---
title: 'Principal Technical Animator at 2K Czech'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/principal-technical-animator-2k-czech-prague-2f22b1h88zx4'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-10'
---

# Principal Technical Animator at 2K Czech

- **Company:** 2K Czech
- **Location:** Prague, Czech Republic
- **Posted:** 2026-06-09
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-10
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/2kczech/jobs/7766946003

## Job description

Job Title

Principal Technical Animator (Gameplay)

Department

Technical Art

Location(s)

Brighton, Prague, Brno

Reports To

Associate Director Technical Animation

Job Type (Permanent, fixed term, internship)

Permanent

Job Summary

The Principal Technical Animator (Gameplay) will help define the technical vision, architectural framework, and long-term strategy for character animation integration across the studio. In this highly influential role, you will champion innovation, driving the adoption of cutting-edge technologies to ensure our games achieve world-class animation quality and responsiveness. You will serve as a technical authority on gameplay animation, solving the studio’s complex R&D challenges while collaborating with design, animation and engineering to establish future-proof pipelines. While not a people manager, you will inspire, mentor, and elevate the technical capabilities of the entire animation department.

Duties and Responsibilities

- Architect and oversee the high-level design of gameplay animation systems, ensuring scalability, performance, and seamless integration across complex real-time systems.
- Drive R&D initiatives to evaluate and implement cutting-edge animation technologies (e.g., advanced Motion Matching, machine learning/AI animation, next-gen physics).
- Partner with Engineering and Tech Animation leadership to implement project-wide animation roadmaps and toolsets.
- Solve deep, complex runtime bugs and drive animation optimisation efforts to meet strict performance and memory budgets.
- Define and document technical standards, best practices, and pipeline workflows for the wider technical animation team.
- Collaborate closely with Design and Animation leads to heavily iterate on and perfect 3C mechanics (character, camera, controls), maximizing game feel.
- Actively mentor and upskill senior and mid-level technical animators through code/blueprint reviews and hands-on guidance.

Essential Skills, Attributes and Experience

- Extensive proven experience architecting and integrating gameplay animation systems for AAA titles using Unreal Engine.
- Master-level expertise in Unreal Engine’s animation suite (Anim Blueprints, Motion Matching, Control Rig, State Machines,  and Sequencer).
- Deep technical understanding of low-level animation concepts, including runtime optimisation, memory management, and threading for animation.
- Exceptional cross-discipline communication skills, with a proven track record of aligning Art, Design, and Engineering directors on complex technical visions.
- Expertise in feature breakdown and scoping, with the ability to translate abstract creative pillars into robust, production-ready plans..
- A profound understanding of gameplay mechanics, game feel, and the mathematical principles behind smooth character movement and physics.
- A portfolio or reel demonstrating a history of solving highly complex, innovative technical animation challenges in shipped titles.

Highly Desirable

- Strong proficiency in C++ for extending Unreal Engine’s animation system, alongside Python for pipeline tool automation.
- Experience contributing to proprietary engine tools or custom modifications to Unreal's core animation code.
- Production experience with advanced DCC tools, including Maya API, MotionBuilder, or Houdini for runtime or pipeline integration.
- Background in traditional animation or motion capture data manipulation to better bridge the gap between art and code.

Hangar 13  prides itself on the diversity of its team members, partners, and communities.  For this reason, we remain committed to providing equal employment opportunity in all aspects of the employment relationship, from recruitment and hiring through compensation, benefits, discipline and termination.

As an equal opportunity employer, we are also committed to ensuring that qualified individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation(s) to participate in the job application and/or interview process, to perform their essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.  Please contact us if you need to request reasonable accommodation.

SECURITY NOTICE -  We have recently been made aware of increasing occurrences of bad actors posing as company HR personnel to gain information from "potential candidates", in the form of job interviews and offers. These scams can be quite sophisticated and appear legitimate.

Please know that Hangar 13 and 2K never use instant messaging apps to contact prospective employees or to conduct interviews.

If you believe you have been a victim of such a scam, you may fill out a complaint form at https://complaint.ic3.gov/ and https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/ detailing as much as possible. We are taking these matters very seriously and apologize for any inconvenience.

#LI-Hybrid

## #LI-JF1

## About 2K Czech

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: 2K Czech is a video game development studio best known for creating the *Mafia* series and the *Top Spin* franchise, operating as part of the Hangar 13 brand under 2K Games.
- **Entity Type**: Private (subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, NYSE: TTWO)
- **Headquarters**: Brno, Czechia (with an additional office in Prague)
- **Founded**: 1997 (founded as Illusion Softworks; acquired by Take-Two Interactive and rebranded as 2K Czech in 2008)
- **Founders**: Petr Vochozka and Jan Kudera

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Computer / Video Games
- **Target customers**: B2C – consumers across PC and console platforms (narrative-driven action-adventure, sports simulation)
- **Mission or purpose statement**: “Create. Innovate. Play.” — the studio focuses on crafting immersive, high-quality gaming experiences alongside its sister studios.

## Products & Services
- **Mafia series**: Acclaimed narrative-driven open-world crime saga. Key releases include *Mafia: City of Lost Heaven* (2002), *Mafia II* (2010), *Mafia III*, *Mafia: Definitive Edition* (2020), and *Mafia: The Old Country* (2025).
- **Top Spin series**: Professional tennis simulation franchise. Notable titles include *Top Spin 4* (2011) and *TopSpin 2K25* (2024).
- **Hidden & Dangerous series**: Tactical World War II shooter (first game released 1999), originally developed by Illusion Softworks.
- **Support & Co-Development**: The studio’s IT teams also support 2K Games studios worldwide, and the animation and art teams collaborate on projects across Hangar 13.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation / Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed for the studio itself (parent Take-Two Interactive has a market cap of ~$28 B as of mid-2026).
- **Key Metric**: Annual revenue estimated at **$13.1 M** (LinkedIn data); total employees **39** (+ contractors likely higher).
- **Notable Investors / Partners**: A wholly owned subsidiary of **2K Games** (division of Take-Two Interactive). Close collaboration with **Hangar 13** studios in Brighton (UK) and Novato (US).
- **Growth Signals**: Released *Mafia: The Old Country* in early 2025 to strong critical and commercial success; continues to hire for senior animation, engineering, and production roles (8 open positions as of July 2026).

## Competitive Advantages
- **Heritage & IP Ownership**: Decades-long track record with the iconic *Mafia* franchise, a rare narrative-adventure brand in the open-world genre.
- **Specialized Facilities**: In-house motion capture studio, proprietary 3D character scanner, audio rooms, and a private cinema at the Brno office.
- **Talent Density**: A compact, highly senior team (29% Senior+ roles) with alumni moving to top studios (Warhorse, Bohemia Interactive, Ubisoft, etc.) and strong ties to the local Czech game dev ecosystem.
- **Stability & Resources**: Backed by Take-Two Interactive, providing financial security and access to global publishing, marketing, and QA resources.

## Strategic Focus
- **Co-development under Hangar 13**: Deepening collaboration with Brighton and Novato on the *Mafia* franchise and other unannounced projects.
- **Expanding the Prague office**: Growing the team in Prague (new office opened in 2024) to attract talent from the capital.
- **Technical Excellence**: Investing in animation and shader tooling (hiring Lead Technical Artists for tools/pipeline) to push visual fidelity in upcoming titles.

## Why Work Here
- **Work Flexibility**: Option to work from home based on role and responsibilities; relocation support offered. The Brno office is dog-friendly.
- **Perks & Benefits**: Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP), pension benefits, sick days/compensation, multisport card, Pluxee card, free drinks and snacks, board game evenings, movie nights, video game library, seasonal events for employees’ children.
- **Culture & Growth**: Professional growth opportunities, a creative and collaborative atmosphere, and the chance to work on globally recognized IP.
- **Office Environment**: Modern eco-friendly building in Brno with panoramic views, dedicated gaming spaces, and a fully stocked kitchen. Prague office features a large balcony with city views and a 3D printer.
- **Engineering & Tech Stack**: Use of industry-standard tools (Jira, Confluence, Slack, C++, Unreal Engine, etc.) and strong DevOps practices (Grafana, Ansible, Terraform, Datadog).

## Sources
1. [2kczech.com](https://www.2kczech.com/)
2. [2kczech.com/career](https://2kczech.com/career/)
3. [greenhouse.io](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/2kczech)
4. [linkedin.com](https://cz.linkedin.com/company/2k-czech)
5. [2kczech.com/about-offices](https://2kczech.com/about-offices/)

## Other roles at 2K Czech

- [Producer - Technical (12 month contract)](https://feeny.ai/job/producer-technical-12-month-contract-2k-czech-prague-t0sqb340nm4z) — Prague, Czech Republic
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- [Lead Technical Artist  - Shaders](https://feeny.ai/job/lead-technical-artist-shaders-2k-czech-brno-3d5fxhvm0yab) — Brno, Czechia
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