, performance‑capture, and hand‑keyed animation workflows.
- Experience collaborating within cross‑disciplinary development teams.
- Strong animation skills using Maya or equivalent 3D animation software.
- Strong facial animation skills and performance‑driven animation sensibilities.
- Solid understanding of cinematic systems and scripted narrative gameplay.
- Understanding of narrative structure and cinematography, including staging, camera, layout, and editing principles.
- Technical understanding of animation implementation in a game engine, including the ability to troubleshoot issues.
- Strong communication skills, with the ability to work independently, take direction, and provide constructive feedback.
- A collaborative, team‑oriented mindset with a passion for storytelling and performance.
- Attention to detail and commitment to high‑quality animation craft.
- Comfort working in a dynamic, iterative development environment.
- A player‑first mindset with enthusiasm for creating memorable narrative moments.
- Resume.
- Demo reel or portfolio showcasing cinematic or character animation work.
Nice To Haves
- Experience working on AAA games for major platforms.
- Experience in prototype‑driven or rapid‑iteration environments.
- On‑set experience with motion‑capture or performance‑capture shoots.
- Basic experience with modeling or rigging workflows.
Responsibilities
- Create visually compelling in‑game cinematics and scripted narrative events using motion‑capture, performance‑capture, and hand‑keyed animation techniques.
- Implement and validate animations within the game engine to ensure functionality, performance, and visual quality.
- Collaborate with Directors, Writers, Designers, and Engineers to ensure cinematic content aligns with narrative, gameplay, and overall creative vision.
- Participate in reviews, iterate on feedback, and continuously refine animation quality.
- Assist with planning and preparation for motion‑capture and performance‑capture shoots, ensuring characters, sets, and props are properly prepared and validated.
Benefits
- Medical, dental, vision, health savings account or health reimbursement account, healthcare spending accounts, dependent care spending accounts, life and AD&D insurance, disability insurance
- 401(k) with Company match, tuition reimbursement, charitable donation matching
- Paid holidays and vacation, paid sick time, floating holidays, compassion and bereavement leaves, parental leave
- Mental health & wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free and discounted games, and a variety of other voluntary benefit programs like supplemental life & disability, legal service, ID protection, rental insurance, and others
- If the Company requires that you move geographic locations for the job, then you may also be eligible for relocation assistance.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
No Education Listed
