Principal Technical Artist – Rigging – Unannounced Game
| Company | Blizzard Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Location | Irvine, CA, USA, Albany, NY, USA |
| Salary | $116800 – $216000 |
| Type | Full-Time |
| Degrees | |
| Experience Level | Expert or higher |
Requirements
- 10+ years in the game industry as a character rigger or related role.
- A strong demo reel and online portfolio showcasing expertise in rigging, motion controls, complex deformations, and advanced skinning for both body and facial animation in characters and creatures.
- Expertise in AAA game engines with a solid understanding of art implementation and integration workflows.
- Deep understanding of character pipelines, including industry-standard 3D creation tools.
- Experience developing custom rigging and animation tools.
- Strong scripting skills in Python, MEL, or similar languages.
Responsibilities
- Develop, test, and maintain rigs, including skinning for characters, weapons, and vehicles.
- Collaborate closely with animators, modelers, and technical artists to set standards and enhance rigging tools and animation workflows.
- Optimize and refine content creation pipelines, identifying and addressing workflow bottlenecks to enhance efficiency for both yourself and the broader art team.
- Oversee and implement simulations for cloth, hair, and other dynamic elements across a diverse range of characters and creatures.
- Develop and maintain Python/MEL scripts to streamline and automate rigging processes.
- Mentor junior rigging artists, fostering best practices and technical growth.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience working through early development and R&D phases of a project.
- Solid understanding of game development beyond technical art (e.g., lighting, VFX, animation, audio, rendering, systems).
- Experience with Unreal Engine, blueprints and physics setups.
- Experience with motion capture pipelines.
- A passion for video games and a deep understanding of game animation and interactivity.