Senior 3D Animator and Motion Designer

Job Location: Any U.S.–based Hazen and Sawyer office

Work Setting: Hybrid (three in‑office days/week) #LI-hybrid

Are you a creative, curious, and collaborative motion graphics artist looking for a challenging role with a growing company? Hazen and Sawyer is seeking a highly skilled Senior 3D Animator and Motion Designer to join our creative video production team. We are looking for a heavy-hitting 3D generalist to lead our high-end corporate and client projects. While 2D skills are required, this role is designed for a master of the 3D pipeline who can deliver cinematic, photoreal, or highly stylized 3D animation from concept to final render, including character rigging and animation.

In this role, you will produce visually compelling animations that help communicate technical concepts related to water, sustainability, and environmental engineering. You’ll collaborate closely with video producers, editors, engineers, and communicators to tell meaningful stories through high‑quality motion design and advanced 3D animation.

Hazen helps water utilities and related organizations manage the world’s most precious resource: water. Our work includes the planning, design, and oversight of infrastructure for water, wastewater, and stormwater management. As an employee‑owned firm founded in 1951, we offer a work environment that values creativity, curiosity, and collaboration. This position will support multiple offices across the country.

Key Responsibilities

• Execute end-to-end 3D pipelines, including organic modeling, complex character rigging, and expressive animation to drive narrative content.
• Translate complex engineering or scientific processes into clear, engaging visual narratives through 2D and 3D motion design.
• Contribute to pre-production by storyboarding and offering visual solutions in collaboration with producers and subject matter experts.
• Deliver high-quality animations that integrate seamlessly into live-action or fully animated videos under tight deadlines.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously and work efficiently under deadlines.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of 8 years of professional animation experience in a collaborative production environment.
• Proven track record of delivering various visual styles, from "matte-clay" and stylized characters to photorealistic technical visualizations.
• Demonstrated ability to bring characters to life through advanced rigging and performance-based animation.
• Expert proficiency in Blender (especially for character/NPR workflows) and Adobe Creative Suite, with a mastery of stylized look development (e.g., matte clay finishes).
• Strong understanding of animation principles (timing, keyframing, typography) with the ability to adapt styles from infographic motion graphics to realistic 3D.
• Demonstrated experience producing both fully animated content and motion graphics for live‑action video.

Note: Some animators specialize in animation rather than editing. While the ability to take a project from concept through final asset delivery is preferred, editing experience is not required for this role.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in animation, video production, graphic design, film, visual arts, or a related field.
• Experience visualizing technical, engineering, environmental, or scientific processes.
• Familiarity with real‑time engines (Unreal/Unity) or photorealistic render workflows (Cycles).
• Experience working in structured pipelines and end-to-end 3D pipeline management, including version control and collaborative cloud workflows.

What We Offer

• Comprehensive health benefits (medical, dental, vision, and prescription plans)
• Pre-tax flexible spending plans for medical, dependent care, and transportation
• Short and long-term disability, and employer paid life insurance
• Paid holidays, floating holidays, and paid time off (PTO)
• Employer-contributed 401(k) plan and additional financial planning support
• Professional growth opportunities, including tuition reimbursement, in-house training, and incentives for professional registration and professional organization memberships

Salary Range:

• California & New York offices: $110,000 – $135,000
• All other offices: $95,000 – $120,000

To Apply:
Please include a link to your demo reel; samples showcasing character performance, acting, and rigging are highly encouraged.