Lead Animation Engineer Job at CultureMill Recruiting, Washington DC

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  • CultureMill Recruiting
  • Washington DC

Job Description

We’re working with a well-funded and top-rated VR game studio to help them hire a Animation Game Engineer Lead to architect and evolve their animation systems across character gameplay, social features, and AI-driven interactions.

This is a hands-on role focused on building, tuning, and scaling animation systems that feel great in fast-paced, physics-based multiplayer experiences. You'll collaborate closely with engineers and design leadership to deliver responsive, high-fidelity character motion—and take full ownership of the animation engineering domain as the studio grows.

What You'll Do

  • Architect and implement core animation systems (animation graphs, IK layers, state machines, blending logic)
  • Improve and refine inverse kinematics (IK) systems for lifelike character movement
  • Integrate animation with gameplay systems, AI bots, and player interactions in real-time
  • Own the quality bar for responsiveness, realism, and performance in animation systems
  • Collaborate with cross-functional team members to deliver new features and elevate animation fidelity
  • Contribute to long-term planning of animation tools and pipelines

What We’re Looking For

  • Experience with Unity, Unreal, or a custom game engine
  • Demonstrated experience building and integrating animation systems in a shipped game
  • Strong understanding of inverse kinematics (IK), animation blending, and procedural motion
  • Deep technical proficiency in C#, C++, or equivalent—hands-on and systems-oriented
  • Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-moving environment
  • Strong attention to animation polish and gameplay feel

Nice-to-Have:

  • Background in physics-driven or sports gameplay systems
  • Familiarity with animation tooling, rigging pipelines, or runtime optimization for real-time games
  • VR experience

Job Tags

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