Location
Chancery Lane, London, United Kingdom (Hybrid role with days in studio and potential international travel)

Hours
Contract role, hours to be agreed

Salary
Negotiable

About the Role
Framestore’s Immersive Studio is a world-leading innovator in crafting immersive experiences that transcend the screen, combining creative craftsmanship with technical prowess to reframe expectations for IP owners and their guests through creative technology, location-based entertainment, and theme park rides. We are seeking a Technical Animator to join our Immersive team, working at the intersection of animation, technology, and real-time storytelling. This role is ideal for an experienced Animator with strong Unreal Engine knowledge or a Technical Artist with an animation background who enjoys building systems as much as crafting motion. You will collaborate closely with Technical Artists, Developers, and Animation and Rigging teams to bring film and TV polish into real-time experiences such as XR, interactive projects, and themed attractions. Your focus will be on building, implementing, and refining animation systems in game engines, supporting tools and workflows that enable artists to excel. You will balance performance and artistic intent, troubleshoot complex problems, and work closely with development and pipeline teams to create compelling, responsive experiences. Responsibilities include implementing and maintaining animation systems within Unreal Engine, collaborating with Pipeline and Rigging teams to develop tools extending VFX workflows into engine, troubleshooting animation-related technical issues, optimizing animation performance while preserving creative quality, creating and maintaining clear documentation, and supporting gameplay and interaction experiences with the Development team.

Experience
- Extensive experience working in engine (Unreal Engine 5 preferred) in games or real-time environments
- Deep knowledge of Unreal animation systems including Control Rig, Motion Matching, Contextual Animation, procedural layering, blending, transitions, physics assets, and dynamics
- Experience with animation blueprints and engine state machines
- Strong understanding of animation and rigging pipelines in Unreal and/or VFX
- Confidence working with Python
- Solid knowledge of anatomy, motion, weight, balance, and form
- Understanding of constraints, deformers, and their limitations

About You
- Strong communication skills, good organisation, and a proactive, collaborative mindset
- Ability to troubleshoot and resolve complex animation-related technical issues
- Passionate about blending artistic intent with technical performance
- Willingness to work in a hybrid environment with potential international travel

Qualifications
- While Unreal Engine experience is preferred, candidates with experience in other game engines, proprietary or otherwise, are encouraged to apply even if not meeting every requirement
- Desirable skills include working knowledge of C++, experience with performance capture, retargeting, rig hookups, familiarity with FACS-based animation, experience creating content for XR or interactive projects, and working knowledge of Maya