Senior Technical Animator

Senior Technical Animator, Defcon Zero | TriArts Games | Remote

Join the team building Defcon Zero, a high-fidelity RTS powered by Unreal Engine 5.

We are looking for a Senior Technical Animator to own the technical animation pipeline, from production-ready rigs and animation tools to runtime systems inside Unreal Engine 5. You will help define how soldiers, vehicles, mechanical units, and creatures move, fight, and behave, while ensuring every system remains responsive and performant at RTS scale.

You will have direct ownership, work closely with both artists and developers, and see your work reflected throughout the final game.

What you'll own

• Runtime animation systems: Animation Blueprints, state machines, montages, notifies, blending, IK, retargeting, and procedural animation
• Character and unit rigs: Production-ready rigs for humanoids, creatures, vehicles, weapons, and mechanical gameplay assets
• Gameplay integration: Locomotion, combat animations, hit reactions, unit states, transitions, and animation-driven gameplay events
• Animation pipeline: Reliable workflows between Maya and Unreal Engine 5, including importing, validation, retargeting, and automation
• Tools development: Custom tools and scripts that improve iteration speed for animators, artists, and designers
• Performance and optimisation: Profiling and optimising animation systems for large numbers of simultaneously active RTS units
• Technical problem-solving: Diagnosing rigging, deformation, animation, export, and runtime issues across the production pipeline
• Standards and documentation: Establishing scalable technical standards that keep animation production consistent across the project

Requirements

• 5+ years of professional experience in technical animation, character rigging, or runtime animation for games
• Strong professional experience with Unreal Engine 5 animation systems
• Advanced knowledge of Animation Blueprints, Control Rig, IK Rig, IK Retargeter, state machines, montages, and animation notifies
• Strong rigging, skinning, deformation, and animation pipeline experience in Maya
• Professional experience rigging and implementing non-humanoid creatures, mechanical units, and vehicles
• Experience building tools and automating workflows using Python, MEL, Blueprints, or similar scripting solutions
• Solid understanding of runtime animation performance, profiling, LOD systems, and optimisation
• Experience integrating animation with gameplay systems
• Shipped a complete game or made a significant contribution to a shipped title
• Able to work independently while collaborating closely with animators, artists, designers, and developers
• Fluent in English, written and spoken

Nice to have

• Experience with Unreal Engine's Animation Budget Allocator, Update Rate Optimisation, or Animation Sharing systems
• Experience with Full Body IK, Motion Warping, Pose Search, Motion Matching, or procedural locomotion
• Working knowledge of C++ and custom Unreal Engine editor plugins
• Experience developing animation systems for RTS, strategy, or games with high on-screen unit counts
• A passion for the RTS genre

Who you are

• You understand both the artistic and technical sides of animation
• You can translate visual goals into stable, scalable runtime systems
• You identify pipeline problems early and take ownership of solving them
• You approach debugging methodically and communicate your findings clearly
• You collaborate proactively across departments
• You treat feedback as a tool for growth, not as personal criticism
• You can independently learn and introduce new tools, workflows, and production methods

What we offer

1. The Forefront of PC Development: Move beyond the mobile market and join one of the few studios in Israel building a high-fidelity, hardcore PC strategy game with the latest Unreal Engine technology.
2. Fully Remote: Work remotely in a production environment built around clear communication, personal ownership, and focused collaboration.
3. A Veteran Team: Work alongside passionate developers and artists who care deeply about the RTS genre and maintain high artistic and technical standards.
4. Growth Potential: Grow alongside the studio. As Defcon Zero expands, so will your influence, ownership, and responsibility.
5. Direct Impact: You will not be a small part of a massive hierarchy. Your systems will directly shape how every unit moves, responds, and performs in the final game.
6. Collaborative Culture: Join a dedicated team of gamers, artists, and developers in a friendly, grounded environment built around the professional standards required to ship a top-tier title.