UK Only | Lead Blender Animator

About The Role

Our Lead Animators are fantastic storytellers and excellent motivators. Their day-to-day focuses on managing their team, delivering characterful animated performances, expert comedic timing, charming acting choices, and maintaining production deadlines, whilst meeting that all important brief from our Directors and Clients.

Our Lead Animators are fantastic storytellers and excellent motivators. Their day-to-day focuses on managing their team, delivering characterful animated performances, expert comedic timing, charming acting choices, and maintaining production deadlines, whilst meeting that all important brief from our Directors and Clients.

How we animate is an essential part of what makes us Blue Zoo, so we’re looking for Blender Animation Team Leads who can work productively, take direction and feedback, and join us in pushing the boundaries of what TV animation is capable of.

This opportunity requires talent to be based in the UK and will require the right to work in the UK.

We are very happy to discuss flexible, hybrid and remote working options for all our vacancies. Please note that this vacancy can close early if we receive a high number of applications.

This role is due to start from September 2026.

• Leading a team of animators, and regularly communicating with the Directors and Production Manager.
• Attending episodic animation and motion capture briefs and assigning shots to the team.
• Using devices (Phone or iPad) for recording, as well as performing animation for live capture.
• This show will bring in live recorded takes that the animator will perform directly in Blender, capturing from a device(s), miming to locked audio edit. They would be expected to mix and match different takes, and then tweak the performances when required.**
• Managing your time efficiently to meet the deadlines of your assigned shots.
• Arranging daily catch ups with your team to make sure they are on track and aware of their deadlines.
• Flagging to the Directors and Production in advance if there are any potential issues with deadlines or workload.
• Making sure your work is communicating the story, ideas and acting choices clearly from blocking through to the final animation.
• Responding positively to, and acting on, notes and feedback from your Directors.
• Mentoring and coaching less experienced members of the team.
• Acting as a good role model for your team. Achieving the highest quality work in the time given, as well as responding well to fixes.
• Talking up and down the pipeline to other Supervisors and Leads, troubleshooting any issues, as well as keeping Production and the Directors aware where appropriate.
• Mentoring the team and helping with their development, including participating in your team’s review sessions.
• Updating the Production Manager on the team’s progress, communicating any concerns regarding the teams’ performance and wellbeing

• Demonstrable experience of using Blender to a high level
• Advanced understanding of body mechanics, posing and getting the best performance possible out of a character
• An understanding of switching rig parenting hierarchy (we are using an adapted Cloudrig rigging setup)
• Previous experience with face and/or body capture.
• Experience in using graph editor, keyframe animation and cleanup
• Someone who is willing to adapt and use bespoke animation tools built for the project
• Understanding of principles of lip-sync
• Ability to receive and act on feedback and respond to direction
• Excellent time management and prioritising skills
• Great communication and a motivational team leader, naturally sharing your knowledge and skills with other team members.
• Demonstrable experience of being a team player and great collaborator
• Excellent creative problem solving skills
• Problem solving skills to find the best approach to meeting the brief as well as troubleshooting issues and asking questions if unsure.
• Confidence in working independently. Being diligent, taking initiative and being reliable.
• Being organised and managing yours and your team’s time efficiently.
• Ability to help and support your team, contributing to the development and growth of your team members e.g.…