Cinematics Animation Director

CINEMATICS

What We Do

In the Cinematics Team, we are pushing the boundaries of what is possible in realtime. We are in the early stages of this growth in realtime quality work and we are growing quickly and implementing various techniques and ideas to improve what can be done in Unreal Engine. Our team is one of the few at the forefront of delivering innovation, through cinematic quality visuals.

What You'll Do

Epic Games is searching for a Cinematic Animation Director to join our cinematic team working on projects, including Fortnite and other IP. You'll create original animation with a strong emphasis on style and appeal, grounded in realistic world physics — and you'll help shape how we make that animation, not just what it looks like. This role requires a deep understanding of animation fundamentals and how they translate to game animation, combined with genuine curiosity about emerging tools and workflows. You'll take animation from initial concept through implementation using our animation system in Unreal Engine 5, while actively exploring new approaches — from AI-assisted motion generation and video-to-animation pipelines (Meshcapade, video2fbx, etc.) to whatever comes next.

In this role, you will

• Lead and mentor a small team of experienced internal cinematic animators.
• Own the animation direction and quality control for all cinematic animation outsourcing efforts.
• Create character-specific animations based on narrative collaborations with cinematic directors, using Unreal Engine's Sequencer and Control Rig toolset.
• Drive collaboration across disciplines — including Production, Technical Animation, and Design — to help define the style and feel of Epic's cinematic animation.
• Collaborate with other discipline leads (environment, lighting, fx, game dev, etc) in a dailies-style critique environment, find optimal solutions, and address issues as they arise.
• Direct and work with motion capture data as a core part of the layout process.
• Refine animations as needed to achieve the highest quality within project timelines. Research, evaluate, and prototype emerging animation workflows and tools, helping the team stay ahead of the curve on production innovation.

What we're looking for

• A strong animation reel demonstrating expertise in keyframed character and creature animation.
• Experience in a lead or senior role, managing animators and owning animation quality for both internal and outsourced teams.
• Relevant experience in cinematic animation.
• Strong instincts for both realistic and stylized motion.
• Strong story and problem solving skills when adjustments are needed.
• Ability and affinity for brainstorming and collaborating with a small team to design short stories that align with the creative brief.
• Familiarity with Unreal Engine and the Control Rig workflow.
• Experience directing and working with motion capture.
• A technical mindset — someone who enjoys digging into pipelines, scripting tools, and figuring out how to make workflows faster and better, not just animating within them.
• Demonstrated interest in emerging animation technology: AI-driven motion synthesis, video-to-animation capture, procedural animation, or similar tools and techniques. Strong communication skills and the ability to thrive in a collaborative team environment. Ability to work independently and own a project from start to completion.

Nice to have

• Experience animating hard-surface or vehicle animation.
• Understanding of modeling, skinning, and rigging.
• Hands-on experience with tools like Meshcapade, DeepMotion, Rokoko, or similar emerging motion capture and generation platforms.
• Background in scripting or technical art (Python, MEL, Blueprints).

This role is open to multiple locations across the US (including CA & WA).

Pay Transparency Information

The expected annual base pay range(s) for this position are detailed below. Each base pay range is relevant only for individuals who are residents of or will be expected to work within the specified locale. Compensation varies based on a variety of factors, which include (but aren’t limited to) things such as skills and competencies, qualifications, knowledge, and experience. In addition to base pay, most employees are eligible to participate in Epic’s generous benefit plans and discretionary incentive programs (subject to the terms of those plans or programs).