3D Animation_2D Animation

Job Overview Location: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Category: Animation Job Type: Full-Time Sledgehammer Games, a leading global development studio, is seeking an experienced and highly creative Senior Animator to join our expanding team in Melbourne, Australia. This role offers a unique opportunity to shape the visceral, high-fidelity experience that defines one of the world’s most successful franchises, Call of Duty Your Platform: Excellence in First-Person Shooter Development Since our founding in 2009, Sledgehammer Games has been at the forefront of the video game industry, setting new benchmarks for visual and gameplay fidelity. Our rich portfolio includes seminal titles that have redefined the first-person shooter genre, such as Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Call of Duty: WWII, Call of Duty: Vanguard, and, most recently, the highly successful Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III. As industry leaders, our commitment to technical and artistic excellence permeates every detail of our work. We specialize in crafting both highly polished multiplayer experiences and emotionally engaging single-player campaigns, focusing on sophisticated systems and impactful player immersion. At Sledgehammer Games, we don’t just develop games—we push creative boundaries, redefine the possibilities of interactive storytelling, and strive to deliver world-class gaming content that continually raises the bar for quality, innovation, and player engagement on a global scale. Joining our Melbourne studio places you within a dynamic ecosystem, working collaboratively with talented teams across our international locations in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. This global structure ensures that you are contributing directly to the core development of monumental AAA titles. If you are ready to be part of a dynamic, supportive, and collaborative environment where your exceptional skills will have a direct and measurable impact on millions of players worldwide, we invite you to explore this pivotal career opportunity. To learn more about our studio’s legacy and culture, please visit us at www.sledgehammergames.com. Your Mission: Crafting Complex and Believable In-Game Motion As a Senior Animator based in Melbourne, you will become an essential member of a tight-knit and passionate animation team. Your mission is to create intricate and believable in-game and cinematic animations that are fundamental to both the emotional narrative and the core gameplay loop. Working in close collaboration with the Animation Lead, you will receive assignments that require a deep understanding of character motivation, action choreography, and the project’s overall emotional and gameplay objectives. Your daily work will demand technical precision and creative independence, requiring you to build essential collaborative relationships across multiple production disciplines, including Design, Engineering, and Environment teams, to ensure optimal visual and narrative consistency. This is a senior-level position requiring you to act as a creative driver and technical mentor. Responsibilities are comprehensive and include, but are not limited to: Diverse Animation Craftsmanship: Utilizing a powerful combination of Motion Capture (MoCap) editing and cleanup alongside expert Key Framing to produce a wide range of game motions, including nuanced 1st-person gameplay mechanics, immersive viewmodel/weapon animations, crucial in-game cinematics, and detailed 3rd-person character vignettes. Cinematic Expertise: Demonstrating a sophisticated understanding of camera animation, cinematic framing, shot continuity, and facial animation to ensure seamless and impactful storytelling moments. Quality & Polish: Exhibiting a strong capacity to receive and implement feedback effectively, iterating diligently to achieve the industry-defining polish level mandatory for AAA titles. Workflow Leadership: Proactively troubleshooting tool implementations and acting as a technical resource to spearhead workflow improvements that measurably enhance the efficiency, creativity, and output of the entire animation team. Production Insight: Working closely with production staff to advise on potential performance concerns, accurately assess animation scope, and actively mitigate project risks before they impact the schedule. Creative Independence: Leveraging your wealth of professional experience to work creatively and independently, often requiring little instruction and proactively solving complex animation challenges. Mentorship: Setting a high standard by example and actively mentoring Junior Animators, contributing to the professional growth and overall skill level of the department. Player Profile: Technical Mastery and Leadership We are seeking a highly experienced individual who possesses both the technical dexterity to manage complex animation pipelines and the creative vision to deliver emotionally resonant character movement. Minimum Requirements: Highly Valued Attributes (Extra Points): More Jobs

Job Overview Location Toronto, Canada Job Title Viewmodel Animator Job Type Studio-Based (with flexible working support) About Sledgehammer Games Sledgehammer Games stands as a leading developer within the global video game industry, distinguished by its significant, high-impact contributions to the Call of Duty franchise. Established in 2009, the studio has consistently delivered iconic, critically acclaimed titles, including Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Call of Duty: WWII, and our most recent achievement, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III. Our core philosophy is to leverage cutting-edge technology alongside an innovative creative vision, resulting in games that achieve massive resonance and success with players across the globe. We maintain an unwavering focus on developing both high-quality, competitive multiplayer experiences and captivating, narrative-driven single-player campaigns, continuously shaping and advancing the first-person shooter genre. Join Our Global Team in Toronto We are actively seeking passionate and talented individuals to enhance our studio team located in Toronto, Canada. In this strategic role, you will engage in close collaboration with our development teams across our global studio locations in the United States and Australia, contributing to the creation of epic content for some of the world’s largest gaming franchises. If you are prepared to join a dynamic and highly collaborative environment where your expertise will deliver tangible, worldwide impact, we strongly encourage you to explore career opportunities with us. This position is designed to be studio-based at our Toronto, Canada location, with provisions for flexible working support to promote a healthy and productive work environment. Sledgehammer Games operates as a key component of the Activision family and is wholly owned by Microsoft. To gain a deeper understanding of our studio culture, projects, and legacy, please visit us at www.sledgehammergames.com or search for Sledgehammer Games on major social media platforms. Your Mission: Crafting Unrivaled Player Immersion The Viewmodel Animator is a critical role focused on the core pillar of our game experience: ultimate player immersion. You will be primarily responsible for the creation of high-fidelity, first-person animations that the player directly experiences, including: Your prime directive is to identify and execute the precise “feel” instructed by the project’s creative direction, often achieved by mirroring real-world counterparts while enhancing the experience with the kinetic energy required of a AAA action title. You will join a passionate and dedicated team of animators committed to continually raising our standards of quality and driving studio-wide artistic excellence. Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities In this fast-paced, high-quality development environment, your day-to-day responsibilities will be dynamic and impactful. This includes, but is not limited to: Animation Creation: Utilizing traditional animation fundamentals to craft game motions that must seamlessly transition between highly stylized and hyper-realistic aesthetics, depending on the project’s needs. Cinematic Fidelity: Demonstrating a strong understanding of camera animation principles and cinematic framing to ensure animations integrate flawlessly into the overall game experience, particularly during contextual events. Iteration and Polish: Responding professionally and constructively to feedback from Animation Directors and Leads, demonstrating a willingness to iterate multiple times to achieve the industry-leading polish level required for AAA titles. Technical Workflow: Troubleshooting tool implementations, integrating assets within our proprietary game engine, and proactively spearheading workflow improvements to enhance the creative output and efficiency of the animation team. Cross-Discipline Collaboration: Working closely with Design, Engineering, and Audio teams to ensure animations meet both the aesthetic and technical requirements of gameplay and system functionality. Player Profile: Required Skills and Experience We are looking for a highly motivated and skilled individual who possesses both the artistic sensibility and technical acumen necessary to excel in this role. Minimum Requirements Extra Points (Highly Desirable): Our World: Fostering an Inclusive Future Sledgehammer Games is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable law and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply. Ready to Activate Your Future and help shape the next generation of AAA first-person experiences? Apply today! More Jobs