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Lead Animator
1 year ago
About Splash Damage
We believe that games play better with friends. For more than 20 years, we’ve been creating team-based multiplayer experiences that have entertained tens of millions of players all over the world and forged countless new friendships along the way.
Our studio culture is rooted in our open, friendly, and collaborative environment. Our games are made by people from all over the world, from our entry-level Fresh Talent hires to industry veterans, and we believe that fostering that diverse culture is the best way to build both our games and our studio. We have won numerous awards, including a ‘World-Class’ accreditation by Best Companies and being named one of the UK’s 100 Best Large Companies to work for.
We utilise a hybrid working pattern that gives our employees the perfect balance between the comfort of home working and the perks of office working.
Benefits:
- We offer a comprehensive benefits package for you and your family, including:
- Substantial performance-related pay system on top of your basic
- compensation, along with enhanced pension contributions and our life assurance scheme
- Bespoke VISA and relocation packages for you and your family, with support from our team throughout the whole process
- 25 days of holiday and 8 Bank Holidays a year, plus our annual studio closure between Christmas and New Year’s
- Private Medical and Dental Cover for you and your family, along with a 24/7 digital GP service
- Extensive Mental Health support, with Line Manager Mental Health training, a group of Mental Health First-Aiders, and on-site or remote counseling
- Our bespoke Learning and Development course framework helps you grow as an employee, manager, and leader
- Industry-leading fully paid 30 weeks maternity leave & 10 weeks paternity leave
The Role
We’re looking for a Lead Animator to join the team at Splash Damage and help bring our characters to life. As a Lead Animator, you will be responsible for driving the team to conceive, prototype, and implement exciting gameplay features and sequences while collaborating with the Animation Director and Art Leads to strive for high and consistent quality animations across the game.
Requirements- Minimum of 7 years experience in animation, video games, films or
equivalent - Demonstratable strong biped, creature, and mechanical animation skills
- Aesthetic sense and in-depth understanding of movement in space
- Knowledge of the human anatomy, physiological reactions, body language, and proportions in character concepts in order to express character
emotions through movement - Proficiency in mayor 3D animation software packages, particularly Maya and/or Motion Builder
- Strong leadership, time, and priority management skills
- Detail-oriented, flexible, open-minded, and adaptable to change
- Ability to receive, seek and provide constructive criticism
- Ability to work effectively with members of the animation team and other teams on the project
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills in English
Responsibilities:- Work in close collaboration with the animation director, game designers, and programmers to understand the direction, quality, objectives, and gameplay intentions in order to communicate them to the team
- Work with the production team to define, schedule, prioritize, assign, and regularly follow up on tasks and the advancement of the team’s work with regard to deliverables across all the stages of the project
- Define, prioritize, assign, and regularly follow up on tasks and the advancement of the team’s work with regard to deliverables
- Ensure that the work of the team follows the quality standards, artistic
direction and set deadlines - Working closely with animators, programmers, artists, and designers to
create, implement, and debug animations into the game. - Collaborate with the Animation, Code, and Design teams, to achieve
balance between animation fidelity and gameplay responsiveness. - Quickly prototype animation systems that will serve as a basis for
animation and gameplay-related discussions - Oversee the creation and maintenance of all relevant documentation for
the project(s), including naming & terminology for all gameplay animation
assets and folder structures. - Coach and share best practices with the animation team
PlusesPlease note that these are desirable skills and are not required to apply for the position.
- Solid working experience of MotionBuilder.
- Experience of working with motion capture data.
- Experience working with facial animation, blendshapes, facial animation pipeline.
Splash Damage is an equal-opportunity employer. We believe our teams create better work when they have a range of perspectives to draw from, and we are committed to creating an inclusive working environment that celebrates diversity.
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