Lead Animation Programmer

6211 Rocksteady Studios Limited; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading game development studio is seeking a Lead Animation Programmer. This role involves leading a team to deliver high-quality animation techniques for AAA titles. Candidates should have strong C++ skills and experience in modern animation pipelines. The position offers a hybrid working model, combining both remote and in-office work. Ideal applicants will have led teams and worked on AAA games, showcasing their proficiency in collaborating with artists and ensuring smooth production processes.

Qualifications

• Advanced understanding of C++ and software development.
• Proficient in modern animation pipelines and tools.
• Experience with Motion Matching based locomotion systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a team of animation programmers.
• Ensure AAA animation systems are implemented to high standards.
• Collaborate closely with Production to plan schedules.

Skills

Line management experience

AAA video game experience

Game technology principles

Collaboration with artists

Tools

C++

3DSMax

Maya

MotionBuilder

Unreal Engine 5

Job description

Who We Are…

When we say,"When we say," “the stuff dreams are made of,” we’re not just referring to the world of wizards, dragons and superheroes, or even to the wonders of Planet Earth. Behind WBD’s vast portfolio of iconic content and beloved brands, are the bringing our characters to life, the bringing them to your living rooms and the creating what’s next…

From brilliant creatives, to technology trailblazers, across the globe, WBD offers career defining opportunities, thoughtfully curated benefits, and the tools to explore and grow into your best selves. Here you are supported, here you are celebrated, here you can thrive.

Rocksteady Studios is an award‑winning, critically acclaimed video game developer. Founded in 2004, we are home to the widely celebrated Batman : Arkham series of games. Our philosophy for game development is all about treating people well to create quality entertainment that stands the test of time. We’re a one‑project studio that built our success by combining genre‑defining gameplay and character‑driven cinematic narrative with AAA production values. Born in the heart of London, our multicultural team takes inspiration from the culture and history of our home in one of the most diverse cities in the world.

Rocksteady is looking for a Lead Animation Programmer to join our dedicated and collaborative team, who is ready for the challenge of bringing our next AAA title to life. The role involves leading and supporting our team of animation programmers to deliver world‑class animation techniques in collaboration with our Animation, Cinematics, Core Engine and Game Code teams. Hands‑on coding is a key part too, working on animation systems and tools, with a focus on gameplay animation.

Key Responsibilities

• Leading, mentoring and supporting a team of animation programmers, and coordinating with our development partners
• Ensuring our AAA animation systems and pipelines are delivered successfully and implemented to a high technical standard
• Collaborate closely with Production to plan the Animation Code team’s schedule
• Implementing and driving new animation and cinematics features and pipelines
• Co‑ordinating with other disciplines, communicating technical concepts and requirements in a way that facilitates a smooth workflow
• With your team, acting as a first line of support for our gameplay teams, evaluating new feature requests for their pipelines and tools and implementing time‑saving and quality‑improving changes to help our team create best‑in‑industry gameplay and cinematic animation
• Working with the Technical Director and other Code Leads to help improve development processes across the Code team

Technical Requirements

• Advanced understanding of C++ and software development
• Proficient understanding of modern animation pipelines and tools
• Comprehensive understanding of animation tools such as 3DSMax, Maya, or MotionBuilder, with experience developing plugins for DCC tools a plus
• Good understanding of the main gaming platforms and the requirements needed to develop software on them
• Good understanding of cloth and motorised ragdoll physics simulation.
• Experience with optimising animation systems and assets
• Experience with Motion Matching based locomotion systems
• Unreal Engine 5 experience an advantage

Skill Requirements

• Experience of line management and leading teams
• Experience working on and shipping at least one AAA video game title
• Good understanding of game technology principles
• Experience defining, implementing and supporting production processes
• Experience supporting and collaborating with artists to produce high quality content and create efficient processes

Hybrid Working

Hybrid Working - This role is advertised as a Hybrid work model, that combines remote and in‑office work, following our current company policy and to be agreed with your Line Manager. Subject to any applicable laws, WBD / your Line Manager reserves the right to change this working agreement where this is essential to business needs and upon reasonable notice to you.

How We Get Things Done…

This last bit is probably the most important! Here at WBD, our guiding principles are the core values by which we operate and are central to how we get things done. You can find them at along with some insights from the team on what they mean and how they show up in their day to day. We hope they resonate with you and look forward to discussing them during your interview.

Championing Inclusion at WBD

Warner Bros. Discovery embraces the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects a wide array of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit, regardless of sex, gender identity, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, disability or any other category protected by law.