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Principal Engineer, Animation Research

SEED is a pioneering group within Electronic Arts, combining creativity with applied research. We explore, build and help define the future of interactive entertainment.

We exist at EA to deliver and foster inspiring innovation for our games and our players. We do this through exploration, research, prototypes, and never-ending curiosity. We collaborate with game teams and industry partners and also publish our research within our industry and to the public. We pursue long-term applied research yet stay relevant to the present by delivering artifacts along the way to game teams and technology groups inside EA. Some of our research includes bringing digital characters to life, using machine learning for game AI and content creation, and developing novel real-time graphics & physics techniques.

We are looking for a Principal Animation Researcher - someone with a wide gamut of experience in real-time animation to contribute their unique expertise across SEED's projects and create technology that enables world-class experiences for our players.

With your passion for animation, you have a good sense of the path to true innovation for animation in video games. You know the relevant research areas in the field and know how they need to evolve and be applied to deliver unforgettable experiences. Therefore, you will work with the team’s leadership to set the group's direction regarding animation research. You will also work with other researchers to design and implement animation technology that enables novel experiences for our players. This is an applied R&D role: you excel at both researching and implementing end-to-end solutions and know how to balance between quality and performance to ensure the delivery of results. As part of a collective of diverse individuals, you will also contribute your unique expertise across SEED's projects that live at the intersection of many domains.

This position is onsite from one of our EA offices in Canada, and it offers an opportunity for remote work. This role also includes the possibility of leading a small team of researchers. Should this align with your aspirations, you will report to SEED's Head of Technology. Otherwise, you will report to our Generative AI research vector leader.

As a Principal Animation Researcher at SEED, you will:

• Bring new ideas, discuss, and implement solutions to some of the most complex video game animation challenges to create differentiation for EA
• Research novel animation technology, and applications for real-time use cases in games and game development pipelines.
• Build demos that showcase novel applications of animation technology.
• Collaborate with other developers at SEED on projects where your unique expertise will create novelty across SEED's projects that live at the intersection of many domains.
• Collaborate with game teams and central technology groups to understand their requirements better and bring expertise in overlapping areas.
• Lead the end-to-end delivery of novel animation technology, from the R&D workbench into products at EA, in partnership with game teams and central technology groups.
• As a technology leader in animation, you will share and influence animation at EA, across different forums such as Tech Summits, internal conferences, the Principal Engineer Community, and other opportunities as they come.
• Share your work through publications, open sourcing, and speaking at conferences.

As a diverse team with solid goals, we provide autonomy and true influence to each member of SEED. We are looking for an open and curious person; someone who gets a kick out of taking new ideas, investigating them, and adapting their application to games. You have a desire to explore new areas of game development - someone who is passionate, creative, communicative, and invested.

Qualifications

• At least 15 years of experience in the gaming industry or a related field, with a focus on real-time animation research and development.
• Expertise in animation algorithms and techniques. Optionally, experience with machine learning techniques for animation and character movement.
• A tracked record of having delivered animation technology, either in AAA games or relevant products
• Publications, presentations, or related artifacts in real-time animation research.
• Proficient in programming languages such as C++, Python, or similar.
• Familiarity with game engines.
• You work well within a team and want to collaborate with other researchers, engineers, artists, and designers.
• Willingness to travel for conferences and visit teams across EA studios.
• You care about video games.
• Optionally, you have experience leading a team.

If you want to be part of—and work with—some of the most incredible people in the field, then SEED is your team!

To learn more about SEED and our impactful work, check out https://seed.ea.com/