Senior Simulation Animation Engineer - Special Projects

Apple; Cupertino (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Apple is seeking a Senior Simulation Animation Engineer to be part of an innovative team developing advanced simulation projects. You will work on impactful initiatives that harness AIML technologies to evolve animation systems.

The ideal candidate will have a solid background in C++, with strong communication skills to collaborate with various departments. Responsibilities include designing real-time animation systems and optimizing features for multiple platforms. Join Apple to make a significant impact on future technologies.

Qualifications

• Minimum 4 years of professional experience.
• Strong proficiency in C++ and solid software engineering fundamentals.
• Knowledge of animation principles and skeletal animation.
• Experience in implementing animation graphs and blend systems.

Responsibilities

• Design and maintain real-time animation systems within the simulator.
• Collaborate to create efficient pipelines for animations.
• Develop and optimize runtime animation features.
• Integrate motion capture data and support gameplay systems.

Skills

C++ proficiency

Animation principles

Software engineering fundamentals

Collaboration skills

Tools

Game engine experience

Job description

Summary

Apple is where individual imaginations gather together, committing to the values that lead to great work. Every new product we build, service we create, or Apple Store experience we deliver is the result of us making each other’s ideas stronger. That happens because every one of us shares a belief that we can make something wonderful and share it with the world, changing lives for the better. It’s the diversity of our people and their thinking that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do. When we bring everybody in, we can do the best work of our lives. Here, you’ll do more than join something — you’ll add something.

Description

As a Senior Simulation Animation Engineer you will have an opportunity to be part of an innovation-focused organization within Apple that is developing simulations and generating synthetic data. You will be able to work on highly ambitious and impactful simulation projects. This team has a strong focus on enabling AIML-based features and products. Our ideal team member brings experience but is also fearless when it comes to trying new things and is willing to iterate on ideas. We value team members who can quickly prototype, iterating all the way to high-quality implementations. Moreover, we value team members who can collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams across the organization.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain real-time animation systems within the simulator (e.g., animation state machines, blend trees, IK/FK solvers).
• Explore and adapt emerging animation technologies (e.g., motion matching, ML-based animation, runtime physics blending).
• Collaborate with animators and technical artists to create efficient pipelines for importing, retargeting, and testing animations.
• Develop and optimize runtime animation features such as locomotion, procedural layering, ragdolls, and facial animation.
• Integrate motion capture data and support animation-driven gameplay systems.
• Ensure animations run efficiently across target platforms and use cases, both real time with frame rate budgets and non real time.
• Create tools and scripts to improve animator workflows and streamline iteration.
• Debug animation-related issues in simulations.

Minimum Qualifications

• 4 years of professional experience.
• Strong proficiency in C++ and solid software engineering fundamentals.
• Knowledge of animation principles, skeletal animation, and character rigging concepts.
• Experience implementing animation graphs, blend systems, runtime animation retargeting, and IK solvers.
• Familiarity with profiling, optimization, and debugging in a real-time environment.
• Good communication skills and ability to collaborate with animators, designers, and engineers.
• Experience with a major game engine.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with USD format and tools, especially for animation.
• Experience in video game real-time animation systems.
• Experience with offline animation and rendering pipelines.
• Experience with hair and cloth simulations.