Information

The role of Animator requires a commitment to achieving the highest possible quality in animation, whilst meeting the unique needs of Game Design. Animators work alongside Designers and Programmers to implement compelling in-game or cut scene animation.

Tips

Get your work out there for people to view, critique and enjoy. Post it on video sharing websites such as Vimeo and YouTube and roll the feedback back into your work.

Love games – that’s what you’ll be making, if you really believe in the medium, it’ll only help you when the going gets tough.

Don’t be afraid of motion capture. Appreciate how it works (and how it doesn’t). Try to understand how traditional animation skills translate to this modern medium as it’s a very common approach to producing motion for video games.

Remember, the single most important tool for finding a job is your demo reel:

Show that you understand the classic animation principles.
Use your imagination to add some personality – distinguish yourself from everyone else.
Don’t be a ‘jack-of-all-trades’. Become a master of one.
Use your reel to target your goal. If you’re aiming to make cutscenes, bring some acting or performance to the animation. Go beyond the basics of representation and make the person watching feel something. Let us see the character thinking and give them a mind. Equally, if you’re driven by in-game animations, show your best cycles, moves and mechanics.
Keep it simple - the quality of movement is all that matters. Playblasts are fine – you will not be evaluated on slick lighting or fast-camera moves.
Resist the temptation to show everything you’ve ever made. Only show your best work, even if this means a shorter reel.
Music doesn't matter. It’s nice for when you show your friends & family but unless you demonstrate facial animation, your reel will be viewed with the sound off.
Anything that distracts from the animation itself, works against your application – wherever possible, use locked-off cameras.
If you have relevant professional experience –show it!

Most of all, love games – that’s what you’ll be making.

Current Positions

For information on all the current positions available within Rockstar North and all of the Rockstar Studios globally, please visit:

rockstargames.com/jobs

Education

There are an abundance of Animation courses spread across the UK. Here are a few choice selections:

University may not be for you and in that case there are some great on-line courses. Animator Mentor is a prime example.

Required Skills

Junior Animators are usually recent University graduates, having completed an Animation-specific course to ordinary degree level or higher.

Juniors may be considered without formal qualification although candidates must have a minimum 1-year professional experience or have completed at least 1 year of a recognised Animation course. Experience can be in any animation-related industry but an exceptional show reel demonstrating a passion and talent for character animation and games is a pre-requisite.

Animators beyond junior level must have at least 3 years of professional experience (preferably in the games industry).

All candidates must have a show reel that demonstrates exceptional skill in animating realistic human characters and have strong interpersonal skills. Experience with MotionBuilder is also an advantage.