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About the Role

Keywords Studios is a global leader providing creative and technical services to the video game industry. We are seeking an animator to create high-quality keyframe and motion capture animations for characters, creatures, vehicles, and gameplay systems. You will produce compelling and natural movements that support gameplay experiences and storytelling, ensuring consistency in animation style, quality, and performance across projects. This role involves implementing and adjusting animations within game engines like Unreal Engine or Unity and collaborating with various teams to achieve project goals.

Responsibilities

Create high-quality keyframe and motion capture animations for characters, creatures, vehicles, and gameplay systems.
Produce compelling and natural movements that support gameplay experiences and storytelling.
Create polished animations including movement, combat, action, facial animation, cinematic direction, and interactive sequences.
Maintain consistency in animation style, quality, and performance throughout projects.
Implement and adjust animations within game engines such as Unreal Engine and Unity.
Investigate and resolve issues related to rigging, animation blending, state machines, and gameplay implementation.
Collaborate closely with designers, engineers, cinematic, audio, and art teams to achieve gameplay and storytelling objectives.
Participate in creative reviews, sprint planning, and milestone reviews.
Propose improvements to animation production pipelines and workflows, and enhance player experience.
Coordinate and adapt with technical artists and programmers to ensure animations meet engine and performance requirements.
Optimize animation assets considering runtime performance and memory usage.
Support motion capture recording, data cleanup, retargeting, and implementation.
Contribute to the construction and operation of animation systems such as blend trees, state machines, IK systems, and procedural animation.
Manage source files and documentation appropriately according to studio standards.
Continuously update knowledge of the latest animation technologies, tools, and industry trends.

Requirements

Business-level English communication skills.
Bachelor's degree in Animation, Game Art, Fine Arts, Multimedia, or equivalent practical experience.
Experience developing and releasing AAA, AA, or commercially released game titles.
Advanced understanding of animation principles including timing, weight, posing, spacing, and body mechanics.
Portfolio or demo reel showcasing game-play and cinematic animation production.
Advanced proficiency with industry-standard tools such as Autodesk Maya, MotionBuilder, Blender, or equivalent.
Experience implementing animations in Unreal Engine, Unity, or proprietary game engines.
Understanding of rigging constraints, animation systems, and development pipelines.
Excellent communication, teamwork, and feedback response skills.
Strong problem-solving abilities and the capacity to drive work proactively.

Skills

Keyframe Animation
Motion Capture Animation
Game Animation
Cinematic Animation
Unreal Engine
Unity
Autodesk Maya
MotionBuilder
Blender
Rigging
Animation Blending
State Machines
Gameplay Implementation
Animation Systems
Technical Art
Motion Capture Cleanup
Retargeting
Asset Optimization
Performance Optimization
Memory Usage Optimization

Location

Tokyo, Japan
Remote

Work Type

Full Time
Contract
Remote

Experience Level

Professional Experience

Education Level

Bachelor's Degree
Equivalent Practical Experience

About the Company

Keywords Studios is a global leader providing creative and technical services to the video game industry.
We have over 13,000 professionals across more than 70 studios in over 25 countries.
We operate across three core service lines supporting the entire game lifecycle: Create (game development, art production, audio production), Globalize (audio and text localization, localization QA, functional testing), and Engage (marketing, LiveOps, community, user acquisition).
In Japan, Keywords Studios offers all services across Create, Globalize, and Engage, supporting major publishers, developers, agencies, and IP owners through our domestic and international teams.
Our Tokyo-based development studio, Wizcorp, along with established localization, QA, player support, and marketing functions, serves some of the largest and most influential companies in the Japanese game and entertainment industry.

Equal Opportunity

Keywords is committed to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and supportive workplace.