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Animation Technical Director

Job Description

Why join us?

• You want to be part of the new DON’T NOD Montreal narrative game, led by key members of the team behind Life is Strange, and bring your talent to the project;
• You want to join a diverse and committed team, both in its culture and in the content of the games it creates;
• You're looking for an environment where you'll be able to interact with all the teams in a simple and efficient manner;
• You'd like to put your animation skills and your technical knowledge at the service of an original and sensitive experience based on its characters.

What you'll be doing

Reporting to the Lead Animation of the Montreal studio, your role will be to support the animation team in bringing characters to life, while ensuring the quality and implementation of content in the engine (Unreal Engine).

Your mission will be to :

• Act as the referring technical architect for the animation pipelines:
  • structure the data;
  • analyze existing tools and alternatives;
  • propose new, clear and relevant specifications if necessary;
  • test the solutions implemented (by animators or programmers);
  • disseminate good technical practices to facilitators.
• Lead, in partnership with the programming team, the continuous improvement of the quality and efficiency of production for:
  • the effective general management of the export/import of data from DCCs to Unreal;
  • cinematics built in Unreal - based on mocap and iterated;
  • facial animations - facial mocap but also dynamic in-game control;
  • fast integration of numerous contextual animations;
  • the motion kit for character movement.
• Maintain a thorough knowledge of the state of the art in animation, in particular the Unreal 5 engine pipelines, and related DCCs. Propose innovative technology projects, while managing the reality of available resources in an agile manner.

Qualifications

The must-have skills we're looking for

• Experience in Key frame animation and Motion Capture (gameplay and cinematic);
• Mastery of Maya and MotionBuilder tools;
• Mastery of Unreal Editor (4 or 5). At least one consistent project delivered on:
  • the cinematics creation/editing pipeline in this engine;
  • a facial animation system;
  • the implementation of AnimGraph/AnimBlueprint.
• Proficiency with a LipSync generation tool (e.g. Omniverse, JALI, SpeechGraphics, etc.);
• Knowledge of gameplay and cinematic pipelines in video games;
• Good organizational and communication skills;
• Experience in delivering AA or AAA games.

What would set you apart?

• Experience with LiveLink animated cinematics in Unreal Editor;
• Knowledge of MetaHuman technology;
• An interest in narrative games and their ability to convey emotions through their characters.

Additional Information

At DON’T NOD Montreal, we celebrate diversity and inclusivity within our games as well as our teams. We commit to equal opportunities and non-discrimination in our hiring process. We are respectful of the principles of equal employment opportunities, and that is why we encourage women, people of all sexual orientations and gender identities, First Nations people, people living with a disability, visible minorities, as well as any other person who can contribute to the diversity of our studio to apply for our positions.

We build close-knit teams to encourage a fulfilling work environment for all our employees.

Our teams enjoy a range of benefits, including flexibility, a generous holiday bank, time off, training and career development support, and a personalized Lifestyle spending account.

Additional perks include:

• The possibility of working anywhere in Quebec;
• Insurance and virtual healthcare coverage as of Day 1;
• Partial refund of transport fees (OPUS, BIXI and parking);
• Access to gym and fitness classes as well as a multi-sports field in summer which turns into an ice rink in winter;
• Referral bonus that goes the extra mile;
• RRSPs with the employer's contribution.

Company Description

Created in 2008, DON’T NOD is an independent studio which creates and develop AA games in various genres : adventure ( Life is Strange , Tell Me Why , Twin Mirror ), action ( Remember Me ) and RPG ( Vampyr ). Each new game is an original creation with unique narrative gameplay experience and game mechanics.

In 2020, DON’T NOD expanded internationally by creating its first branch in Montreal.