Animator (3-month contract)

Animator

Blackbird Interactive is a creative-fueled, future-driven, independent game studio where the best talent in the industry can find long-term careers to help grow their abilities while working on a wide range of projects, which encompass world-class IPs as well as our own creations across multiple genres.
Our studio operates as a remote-first workplace, offering flexible work arrangements.
At this time, we are only able to hire candidates who are legally eligible to work in Canada and reside within Canada.
Blackbird Interactive is seeking a passionate animator to join our team and continue developing a AAA sci-fi action title.
In this position, with the supervision of an Art Director and Character Art Lead you'll focus on character, creature, weapon and prop animations. You will be also contributing to a clean and scalable animation and content pipeline game that fits within the IP's sci-fi aesthetics. You'll work closely with art leadership and cross-discipline teams to create animations that enhance the player experience and are optimized for performance.
Responsibilities
Provide animations for characters, creatures, weapons, and props that are immersive and in-line with the IP's visual and gameplay style.
Implement animation states and events using tools provided in a proprietary game engine.
Collaborate with tech art to create new rigs and find creative solutions to problems as they arise.
Be comfortable owning your pipeline from animation set creation to in-engine implementation.
You will communicate updates in a timely fashion and collaborate effectively cross-discipline with minimal supervision.
Find creative solutions to make best reuse of existing animations.
Requirements
4 years of proven experience in animation for games.
Strong understanding of 3D softwares such as Maya/3ds-Max; as well as animation State Machine tools.
Solid grasp of timing, physics and skeleton anatomy of humans and creatures.
Proficiency in the optimization techniques for game animations.
Excellent communication and collaborative skills.
Pluses
AAA Game experience
Familiarity with game-ready skeleton design, skinning, and animation scene structure
Basic understanding of rigging and rigging tools
Experience animating in-engine cameras
Passion for sci-fi games and/or any media
Experience working on existing IP and their assets
$70,000 - $85,000 a year