Senior Animator - Central Art

About Snail Games USA
Snail Games strives to create the new high bar for gameplay experience in online gaming. We have been a global developer and publisher of digital entertainment since 2009 and are committed to pushing the boundaries of the industry.

About the Role
We are seeking a hungry, hands-on Senior Animator to raise the animation quality bar across multiple projects. This hybrid role is tied to our Bellevue, WA mocap studio—you’ll occasionally assist and direct capture sessions and contribute to cleanup for in-engine use. Most weeks you’ll be animating directly in Unreal Engine 5 with Blender, delivering character and creature performances that set the standard. You’ll also review overseas partner work, provide structured feedback, and ensure pipelines remain smooth. Strong animation ability is the priority; technical knowledge of rigging and mocap is needed to give direction, not to replace dedicated riggers.

• Job Type: Full-Time
• Location: Hybrid – Bellevue, WA (on-site as needed for mocap sessions; typically 1–2 in-studio days/month)

Responsibilities

• Create high-quality gameplay and cinematic animations weekly that set the studio’s bar.
• Provide clear feedback and direction to overseas partners on animation and rigging issues.
• Support and occasionally direct mocap sessions in Bellevue; handle cleanup for UE5 integration.
• Track partner work in Jira and maintain active feedback loops without being prompted.
• Identify process gaps early and proactively work with others to resolve them.
• Help maintain concise documentation of animation standards and pipelines.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating character and creature animation quality for games.
• Working knowledge of rigging and mocap pipelines (able to spot issues and give feedback).
• Blender proficiency for animation workflows.
• Unreal Engine Experience: Proficiency with Unreal Engine 5 (state machines, Control Rig/Retargeter, root motion, Sequencer).

Minimum Requirements

• Strong organizational skills with Jira or similar task tracking tools.
• Experience collaborating across time zones and providing concise, actionable feedback.
• Experience directing or supporting mocap shoots.
• Background working with overseas partners.
• Familiarity with Chinese culture; Mandarin language skills.
• Understanding of Chinese cultivation themes (major plus/unicorn).
• Comfort with lightweight tooling (Python add-ons or UE Editor utilities).
• Salary Range: $88,000 – $127,000 Annually

Nice To Have

Why Join the Snail Games USA Team?

• True focus on work/life balance
• Paid company holidays, vacation, and separate sick leave
• Medical, dental, vision, and Life/LTD
• 401k with company match