Real-Time Avatar Technical Animator / Character… at Balanxbio · Namur

(Immediate Start — Unreal / Unity / Blender) Company Overview We are building a real-time AI-driven Avatar system that combines animation, speech, emotion, and behavioral intelligence into a responsive digital human. Our Avatar is not a traditional pre-scripted character. It is dynamically controlled by AI in real time through emotion signals, speech generation, and interaction states. The goal is to create a believable, expressive, and natural real-time character that feels alive during conversation. We are looking for someone who can help bring this Avatar to life through both high-quality animation content and real-time animation systems.

Role Overview We are looking for a Real-Time Avatar Technical Animator / Character Animator who can:

• Create high-quality animation clips
• Build and refine facial expression meshes / blendshapes
• Design smooth runtime animation transitions
• Integrate animation systems into Unreal or Unity
• Help create believable real-time character behavior

This role sits at the intersection of:

• Character animation
• Facial animation
• Technical animation
• Real-time runtime systems

You will directly impact how the Avatar behaves, reacts, speaks, and emotionally responds to users.

Key Responsibilities

Character Animation Creation Create high-quality animation clips including:

• Idle animations
• Breathing and subtle body motion
• Speaking gestures
• Emotion-driven body movement
• Listening / thinking behaviors
• Attention / engagement behaviors
• Transition animations between states

Animations should feel:

• Natural
• Human-like
• Responsive
• Non-repetitive
• Emotionally believable

Facial Expression & Blendshape Development Create and refine:

• Facial expression meshes
• Blendshapes / shape keys
• Emotion expression systems
• Facial overlays and micro-expressions

Support emotional states such as:

• Happiness
• Sadness
• Anger
• Fear
• Disgust
• Surprise
• Interest
• Confusion
• Contempt
• Romantic expression

Experience with facial animation pipelines is strongly preferred.

Runtime Animation System Integration Implement and maintain real-time animation systems in: • Unreal Engine (Animation Blueprint / Control Rig) or • Unity (Animator Controller / Mecanim) Build systems for:

• Animation blending
• Smooth state transitions
• Layered animation systems
• Runtime behavior switching
• Emotion-driven animation control
• Procedural animation overlays

The Avatar must transition smoothly between:

• Idle
• Listening
• Speaking
• Emotional reactions
• Attention states

without robotic or abrupt movement.

Real-Time Behavior System Support Help define how AI-generated runtime parameters map to Avatar behavior. Examples include:

• Emotion intensity → body motion intensity
• Speaking state → gesture system
• Attention state → head / eye behavior
• Emotional blending between states

The Avatar behavior system is dynamic and AI-driven, not pre-scripted.

Pipeline & Technical Workflow Work with:

• Blender rigs and animation assets
• FBX / GLB export pipelines
• Real-time rendering constraints
• Facial systems
• Runtime animation layers
• Character rigs and skeletons

Ensure assets are production-ready and optimized for real-time applications.

Collaboration Work closely with:

• AI / backend engineers
• Runtime systems engineers
• 3D artists and rigging artists
• Product and design teams

Rapid iteration and startup-style collaboration are expected.

Requirements (Must Have)

• Experience with character animation in Blender, Maya, or equivalent tools

• Strong understanding of:

  • Human movement
  • Body language
  • Natural motion

• Experience creating:

  • Animation clips
  • Facial expressions
  • Blendshapes / shape keys

• Experience integrating animation into real-time engines

• Experience with at least one:

  • Unreal Engine
  • Unity

• Understanding of:

  • Animation blending
  • State machines
  • Runtime animation systems

• Ability to create clean, production-ready animation assets

Strong Plus Experience with any of the following is highly valuable:

• Technical animation
• Runtime animation orchestration
• Control Rig
• IK systems
• Facial animation systems
• Lip-sync / viseme systems
• AI-driven characters
• VTuber systems
• MetaHuman workflows
• Real-time digital humans
• Interactive character systems
• Startup environments
• Procedural animation systems

What We Care About We care less about cinematic offline animation and more about:

• Real-time behavior quality
• Natural movement
• Runtime responsiveness
• Smooth transitions
• Believable emotional expression
• System-level thinking

We are looking for someone who understands that building a real-time AI Avatar is not just about creating animation clips — it is about building a living interactive character system.

Commitment

• Immediate start preferred
• Remote
• Flexible hours
• Fast iteration environment
• Startup pace and ownership mentality expected