Principal Gameplay Animator (Gaming)

Location: Santa Monica, United States

Salary: $136,880–$253,260 annual base pay

Company

A leading gaming and interactive entertainment company developing and publishing major game franchises and a new IP.

What you will do

• Own and drive the quality bar for gameplay animation, especially responsive, readable, and satisfying combat.
• Create and refine character animations using animation fundamentals, gameplay principles, and motion-capture data.
• Shape animation for combat design, player expression, enemy behaviours, traversal, and moment-to-moment gameplay.
• Collaborate with Design, Engineering, Art, Audio, and Narrative to improve the player experience.
• Contribute to animation systems, state machines, blending, transitions, and in-engine implementation.
• Provide creative direction, feedback, mentorship, and improvements to tools, workflows, and pipelines.

Requirements

• Significant gameplay animation experience, including senior or principal-level contributions to shipped titles.
• Strong combat animation skills and understanding of combat readability, timing, hit reactions, attack cycles, locomotion, and player control.
• Experience working in game engines and contributing to animation systems and implementation.
• Knowledge of motion-capture pipelines, including editing, cleanup, and blending mocap with keyframe animation.
• Exceptional human and creature animation fundamentals, plus strong cross-disciplinary collaboration and problem-solving skills.
• Advanced proficiency in Maya and the ability to adapt to new tools and technologies.

Culture & Benefits

• Inclusive, respectful, thoughtful, empathetic, and collaborative working environment.
• Medical, dental, vision, health savings, disability, life, and dependent-care benefits, subject to eligibility.
• 401(k) with company match, tuition reimbursement, and charitable donation matching.
• Paid holidays, vacation, sick time, parental leave, bereavement leave, and floating holidays.
• Mental health, wellbeing, fitness, legal, insurance, and employee game discount programs.
• Relocation assistance may be available when the role requires a geographic move.