Technical Animator

Description

The City of Angels is now the city of the undead.

And so we need your help in creating the sun soaked backdrop to a full scale zombie apocalypse set across the iconic Californian city for the next instalment of the world renowned Dead Island franchise.

Are you an experienced character rigger and animator with experience using Maya in the games or film industry? If so, then we have your next challenge waiting…

Who Should Apply?

No two Dambusters are created the same, and so we have a tight-knit crew of animators from all backgrounds and walks of life working as a part of our in-house animation department.

We value Inclusivity and Diversity within the workplace and so we recently took the pledge towards Raising the Game.

If you feel that you have the skills, knowledge and experience required to join them, then we definitely want to hear from you, but here are some of the things that we always like to see.

What You Need to Help Us Bring the Dead to Life

Here are the fundamental skills and expertise required to be a successful Senior Environment Artist at Dambuster Studios:

• Extensive experience developing pipelines and toolsets in Python for Maya.
• Experience developing and maintaining animations in Unreal Engine 4 or other game engines.
• Solid understanding of Character deformation techniques and dynamics.
• Solid understanding of facial animation methodologies.
• Good communication skills and a great team-player attitude.

Not Essential, but Great to Have:

• Maya API and C++ knowledge.
• Experience in PySide / PyQT.
• Working knowledge of Unreal Engine 4 and the according animation system and toolset.
• Production experience developing a AAA quality game.
• Understanding of facial animation methodologies.
• Experience using Motion Capture technology, retargeting and processing data.
• Experience using Facial Capture technology and Facial Analysis software.

What You Will Be Doing

Life as a Dambuster is wonderfully varied, but here are some of the daily responsibilities for this role:

• Designing, developing and implementing animation workflows and systems that integrate into Unreal Engine 4 and our game.
• Designing, developing and implementing animation tools and pipelines that facilitate animators work in Maya and Motion Builder character animation systems, including facial setups and performance capture workflows.
• Providing technical support for animators, offering solutions to maximise efficiency and diagnosing issues and fixing them in a timely and intelligent manner.
• Creating high quality animation rigs and character skinning for body and facial.
• Coordinating with the Animation Director and Lead Animator and ensuring tools and pipelines are ready for production. Reporting risks in a timely manner and proactively fixing issues as they come along.
• Collaborating with other game departments and contributing to the overall development of the project and raising any other issues that may need to be addressed.
• Completing all tasks in a timely manner and to a consistently high standard.

What’s In It for you?

Aside from the opportunity to work on the highly anticipated, next instalment of the AAA Dead Island franchise, we are a studio that offers a host of benefits and perks.

• An industry competitive salary.
• A creative and collaborative work environment with genuine opportunities to progress within the studio.
• Cutting edge development environment with access to the latest technologies.
• Funded learning and development opportunities.
• An experienced, passionate and diverse team.
• A vibrant, modern and well-serviced city centre location.
• Gym membership scheme.
• Free financial advice.
• Workplace pension scheme.
• Annual pay reviews.
• Employee referral bonus scheme.
• Group life assurance policy.
• Cycle to work scheme.
• Relocation assistance.

And a whole host of other soft benefits that help make Dambuster Studios such a great place to work:

• Flexible start and end times to the working day.
• Support and encouragement to participate in outreach opportunities.
• Twice yearly studio funded team building events.
• Employee Assistance Program.
• Weekly events such as breakfast Monday, coffee Wednesday and pastry Friday.
• Annual Christmas party and family focused summer BBQ.
• Free fruit & soft drinks.
• Peer nominated SuperStar of the month award.