Job Description

VALORANT is Riot’s take on a character-based tactical shooter (for more info on VALORANT click here!). As an Animation Art Lead on the VALORANT team, you will work closely with, and report into, the VALORANT Character Art Director to help create iconic agents and exciting character abilities.

As the Manager, Animation Art on VALORANT for Character you will manage the animation team, communicate goals, and guide your team to deliver high quality results.  You will mentor, motivate, and develop the team in terms of their work and career progression.  Your craft expertise and high-level execution will enrich the player’s experience and continue to build on the established style and character personalities in VALORANT.

Responsibilities:

• Partner cross-discipline with the team leads to develop a cohesive vision for each new Agent that ensures successful integration with the existing cast through personality, visual aesthetics, and gameplay.
• Establish and drive short and long term goals that clearly support the vision and strategy for Agents
• Collaborate with producers to anticipate and recognize potential conflicts or issues and recommend appropriate solutions.
• Lead and manage a high performing, healthy, and collaborative animation team
• Support partner teams, like publishing and merchandise, to ensure alignment of animation quality and style for non-game expressions of Agents.

Required Qualifications:

• 7+ years of professional experience as an animator in games or related industries.
• 3+ years of people management of artists
• Strong understanding of animation principles - appeal, timing, spacing, weight, etc.
• Experience with Maya and a strong understanding of AAA character creation pipelines.

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience developing in Unreal
• Experience with Cinematic development and pipelines
• Familiar with VALORANT – It’s gameplay, art, and animation style.
• Passion for the tactical FPS genre.

As a part of the application process, you may be expected to provide a portfolio of your work.

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!

Our Perks:

Riot has a focus on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy, in addition to other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the Summoner's Code and Community Code. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of thriving together and our ongoing work to build the most inclusive company in Gaming.