Senior Animator

About the role

You will own the end to end animation process for multiple live projects, shaping narrative through movement while balancing creative ambition with technical constraints. You will act as both a creator and a pipeline partner, defining how animation data is produced, optimized, and integrated across diverse teams. You will bring characters, objects, and environments to life in ways that align with each project's unique artistic vision and commercial goals. You will serve as a mentor and point of contact, elevating the quality of animation across the studio. Your work will directly influence player experience by ensuring every motion feels intentional, polished, and emotionally resonant.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Craft animation across several concurrent projects, working in both 2D and 3D while maintaining strict consistency in style, timing, and performance.
• Collaborate with art directors, designers, and engineers to define animation requirements, delivering keyframed work and 2D skeletal animation through Spine and Unity tools.
• Partner with technology and engineering teams to refine established animation pipelines, focusing on rigging, tooling, runtime behavior, and in-engine workflows.
• Drive the animation foundation for new projects and prototypes, making early decisions on rigging strategies, data formats, toolchains, and runtime integration alongside engineering partners.
• Explore and evaluate AI tooling for animation and content creation, testing how these technologies can accelerate iteration, reduce repetitive work, and improve pipeline reliability.
• Serve as the first point of contact for animation challenges, translating creative direction into movement that delights players and supports the overall game vision.
• Adapt seamlessly between projects, animation styles, and technical environments, connecting art, design, and engineering to solve complex technical problems.
• Contribute to the definition and documentation of production standards, ensuring that animation processes are scalable, efficient, and aligned with project milestones.
• Mentor junior animators by providing clear direction, constructive feedback, and practical examples that raise the quality of the entire team.
• Continuously measure animation performance against KPIs related to player experience, iterating based on data, user feedback, and stakeholder input.

Requirements

• Hold a minimum of five years of professional experience as a Senior Animator within the games industry, with a proven track record of shipped titles.
• Demonstrate a strong foundation in traditional animation principles, applying them consistently across both 2D and 3D mediums.
• Master the fundamentals of timing, spacing, weight, and appeal to create game motions that range from stylized to realistic.
• Bring hands on experience with 2D skeletal animation in Spine combined with Unity native animation tools such as Animator, Animation window, and state machines.
• Show proficiency in 3D animation workflows integrated into Unity, including the use of Mecanim, animation layers, and blend trees.
• Possess technical knowledge of animation pipeline development, including rigging, data flow, and animation tree design.
• Have substantial experience working with the Unity engine, including editor workflows, scripting, and integration with production tools.
• Show a deep understanding of the technical constraints imposed by mobile games, including memory budgets, CPU usage, and battery impact.
• Maintain strong awareness of current AI tooling for content creation and a genuine interest in how these tools can be applied to animation production and pipelines.
• Communicate effectively in English, both orally and in writing, to coordinate with global teams and stakeholders.
• Provide a resume and an online portfolio that showcases your work across both 2D and 3D animation for games.

Nice to have

• Experience contributing to open source animation tools or pipeline utilities.
• Familiarity with version control systems as they relate to animation assets and workflows.
• Background in automated testing or validation for animation data.

Practical notes

This is a full-time role based in São Paulo. Relocation support and visa sponsorship may be available depending on candidate profile and local regulations. The selected candidate is expected to commit to the project timelines and collaborate across time zones as required by studio needs.