Lead Animator

2K
Montreal
Workplace: OnsiteFull timeUSD 123,200 - 182,360 annuallyFunction: Creative Production (Video/Audio/Photo)Skills: ["Mentorship","Communication","Collaboration","Ownership","Adaptability"]

Lead and mentor an animation team to create high-end gameplay and AI animation for a AAA project, partnering with Animation leadership and Production on vision, milestones, and sprint plans. Build and improve animation pipelines, workflows, and onboarding, including Unreal Engine 5 training and motion capture planning. Deliver hand-key facial animation and edit motion capture data for multiple character types while driving culture through leadership, feedback, and continuous improvement.

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FursaFursa
2K
2K
1 day ago

Lead Animator

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Source: Company careers pageValidated by: Fursa AI
Last checked: 12 minutes agoStatus: Live

Job Summary

Lead and mentor an animation team to create high-end gameplay and AI animation for a AAA project, partnering with Animation leadership and Production on vision, milestones, and sprint plans. Build and improve animation pipelines, workflows, and onboarding, including Unreal Engine 5 training and motion capture planning. Deliver hand-key facial animation and edit motion capture data for multiple character types while driving culture through leadership, feedback, and continuous improvement.
Location: Montreal
Workplace: Onsite
Employment Type: Full time
Job Function: Creative Production (Video/Audio/Photo)
Seniority: Manager level

Key Responsibilities

  • •Manage, support, and mentor a team of animators; run 1:1s/evaluations and set clear goals.
  • •Partner with the Animation Director and leadership to establish animation vision and promote studio values and culture.
  • •Develop and refine animation pipelines, workflows, and tools, including onboarding and Unreal Engine 5 training.
  • •Deliver hand-key animations and edit motion capture data for first-person and third-person characters.
  • •Collaborate with Production on milestone roadmaps, sprint planning, task delegation, and hiring efforts; address blocking issues.

Pay and Benefits

Salary: USD 123,200 - 182,360 annually
Perks:Health InsuranceDentalVision401kEquityPaid HolidaysPaid LeavePaid SickParental LeaveLife InsuranceWellness StipendCommuter BenefitsGym Membership

Key Requirements

  • •Shipped multiple AAA titles as a Lead, Team Lead, or Senior Animator, ideally using Unreal Engine.
  • •Deep knowledge of gameplay and AI animation systems, including animation graph/data integration, motion capture pipelines, and rigging/prototyping.
  • •Strong hand-key facial animation skills (e.g., FaceFX) and high proficiency animating human bipeds, organic forms, quadrupeds, and mechanical objects.
  • •Excellent understanding of traditional animation principles and human anatomy (including form, gesture, silhouette) as applied to real-time interactive gameplay.
  • •Proven ability to lead, communicate, and collaborate effectively across cross-disciplinary teams while managing quality and feedback under pressure.
Experience:AAA gamesMotion captureAnimation pipelines
Skills:MentorshipCommunicationCollaborationOwnershipAdaptability
Languages:FrenchEnglish
Tech Stack:Unreal EngineUnreal Engine 5FaceFXMotion captureAnimation graph

Company Brief

2K
2K is a video game publisher and developer known for sports, action, and strategy franchises such as NBA 2K, WWE 2K, Borderlands, and Sid Meier’s Civilization. It operates as a major label within Take-Two Interactive.
Industry: Gaming
Company Size: Large (251 to 1,000 employees)
Growth: Established Company
Headquarters: Novato, United States
Founded: 2005
WebsiteLinkedIn