Senior Motion Editor

ILM is hiring a Senior Motion Editor at their Coal Harbour studio in Vancouver, British Columbia. This role sits within the motion capture animation pipeline, focused on retargeting, editing, and polishing mocap performances for high-end feature film VFX production. It suits an experienced motion capture animator with a strong showreel and a background in realistic character performance for film or games.

About the Role

The Senior Motion Editor works inside ILM’s motion capture department, contributing to the animation pipeline on feature film and VFX productions at the studio level. Day-to-day work centres on taking raw mocap data and shaping it into clean, believable character performance, covering human figures, props, bipedal and quadruped characters. This is a hybrid position, requiring two to three days onsite per week at the Vancouver studio.

Key Responsibilities

• Retarget motion data between character hierarchies independently, maintaining performance fidelity across varied rigs and body types.
• Edit mocap performances in a non-destructive workflow, preserving the original actor’s intent while meeting the technical and creative requirements of the VFX pipeline.
• Adjust character interactions with props, other characters, and terrain to achieve accurate contact and weight throughout a scene.
• Supplement body animation with finger, toe, and tail motion, and refine posture, gesture, and physical weight to meet feature film quality standards.
• Blend animation clips with a strong understanding of timing and transitions, producing fluid sequences between distinct motion states.
• Mentor junior motion editors on the team, providing technical troubleshooting, technique guidance, and quality feedback.

What You Bring

• A degree in Computer Science, Computer Visualisation, or Computer Animation, or equivalent professional experience in motion capture animation.
• Proven credits in high-end film VFX or video game production, supported by a current showreel.
• Hands-on experience with MotionBuilder, Maya, Blender, and Nuance for editing and retargeting motion-captured performances.
• Working knowledge of Linux and Vicon systems within a production environment.
• A sharp eye for motion, timing, and posture, with strong attention to detail in realistic character performance.

Why This Role

ILM is one of the most respected visual effects studios in the industry, with a production slate that spans major feature film franchises across multiple decades. The Vancouver studio operates at the same level as ILM’s other global facilities, giving senior artists access to significant productions and a well-established animation pipeline. For a Senior Motion Editor looking to work at the feature film level with a team that treats craft seriously, this is a substantive opportunity.

Apply now for the Senior Motion Editor position at ILM Vancouver through the listing on FilmLocal.com.