Cinematics Animation Director

At Invoke, our mission is to Have Fun Building Great Games. 

We believe the best games come from people who love what they do, in an environment that values them and their ideas. And we ensure that everyone has the opportunity to contribute to our collective success, whatever their role. As a member of Wizards of the Coast, we help enrich a catalog of games that has inspired gamers and developers for decades.

At Invoke, you get to play your part as a valued member of an open and dedicated team within a magical world!   

Job Description  

Invoke is looking for a Cinematic Animation Director to works in partnership with the Realization (Cinematic) Director to define, develop and deliver the vision of the games’ high-quality cinematics.  

What you'll do  

• Guide, mentor, support and motivate the animation team in the creation of cinematic sequences, ensuring the creative vision and technical execution align with the project's objectives and budgets   

• Provide creative direction and feedback to animators to achieve the intended visual benchmark and storytelling objectives 

• Ensure consistency in visual style, character motion, and animation quality throughout the project 

• Collaborate with other departments such as level design, VFX, lighting, prop & level art to seamlessly create final cinematics 

• Maintain the phases, schedules, and priorities of cinematics according to the planning. Collaborate with the Production Manager to manage requests and deliver on animation details 

• Define and plan the information required in preparing for mocap shoots; cinematic documents/blueprints, script breakdowns, physical prop direction, technical planning with mocap partners, working with Technical Directors to validate digital file delivery (rigs, sets, props, etc.) and ensure they are checked and validated etc.  

• Recording, selection and integration of motion capture and animation data to ensure the quality is in line with the realization director’s vision 

• Work with other technical team members to define, develop and test the cinematic pipeline providing feedback on optimizations and tool requests 

• Proactively troubleshoot animation/cinematic issues or risks and providing input to technical teams in resolving them 

 What you'll bring  

• Two delivered titles as an Animation Director, 5+ years at a senior level or above  

• Experience working on a published AAA game from concept to release  

• Proficient in realistic animation techniques, including keyframe, motion capture, and performance capture 

• Experience with Autodesk MotionBuilder for editing and retargeting motion capture data   

• Experience with Maya for character animation, scene preparation & integration 

• Experience in facial and performance capture production, particularly with Faceware (Analyzer, Retargeter & Portal) and MetaHuman Animator 

• Proven mentoring and positive leadership abilities 

• Openness to giving and receiving constructive feedback 

• Effective collaboration with development team members 

• Knowledge of game engines, with expertise in Unreal Engine being a bonus  

• Excellent communications skills in French and English.  

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer  

Invoke commits to offer equal working chances to every individual, without regard based on the following: age, sex, sexual orientation, physical disability, country origin, religion, citizenship, native country or any other possible particularities. We sincerely believe in a respectful and open-minded work environment, in which everyone can fully contribute to the organization's development.  

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.   

#Invoke