Lead Animator: Unreal/Blender, Remote, Multi-Project

Snailgamesusa; Beverly Hills (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision

Life/LTD

401k with company match

Paid holidays

Sick leave

Job summary

Snail Games USA is seeking a talented Animator to join our Central Art team. You will create expressive keyframe animations for human, creature, and alien characters using Blender and Unreal Engine 5, setting animation standards, and reviewing work from overseas partners.

The ideal candidate has a strong portfolio, professional game animation experience, and the ability to mentor others while balancing hands-on work with reviews across multiple projects.

Qualifications

• Portfolio demonstrating excellent animation fundamentals including weight, timing, body mechanics, expression, and appeal.
• Professional video game animation experience, including leading animation work or mentoring artists.
• Proficiency in Blender and Unreal Engine 5 for keyframe animation, iteration, and polish.
• Ability to create performances for humanoid characters and creatures with varied anatomy.
• Experience translating creative direction into clear animation targets and actionable feedback.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to guide remote teams and external partners.
• Balance hands-on animation work with reviews, mentorship, and delivery responsibilities across multiple projects.

Responsibilities

• Lead animation quality and execution across multiple projects, aligning with each project’s creative direction and gameplay needs.
• Create polished keyframe animations for human, creature, and alien characters using Blender and Unreal Engine 5.
• Define and maintain animation standards, style guides, review criteria, and best practices in partnership with the Senior Technical Animator.
• Lead animation reviews, providing actionable written feedback, video critiques, and demonstrations to internal teams and overseas partners.
• Mentor animators in performance, body mechanics, timing, and animation polish.
• Collaborate with production and project leads to scope animation work, prioritize deliverables, identify risks, and support achievable schedules.
• Partner with art, design, and technical teams to ensure animations integrate smoothly into gameplay systems and meet visual and technical requirements.
• Maintain stylistic consistency within each project while supporting a range of realistic and stylized animation approaches.
• Keep animation tasks, review notes, references, and approvals organized in Jira.

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring artists

Communication

Artistic expression

Tools

Blender

Unreal Engine 5

Animation pipelines

Job description

Snail Games USA is seeking a talented Animator to join our Central Art team. You will create expressive keyframe animations for human, creature, and alien characters using Blender and Unreal Engine 5, setting animation standards, and reviewing work from overseas partners.

The ideal candidate has a strong portfolio, professional game animation experience, and the ability to mentor others while balancing hands-on work with reviews across multiple projects.