Jeff Tompkins
Austin,TX
Summary
- AAA Track Record: Extensive experience shipping titles across PS5, PS4, PC, and VR
- Technical Mastery: Expert-level proficiency in Autodesk Maya, MotionBuilder, and UE4/5.
- Leadership: Experience leading/mentoring teams of 7+ in-house and external animators.
- Specializations: High-end Key-frame and MoCap cleanup, rigging, and cinematic storytelling.
- Innovation: Pioneer in AI-assisted workflows for tool creation and MoCap optimization.
Overview
15
15
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Animator
Meta
Austin, TX
12.2021 - Current
- Project Leadership: Oversaw the production of 30 minutes of cinematics and gameplay for the final end-game sequence, ensuring a seamless transition between narrative and play.
- Team Management: Led teams of up to 7 animators (in-house and external), providing creative direction and technical mentorship to maintain stylistic consistency.
- Pipeline Optimization: Reworked the MoCap pipeline to streamline the workflow from MotionBuilder to Maya; authored comprehensive technical documentation and video tutorials for the team.
- MoCap Direction: Directed multi-actor motion capture shoots and managed the full data pipeline—from Xsens raw data to characterizing and retargeting in MotionBuilder.
- Design & Artistry: Designed and directed the final boss fight and blocked out major end-game cinematic sequences before handing off to the animation team for final polish.
- AI Integration: Leveraged AI to generate custom tools, significantly reducing the workload for Technical Animators and accelerating iteration times.
Animator
Twisted Pixel Games
Austin, TX
08.2018 - 12.2021
- Cinematics: Polished high-fidelity character selection intros and cinematic openers for MK1.
- Gameplay Animation: Collaborated with gameplay directors to prototype Scorpion’s early animation sets and cleaned up complex Fatal Blows for DLC characters (Rain).
- Technical Polish: Worked closely with the cinematics team to refine "Friendship" sequences and in-game combat animations.
- Projects: Defector, Path of the Warrior, Mortal Kombat 11, Mortal Kombat 1
Animator
White Moon Dreams
Los Angeles, CA
10.2013 - 07.2018
- Team Lead (Undisclosed Project): Spearheaded the studio’s first MoCap integration, establishing best practices for hyper-realistic creature and human animation.
- Engine Integration: Integrated animations into UE4, including tagging animation events, audio cues, and setting up sequences in Matinee.
- Volume Production: Hand-keyed over 1,000+ in-game animations for Warmachine: Tactics, spanning humanoid, creature, and mechanical rigs.
- Projects: Starblood Arena (PSVR), Warmachine: Tactics (PC), Undisclosed Project
Animator
Pixo Entertainment
Southfield, MI
01.2011 - 12.2012
- Library Creation: Co-developed a comprehensive bipedal animation library to standardize future mobile game development.
- Mobile Development: Hand-keyed diverse character sets and environmental objects for multiple mobile titles.
Education
Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) -
College for Creative Studies
Detroit, MI01.2010
Skills
- Maya
- MotionBuilder
- Unreal Engine 4
- Unreal Engine 5
- Xsens
- Key-frame Animation
- Motion Capture
- Retargeting
- Facial Animation
- Creature Animation
- Motion capture direction
- Character Rigging
- AI-Assisted Tool Creation
- Pipeline optimization
- Virtual reality
Timeline
Senior Animator
Meta
12.2021 - Current
Animator
Twisted Pixel Games
08.2018 - 12.2021
Animator
White Moon Dreams
10.2013 - 07.2018
Animator
Pixo Entertainment
01.2011 - 12.2012
Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) -
College for Creative Studies