Cinematic Animators - All Levels

Description

Crystal Dynamics is seeking multiple Cinematic Animators of all levels to breathe life into characters through outstanding, believable performances. The animator will be well-rounded enough to provide solutions for scenes, faces, and even assemble and piece together data for videos.

This is a 3-4 month, Project Full-time position complete with benefits from Crystal Dynamics, including a competitive salary, health insurance options to suit all lifestyles, generous paid time-off, as well as other studio and corporate perks, such as a free gym and discounts on games and goodies. 

Local candidates highly preferred, but willing to consider non-local candidates if able to legally work in the United States without visa sponsorship requirements.

Position Summary:

The Cinematic Animator will primarily be focusing on creating life-like performances in cinematic sequences. The Cinematic Animator will be able to work under direction as well as autonomously with other animators and related disciplines to bring scenes to life. An ideal candidate will have demonstrated experience with a wide range of performance animation techniques.

Essential Duties:

• Create animations using data from mocap shoots;
• Process mocap data and integrate into cinematic scenes;
• Bring mocap data and cinematic scenes to final polish;
• Partner with various disciplines to create a cohesive experience in our games
• Work in a collaborative environment where feedback and direction are welcomed;
• Produce quality animations and scenes on time while respecting and supporting the cinematic vision and animation goals.

Competencies, Skills, and Knowledge:

• Minimum 3 years of professional experience as an Animator in games or film.
• Strong 3D character based animation skills.
• Strong demo reel, including examples of character based animation.
• Strong understanding of the fundamentals of traditional animation techniques.
• Strong experience with Maya and other animation packages.
• Experience with character animation (mesh creation, texturing, skinning, IK etc).
• Experience with realistic (non-cartoon based) animation.
• Experience with compositing tools.
• Ability to deliver animations on-time.
• Experience with motion capture (eg. Motion Builder).

Additional Plus:

• Experience with the creation of animation trees and real-time animation blending (AnimGraphs)
• Basic understanding of all areas of character creation (mesh, texturing, skinning, rigging)
• General technical aptitude
• Experience with non-linear editors like Adobe Premiere Pro.