2K
Lead Animator
San Mateo, California, United States · Director · Full-time
Sponsorship not specified$15k-$25kDetected 14 days ago
RoadmappingExcelUnreal EngineLeadershipCommunicationCollaborationMentoring
About the role
- We pursue growth and innovation in an environment of safety and trust.
- The pay range for this position in California at the start of employment is expected to be between $123,200 and $182,360 per year.
- However, base pay offered is based on market location, and may vary further depending on individualized factors for job candidates, such as job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and other objective business considerations.
Responsibilities
- Create high-quality in-game animations that support responsive, polished gameplay.
- Implement animations directly in Unreal using the project's animation system and Blueprints.
- Develop quick animation prototypes for new gameplay features, such as combat abilities, character actions, or animatic sequences.
- Help define, maintain, and elevate the animation style and quality bar by creating clear examples, documenting standards, and sharing best practices with the team.
- Provide regular feedback in partnership with the Animation Director, mentoring animators, onboarding and developing team members, and serving as a trusted resource for creative guidance and support.
- Interpret and translate direction from directors and creative leads into clear, actionable animation goals.
- Partner with Technical Animation to explore and refine locomotion and overall character motion, ensuring the smoothest and most polished player experience possible.
- Collaborate closely with Production on roadmap planning, task estimation, and risk assessment, while balancing competing priorities and adjusting workflows to accommodate evolving project requirements.
- You will help drive the project's visual style by providing regular feedback, mentoring team members, and contributing to the overall quality and success of the team's output.
- In this role, you'll collaborate closely with technical artists, game designers, producers, engineers, animators, and other cross-functional partners to bring creative ideas and gameplay experiences to life.
Requirements
- 6-8+ years of experience in game development, including at least one shipped AAA title in an animation role.
- 2-4+ years of experience in a leadership role and/or mentoring experience.
- Familiar with Unreal Engine, including animation systems, asset integration, and runtime considerations, with advanced knowledge of Maya.
- Experience working with Perforce and managing assets in large-scale, multi-team environments.
Nice to have
- Experience leveraging Google Sheets/Excel to organize asset inventories, monitor production status, and facilitate coordination and visibility across departments.
- Experience creating cinematic sequences, character performances, and story-driven animation that enhances narrative and emotional impact.
- 14 paid holidays per calendar year
- up to 10 paid sick days per calendar year
- Ontario only: The use of Artificial Intelligence is not being used to screen candidates.
- The position is for an existing vacancy.
Compensation
- The pay range for this position in California at the start of employment is expected to be between $123,200 and $182,360 per year.
Company info
- We are a diverse team of developers driven by a passion for our art, united by our core values and inspired by a culture of inclusivity to build amazing games that thrill players everywhere. We pursue growth and innovation in an environment of safety and trust. Our culture is built on the belief that the more varied voices in our collective will strengthen our team and our games. We are looking for our next teammate who will raise our bar and make us better.
- What We Need:
- We are seeking a Lead Animator to lead by example through high-quality animation work while gaining leadership duties. You will help drive the project's visual style by providing regular feedback, mentoring team members, and contributing to the overall quality and success of the team's output. In this role, you'll collaborate closely with technical artists, game designers, producers, engineers, animators, and other cross-functional partners to bring creative ideas and gameplay experiences to life.
- We are a diverse team of developers driven by a passion for our art, united by our core values and inspired by a culture of inclusivity to build amazing games that thrill players everywhere.
- Our culture is built on the belief that the more varied voices in our collective will strengthen our team and our games.
- We are looking for our next teammate who will raise our bar and make us better.
- We are seeking a Lead Animator to lead by example through high-quality animation work while gaining leadership duties.
- Set up animation blends, overlays, events, and related systems in Unreal.
- Iterate on animation and player feel through playtesting and hands-on tuning.
This listing is sourced directly from 2K's careers page and normalized into a canonical job model.