Rigging Artist: Facial & Dynamic Motion Expert

Incessantrain; Rancho Palos Verdes, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

Incessantrain is seeking an experienced Rigging Artist to develop advanced character rigs for human and quadruped characters. You will work on facial systems, dynamic secondary motion rigs, skinning, and deformation, collaborating with animators and modelers to ensure rigs are production-ready.

You will create facial rigs, blendshapes, and intermediate level MEL/Python scripts while mentoring junior team members and collaborating with other departments on rig requirements.

Qualifications

• 4–5 years of professional experience in character rigging.
• Proficiency in Maya; Blender is a plus.
• Experience with facial rigging, blendshapes, and secondary motion systems.
• Intermediate knowledge of MEL and Python scripting.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Animation, or related field.
• Portfolio/showreel demonstrating facial rigs, dynamic setups, and skinning quality.

Responsibilities

• Develop anatomically accurate rigs for human and quadruped characters.
• Create facial rigs and blendshapes for expressions, lip sync, and animation.
• Perform advanced skinning for high-quality deformation and volume preservation.
• Build dynamic rigs for secondary motion (hair, tails, skirts, cloth).
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex rigging and animation issues.
• Collaborate with animators, modelers, and other departments on rig requirements.
• Mentor junior rigging artists and contribute to team knowledge sharing.

Skills

Character rigging

Facial rigs

MEL scripting

Python scripting

Rigging workflows

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/Animation

Tools

Maya

Blender

Unreal/Unity rigging

Job description

Incessantrain is seeking an experienced Rigging Artist to develop advanced character rigs for human and quadruped characters. You will work on facial systems, dynamic secondary motion rigs, skinning, and deformation, collaborating with animators and modelers to ensure rigs are production-ready.

You will create facial rigs, blendshapes, and intermediate level MEL/Python scripts while mentoring junior team members and collaborating with other departments on rig requirements.