Senior Animator, Unannounced Super Fun Video Game (Contract)
This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Senior Animator, Unannounced Super Fun Video Game (Contract) based in United States.
This is a high-impact animation role on a small, highly autonomous game development team building a PvE co-op action experience. You will be responsible for shaping both expressive character performances and responsive gameplay animation that directly defines how the game feels moment to moment. The environment is fast-moving, highly collaborative, and built around ownership rather than hierarchy or heavy process. You will work closely with design, engineering, and art to ensure animation supports clarity, combat feel, and emotional impact. A significant part of the role involves working directly in-engine, iterating quickly, and solving problems hands-on. Success in this role requires strong independence, strong communication in a remote async setup, and a builder mindset focused on shipping high-quality work.
Accountabilities
You will own animation across both performance and gameplay domains, ensuring characters feel alive while also being highly readable and responsive in combat.
- Create high-quality character animation covering gameplay, combat, facial performance, and expressive acting
- Rig, skin, and prepare character assets for animation workflows and in-engine use
- Implement and iterate directly in Unreal Engine, driving animation from concept through final polish
- Collaborate closely with design and engineering to refine gameplay responsiveness, timing, and player feedback
- Partner with art and VFX teams to ensure cohesive integration of visual and animation systems
- Identify workflow bottlenecks and improve pipelines through tooling, automation, and technical solutions
- Contribute to cross-discipline problem solving in a small team where ownership spans beyond a single specialty
- Strong portfolio demonstrating exceptional character and gameplay animation work
- Proven ability in both expressive performance animation and responsive gameplay animation
- Strong understanding of acting, timing, motion clarity, physicality, and facial expression
- Experience with rigging and preparing animation-ready character assets
- Hands-on experience implementing animation in Unreal Engine
- Ability to work directly in-engine and iterate quickly without heavy oversight
- Strong communication skills for asynchronous, fully remote collaboration
- Comfort working across disciplines and discussing technical and creative tradeoffs
- Self-directed mindset with experience shipping or contributing to real game projects
- Openness to learning new tools, workflows, and AI-assisted production methods
- Competitive hourly compensation of $60–$70 USD
- Contract engagement with potential for extension depending on performance and project needs
- Remote-first work environment across the United States
- Opportunity to work on a highly autonomous, small-team production structure
- Direct ownership of animation systems and gameplay feel with high creative impact
- Exposure to modern game production workflows, including in-engine iteration and AI-assisted tools
- Collaborative, craft-focused environment with minimal bureaucracy
Requirements
You bring deep animation expertise paired with strong technical fluency and the ability to operate independently in a fast-paced, remote environment.