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PreViz/Cinematic Animator (Star Wars Team)

Electronic Arts
Los Angeles California United States
3 years ago
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Respawn Entertainment is hiring! Learn more about our studio and values at respawn.com/studio .

We are looking for an experienced Previz/Cinematic Animator to join our Star Wars team. In this role, you will plan out and create animatics/layouts for cinematic and gameplay sequences. Our ideal candidate has a strong understanding of MotionBuilder/Maya, Unreal Engine and can manage motion capture-based animations. We’re imagining someone who gets excited to tell a compelling and great story with shot framing and composition, who will embrace our philosophy and help us create an incredible experience for our players.

What’s it like to be a Previz/Cinematic animator at Respawn?

Day to Day - Our Previz/Cinematic Animators’ tasks include breaking down narrative scripts, using your sense of composition and pacing to create an animatic that will be integrated into the game engine. This involves prototyping, creating proxy assets, iterating on feedback, testing, and solving problems. You will be involved with the prep and direction of motion capture shoots at our stage to create IGCs and cinematics. You will use your character animation skills and knowledge of MotionBuilder/Maya to take assigned in-game cinematic sequences and cutscenes to completion. You will interface with a wide variety of departments to get a scene stood up and playable in the game engine. A knack for collaboration is key.

Creative Freedom - We believe that when developers have creative freedom and work together they will make extraordinary games that achieve the unexpected. Our previs/cinematic animators are encouraged to share ideas, iterate for greatness, scope wisely, and deliver compelling previsualization that will represent the story and characters. As a previs/cinematic animator you will have a direct hand in shaping the game and a voice when it comes to making the best game possible.

Ownership - Our teams are small and everyone has a lot of ownership over their work. Our previs/cinematic animators own their individual scenes from conceptualization to shipping. As part of a small team you will have the opportunity to shine here.

Feel - Our studio puts a big emphasis on telling a great story alongside fun gameplay. We want our scenes to be grounded in the world we are creating. We want the player to connect with the narrative and gameplay through means of immersive storytelling. Detail matters - from refining final camera movements, the way a shot is framed and composed, the way an edit is properly paced, the way staging, blocking and camera work delivers a high quality scene that engages the player. The way an astonishing moment can leave a player breathless; it’s all crafted with purpose. All disciplines in game development are accountable to the gameplay a player experiences - and our previz/cinematic animators are key in ensuring the best feel possible.

Collaboration - Our cinematic team plays a central role in development to deliver a story experience. As a previz/cinematic animator you will collaborate with other cinematic designers and disciplines such as narrative, animation, motion capture, code, vfx, and art. The work of our previz/cinematic artists has an impact on others, and they anticipate and communicate any scene/shot changes or scoping efforts that may affect schedules and workloads.

Values - Our cinematic teams are aligned on their values. They share their inspiration, knowledge, and passion with the others in their department. They aspire to treat everything they work on as a personal masterpiece. They play the game and are encouraged to speak up if they see anything that is not up to our standards. They play other studios’ games and stay up to date with trends, while also striving to invent something new. They put their time and passion into what will have the biggest payoff for players. Our leads also make a lot of effort to ensure that our previz/cinematic animators work on aspects they are excited about.

What do we look for in Previz/cinematics animator candidates?

Storytelling - We look for accomplished previz/cinematic animators to create shots and sequences telling the story through camera position/movement and character blocking. You may also translate storyboards and animatics into a 3d layout in the game engine. Ensuring continuity between scenes and gameplay are of consistent quality throughout. We look for someone to take ownership of assigned in-game cinematics and cutscenes to get them to AAA quality with keyframe animation that blends seamlessly into gameplay.

Passion - We look for previz/cinematic animators who are highly passionate. Our cinematic team is constantly sharing inspiration and working to raise the quality bar. No one is phoning it in here – our team loves what they do and it shows in their work.

Potential Over Experience - We value talent over years of experience. Experience counts, but potential is important too. We look for motivated developers with a keen eye for quality.

Teamplayer - Positivity and a great attitude help to fuel greatness. The ability to accept feedback and critiques will help you tailor your work towards what’s best for the game. Making games is a group effort and you will work closely with other accomplished departments that are experts in what they do. Teamwork is very important to our success.

Ideally, you also will have...

If this opportunity sounds like a great fit for you, please submit your resume and reel and we will get back to you once we have reviewed!

In addition to opportunities for creative impact and professional growth which come with being a member of our team, working at Respawn has many other perks and benefits! Learn more at respawn.com/perks .

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