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Animation Development Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Tencent

Principal Technical Animator

Los Angeles, CA

$138K - $261K/yr

Experience with DCC tool development or engine-side development (C++ / Blueprints). * Hands-on experience with cutting-edge directions such as Motion Matching, Control Rig, procedural animation ...

New

2K

Lead Animator

San Mateo, CA · On-site

$123K - $182K/yr

Escalate issues to the Animation Director when artistic decisions or direction are needed. What Will Make You a Great Fit: * 6-8+ years of experience in game development, including at least one ...

31st Union

Lead Animator

San Mateo, CA · On-site

$123K - $182K/yr

Escalate issues to the Animation Director when artistic decisions or direction are needed. What Will Make You a Great Fit: * 6-8+ years of experience in game development, including at least one ...

2K

Lead Animator

San Mateo, CA · On-site

$123K - $182K/yr

Escalate issues to the Animation Director when artistic decisions or direction are needed. What Will Make You a Great Fit: * 6-8+ years of experience in game development, including at least one ...

31st Union

Lead Animator

San Mateo, CA

$123K - $182K/yr

Escalate issues to the Animation Director when artistic decisions or direction are needed. What Will Make You a Great Fit: * 6-8+ years of experience in game development, including at least one ...

Ten4

Senior Gaming Animator

Redwood City, CA

$129K - $148K/yr

Design hand-keyed animation with a highly intuitive and developed understanding of body mechanics, force, balance, timing, and believability * Use motion capture, video, and thumbnail sketches as ...

Ember Lab

Senior Gameplay Animator

Orange, CA · On-site

Contribute to the development of animation workflows and tools to streamline the animation process. * Stay up-to-date with industry trends and techniques to continually improve the quality of ...

Ten4

Senior Gaming Animator

Redwood City, CA · On-site

$129K - $148K/yr

Design hand-keyed animation with a highly intuitive and developed understanding of body mechanics, force, balance, timing, and believability * Use motion capture, video, and thumbnail sketches as ...

Bonfire Studios

Lead Gameplay Animator

Irvine, CA · On-site +1

Leading and mentoring a lean animation team, fostering autonomy, accountability, and growth through clear expectations, constructive feedback, and thoughtful development. * Balancing leadership with ...

Ember Lab

Senior Gameplay Animator

Orange, CA

$88K - $120K/yr

Contribute to the development of animation workflows and tools to streamline the animation process. * Stay up-to-date with industry trends and techniques to continually improve the quality of ...

Ember Lab

Senior Gameplay Animator

Orange, CA · On-site

$88K - $120K/yr

Contribute to the development of animation workflows and tools to streamline the animation process. * Stay up-to-date with industry trends and techniques to continually improve the quality of ...

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Showing results 1-20

All JobsAnimation Development JobsAnimation Development Jobs in California

Animation Development information

See California salary details

$49.3K

$106.3K

$171.2K

How much do animation development jobs pay per year?

As of Jul 15, 2026, the average yearly pay for animation development in California is $106,287.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $86,800.00 and $119,900.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is Animation Development?

Animation development is the process of conceptualizing, planning, and outlining animated projects before full production begins. This phase involves creating story ideas, scripts, character designs, storyboards, and sometimes animatics to visualize the final product. Animation development is crucial for setting the creative direction and ensuring all stakeholders are aligned before significant resources are committed to production. It typically involves collaboration between writers, directors, producers, and artists. Successful development lays the groundwork for a smooth and efficient animation production process.

What are the typical challenges faced by professionals in Animation Development, and how can they be addressed?

Professionals in Animation Development often encounter challenges such as aligning creative vision with production constraints, managing tight deadlines, and ensuring clear communication between artists, writers, and technical teams. To address these, it's important to develop strong project management and collaboration skills, stay adaptable to feedback, and be proactive in resolving issues early. Building fluency with industry-standard tools and keeping up with evolving animation trends can also help overcome common obstacles and contribute to a smoother production process.

What is the difference between Animation Development vs Animation Design?

AspectAnimation DevelopmentAnimation Design
Primary FocusCreating animated content through coding and technical processesDesigning visual styles and characters for animations
Skills RequiredProgramming, software engineering, technical animation toolsArt, illustration, storytelling, visual creativity
Work EnvironmentSoftware studios, tech companies, multimedia firmsDesign studios, advertising agencies, entertainment industry
Common CertificationsAnimation software certifications, programming coursesArt degrees, illustration certifications

Animation Development focuses on the technical creation of animated content, often involving coding and software engineering. In contrast, Animation Design emphasizes visual storytelling, character creation, and artistic design. Both roles are essential in the animation industry but serve different aspects of the production process.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in Animation Development, and why are they important?

To excel in Animation Development, you need strong artistic abilities, storytelling skills, and a background in animation or a related field, often supported by a relevant degree or portfolio. Familiarity with industry-standard software such as Adobe Creative Suite, Toon Boom, or Maya, along with knowledge of production pipelines, is typically required. Creativity, teamwork, and effective communication are crucial soft skills for collaborating with diverse teams and bringing stories to life. These competencies are essential for producing high-quality animations that captivate audiences and meet production standards.
What are popular job titles related to Animation Development jobs in California? For Animation Development jobs in California, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Animation Development jobs in California look for? The top searched job categories for Animation Development jobs in California are:
What cities in California are hiring for Animation Development jobs? Cities in California with the most Animation Development job openings:
Animation Development jobs near you
Senior Technical Artist, Animation - Unpublished R&D Product

Senior Technical Artist, Animation - Unpublished R&D Product

Riot Games

Los Angeles, CA • On-site

$136K - $163K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement, PTO

Re-posted 25 days ago

Job description

As a Senior Technical Artist (Technical Animation), you'll define and maintain the systems that bring our characters and creatures to life including complex animation state machines, layered interactions, and IK-driven behaviors in our upcoming MMO. Working at the intersection of animation, design, and engineering, you'll build scalable animation graphs, ensure believable motion, and optimize performance across a vast, dynamic world.
You'll collaborate with animators, designers, and engineers to develop robust Unreal Engine animation systems that balance scalability, fidelity, and efficiency. As a key bridge between creative intent and technical execution, you'll drive the evolution of our animation framework and ensure seamless, high-quality integration across the game.
Responsibilities:
  • Build and maintain complex animation state machines, layered animation systems, and override logic supporting split-body for player characters, NPCs, creatures, and props.
  • Collaborate with animators, character tech artists, and designers to develop efficient, believable, and tech-friendly animation flows.
  • Define best practices for animation setup while owning the debuggability, documentation, maintainability, and long-term health of animation blueprints and graphs within Unreal Engine.
  • Partner with engineers to build and evolve animation runtime systems and debugging workflows.
  • Drive optimization efforts across animation assets and graphs to meet performance and memory targets.
  • Collaborate with cross-discipline partners to ensure character systems scale effectively across massive multiplayer environments.
  • Develop scalable animation retargeting strategies to support characters and creatures of varying proportions while minimizing animation counts.

Required Qualifications:
  • 8+ years of professional experience as a technical animator or technical artist in games or related industries.
  • Deep expertise with Unreal Engine animation workflows, including complex Animation Blueprints, state machines, blend spaces, and layered animation systems.
  • Proven experience designing scalable, reusable animation systems for large-scope character setups, including players, NPCs, and creatures.
  • Strong art foundation with a deep understanding of animation principles, anatomy, and motion.
  • Excellent communication skills and the ability to collaborate across art, design, and engineering disciplines

Desired Qualifications:
  • Experience with Unreal Control Rig and Sequencer
  • Familiarity with C++ and/or Python within Unreal Engine.
  • Expertise in Autodesk Maya for rigging and animation support.
  • Experience working with software likeKawaii, Chaos, Havok.
  • Prior experience supporting MMO or large-scale games with complex character ecosystems.
  • Experience with runtime IK, or motion warping

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 focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and 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.
At Riot Games, we put players first . That mission drives every decision in our quest to create games and experiences that make it better to be a player. Whether you're working directly on a new player-facing experience or you're supporting the company as a whole, everyone at Riot is part of our mission. And just like in our games, we're better when we work together. Our goal is to create collaborative teams where you are empowered to bring your unique perspective everyday. If that sounds like the kind of place you want to work, we're looking forward to your application.
It's our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.
Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:
  • Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
  • Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
  • Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
  • Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters

These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.
  • (Los Angeles Only) Base salary range between $185,200.00 - $258,000.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.
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About Riot Games

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

Riot Games was founded in 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill with the intent to change the way video games are made and supported for players. In 2009, Riot released its debut title League of Legends to worldwide acclaim. The game has since gone on to become the most played PC game in the world and a key driver of the explosive growth of esports. Players are the foundation of our community and it's for them we continue to evolve and improve the League of Legends experience.

Industry

Computer and electronic product manufacturing

Company size

1,001 - 5,000 Employees

Headquarters location

Los Angeles, CA, US

Year founded

2006

Social media

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