Senior 2D Character Animator at Ello
Company: Ello
Location: San Francisco, California, United States (Remote – US)
Job Type: Full-Time (Contract)
Salary: $10,000 – $13,000 per month
About the Company
Ello is a mission-driven public benefit corporation focused on maximizing the potential of every child through AI-powered education. Its flagship product, Read with Ello, is already helping thousands of children improve literacy through personalized, interactive learning experiences.
Backed by leading investors and recognized by TIME and Fortune, Ello is building the world’s first complete AI teacher—combining speech, language, and adaptive learning technologies to transform global education.
Job Overview
Ello is seeking a Senior 2D Character Animator to create expressive, emotionally engaging character animations for children aged 4–8. This role focuses on bringing characters to life within interactive learning environments using real-time animation tools like Rive.
You will collaborate closely with design and engineering teams to deliver high-quality animation systems that scale across the product.
Key Responsibilities
- Animate character states such as idle, reactions, celebrations, and emotional responses in Rive
- Collaborate with art direction and technical teams to ensure consistency and quality
- Integrate animations seamlessly into live products with engineering teams
- Build scalable animation systems, libraries, and naming conventions
- Deliver expressive and engaging animations tailored for children’s learning experiences
Required Qualifications
- 3–5+ years of experience in character animation
- Strong demo reel showcasing expressive and emotionally resonant animation
- Experience with real-time animation tools such as Rive, Spine, or Unity Animator
- Expertise in state machine architecture (states, transitions, triggers)
- Strong collaboration and communication skills
- Ability to work in US-compatible time zones and travel occasionally to San Francisco
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience with animation-engineering integration workflows
- Rigging skills including skeletal systems and deformation setups
- Background in children’s products, games, or edtech
- Experience at animation-focused or product-driven companies
Education
Degree in Animation, Fine Arts, Game Design, or a related field is preferred, or equivalent professional experience.
Benefits
- Competitive monthly compensation
- Opportunity to work on impactful AI-driven education products
- Flexible remote contract with ~40 hours/week
- Collaborative, mission-driven team environment
- Direct impact on products used by children worldwide
- Work at the intersection of AI, animation, and education