Character animation specialist who has shipped titles on Steam and PlayStation as part of dedicated game animation teams. Focused on character animation, rigging, and mocap retargeting in Autodesk Maya and MotionBuilder, delivering believable, game-ready motion for PC, mobile, and console.…

Kostya Baliuk

Character animation specialist who has shipped titles on Steam and PlayStation as part of dedicated game animation teams. Focused on character animation, rigging, and mocap retargeting in Autodesk Maya and MotionBuilder, delivering believable, game-ready motion for PC, mobile, and console.…

Available to hire

Character animation specialist who has shipped titles on Steam and PlayStation as part of dedicated game animation teams. Focused on character animation, rigging, and mocap retargeting in Autodesk Maya and MotionBuilder, delivering believable, game-ready motion for PC, mobile, and console.

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Language

Ukrainian
Fluent
English
Advanced
Russian
Fluent

Work Experience

3D Character Animator & Rigger at SayGames
June 1, 2026 - August 31, 2026
- Stepped in as sole animator, delivering a full set of character animations under tight deadlines. - Created and refined character animations for mobile game; integrated all assets into Unity. I- terated rapidly based on feedback to match the project's quality bar.
3D Character Animator & Rigger at Midnight Game Company
January 1, 2024 - May 31, 2026
- Coordinated a cross-disciplinary team of up to 7 people across three projects, overseeing animation pipeline and quality standards. - Processed and retargeted motion capture data to custom character rigs in MotionBuilder using HumanIK; performed curve cleanup, floor contact corrections, and Story Tool clip editing. - Performed mocap retargeting and animation pack transfer between rigs in Maya and MotionBuilder. - Animate characters for PC, mobile, and console — locomotion sets, combat, cinematic sequences. - Rig and skin characters independently; deliver clean deformation for in-game use. - Animate props, weapons, bags, and accessories attached to characters. - Work across multiple projects simultaneously, adapting to new rigs, pipelines, and production requirements with minimal ramp-up time. - Integrate and test animations in Unreal Engine 5 and Unity.
3D Animator at KARANDASH Animation Studio
March 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023
- Animated characters for an animated series — dialogue scenes, acting, fullbody performance. - Worked with pre-built facial rigs and standardised pose libraries to maintain visual consistency. - Collaborated with creative directors and art lead to hit weekly delivery targets.

Education

Game Animation at iAnimate
January 8, 2026 - March 31, 2026

Qualifications

Add your qualifications or awards here.

Industry Experience

Gaming
    The Floor Above
    • Animated and integrated character assets into Unity for horror title "The Floor
      Above (Steam).

    • Brought in alongside the lead animator to meet critical production deadline.

    • Delivered complex creature animations — detailed sequences with layered
      secondary motion.