Animator - Wētā Workshop Game Studio

Our Game Studio transforms ideas into the magic of play. From the beginning, we take a custodian’s approach that forms the foundation of the games and entertainment properties we create. As passionate, accomplished world-builders, we thrive on developing interactive stories that can be enjoyed by people around the world. With experience working on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch and web browsers, our studio team knows the process inside out, from start to finish.

In 2012, Wētā Workshop formed its Game Studio to create the world’s first mixed-reality game, Dr. Grordbort’s Invaders. Set amongst rayguns, rocket ships and deadly robot miscreants imagined by our friend and colleague Greg Broadmore, we were approached by Rony Abovitz, founder of Florida-based company Magic Leap, to bring this extraordinary world into people’s homes. Following rave reviews on its release, we developed three more games: Dr. Grordbort’s Boosters, The Society of (NOT) Getting Along Nicely and Raygun Arena. Wētā Workshop has been nominated for both Visual Effects Society Awards and DICE Awards and has received a New Zealand Game Award and a Wellington Gold Award.

Our next title is due for release in July 2025 - Tales of the Shire. In this storybook return to J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth, you live the cosy life of a Hobbit as you set forth in Bywater. Though not yet established as an official village, you’ll play a big part in helping the quaint town flourish. Greet comfort at the door as you decorate your own Hobbit-hole, tend to your garden, fish at clear ponds, forage wild fruits and herbs, and trade with townsfolks.

Our workplace is flexible, inclusive, supportive ... and dog friendly!

We are Wētā Workshop’s dedicated Game Studio, a one-stop game shop where our crew unleash our imaginations and create immersive game worlds and stories to inspire players around the world.

From concept design to polished product, we bring our ideas to life in the games we create.

Having been nominated for VES and D.I.C.E. awards and winning the NZ Pav award, making games of exceptional quality is what we do.

It's all made possible through the creativity, passion and tenacity of our talented team. That’s where you come in! We are looking for an Animator to join our crew!

The role of Animator

As a member of the art team, you will be tasked with creating compelling, authentic character animations. These will be for characters and NPCs of all shapes and sizes. You will also be developing eye-catching cinematics, creature and environmental animations. We’re a fully funded games studio breaking new ground in games. This is your chance help shape the games of tomorrow.

Day to day your role will see you:

Create compelling, authentic and visually pleasing animations across in-game enemies, characters, weapons and environments.
Keyframe animation and Mocap editing.
Use Unity’s Mecanim system to create and maintain animation tree graphs.
Liaise with the Art Director and Senior Animator as well as members of the Programming and Design teams, to define and implement AI gameplay systems.
Work with key stakeholders to create immersive cutscenes and scripted scenarios filled with memorable characters and events.
Engage in R&D of new tools and technologies relevant to the project.
Provide feedback and guidance to programmers in order to develop new animation processes and systems. State machine experience necessary.
Actively participate in project planning, content review and playtesting sessions.

You can find out all the ins and outs of the role in our Job Description here.

We are looking for

To be successful in this role we think you’ll need to have a strong understanding of human, animal and mechanical movement. We’d love your portfolio to demonstrate your experience working within a broad range of animation areas including facial and keyframe.

Games industry experience, with at least 1 shipped title as a game animator.
Previous experience working with keyframe animation and mocap assets.
Expert knowledge of Maya.
Experience with Unity’s Mecanim or similar (Unreal Blueprints, Morpheme or any other animation tree graph systems in a shipped title).
Portfolio demonstrating a good understanding of the principles of animation.

Bonus points if you have:

Working knowledge of MEL scripting.
Motion capture experience
Experience with C#.
Experience with rigging and technical pipelines
Knowledge of production tools such as Perforce, Git, Jira, a plus.

Even if you don’t have all the skills and qualities listed above, we encourage all interested candidates to apply. We want our studio to reflect the diverse society we live in and welcome a range of experiences and perspectives.

What we can offer you

You can expect to receive fortnightly check ins, a manager focused on your growth and wellbeing and to have a strong voice representing you in leadership decisions, as well as:

Flexible working arrangements. Maintaining a positive culture of work-life balance is incredibly important to us.
A unique and inspiring working environment
We love and welcome dogs, so feel free to bring yours along - they’ll get lots of pats to keep them happy
Professional development opportunities so you can continue to grow and blossom
Free fruit and quality coffee, including a variety of milk to cater to all dietary preference

Our Culture

We are a successful global arts and entertainment company ... making imaginary worlds a reality
Our core values are: creativity, courage, community, kindness, excellence, and kotahitanga
We’re a fun, collaborative team, who look out for and support one another
As a creative organisation, we know that inspiration and amazing things can be achieved by working with people who have a range of experiences, unique strengths, and perspectives.
We strive to create a culture of belonging, where our team members feel welcome and supported and diversity is celebrated.

Apply today

We look forward to hearing from you.

Reach out to recruitment@wetaworkshop.co.nz with any quesitons.

If we can do anything to accommodate you during the recruitment or interview process, please let us know.

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