Resume

Contact: lianne.cruz@gmail.com

View Lianne Cruz Horvath's profile on LinkedIn

Experience:

That’s No Moon, Lead Narrative Gameplay Animator (April 2025 – Present)

  • Manage narrative animators, scope, and schedule team’s work with Production
  • Establish best work practices for authoring content and implementation
  • Collaborate with tech anim, engineering, and design on narrative gameplay animation systems
  • Support narrative anim team with UE5 animation implementation and troubleshoot bugs
  • Direct motion capture sessions as well as planned the shot list

Worlds Untold, Lead Gameplay Animator (July 2024 – December 2024)

  • Lead animation team (consisting of co-dev and outsource partners), planning their work, and give regular feedback on animations in support of the game’s vision
  • Created prototype gameplay animations to support design exploration in UE5, research UE5 animation systems, direct and plan motion capture sessions
  • Coordinate cross discipline efforts with animation, design, and engineering to stand up gameplay animation systems
  • Develop a roadmap for animation by partnering with production and stakeholders
  • Managed and mentored animation (consisting of co-dev and outsource partners), tech animation, and character art teams
  • Advised the team on building gameplay and cinematic animation pipelines

Ridgeline Games (EA), Animation Director (April 2022 – March 2024)

  • Establish animation vision while upholding the creative and franchise direction of the product
  • Oversaw and drove cinematic pipelines and enemy AI animations for Battlefield campaign with engineering, tech art, and cinematics
  • Collaborate with art, design, audio, engineering, and narrative leadership to define animation features for gameplay systems and cinematics
  • Research animation tech and worked with partners on facial animation tech for our content pipeline
  • Set high level goals and planned production schedule for animation team
  • Facilitate alignment, visibility, and collaborated with cross-studio dev partners
  • Recruit and build animation team
  • Manage, mentor, and give regular critiques to the animation team

Polyarc, Principal Animator (December 2020 – March 2022)

  • Keyframe animation for narrative moments and enemies
  • Animation implementation using UE4’s Animation Blueprints
  • Drove collaboration for inventory animation system and owned various narrative moments
  • Managed senior animator
  • Shipped:
    • Moss 2 (PSVR, Quest) – March 2022

V1 Interactive, Animation Lead (December 2019 – November 2020)
Animator (October 2016 – December 2019)

  • Keyframe animation and mocap clean-up for gameplay and cinematics
  • Implemented and prototyped animations in UE4
  • Established animation best practices and workflows while collaborating on animation and cinematic pipelines w/ tech animation
  • Developed and researched workflows for animation
  • Assisted with in studio setup of Vicon mocap system and mocap pipeline
  • Build animation team, mentor animators, and scheduled animation team’s work
  • Provided feedback to both animation team and outsource partners
  • Shipped:
    • Disintegration (PS4, Xbox One, PC) – June 2020

Camouflaj, Senior Animator (May 2016 – August 2016)

  • Keyframe animation and mocap cleanup, prototyping/research for projects and animation pipeline

5TH Cell, Senior Animator (October 2015 – March 2016)
Animator (October 2014 – October 2015)

  • Keyframe animation for in-game characters, prototyping, and implementation for “Anchors in the Drift” project

Sucker Punch Productions, Senior Animator (February 2012 – August 2014)

  • Keyframe animation for in-game characters, mocap cleanup, camera animation, implementation
  • Shipped:
    • inFamous: First Light DLC (PS4) – Aug. 2014
    • inFamous: Second Son (PS4) – March 2014


Bethesda Game Studios, Animator (September 2009 – February 2012)

  • Keyframe animation for in-game characters, mocap cleanup, rigging, skinning, and implementation (using Havok Behavior Tool)
  • Shipped:
    • The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Xbox 360, PS3, PC) – Nov. 2011


Vicious Cycle Software, Animator (July 2006 – August 2009)

  • Keyframe animation for in-game and cinematics, mocap cleanup, camera layout/previs for cinematics, rigging, skinning
  • Shipped:
    • Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond (PSN, XBLA) – January 2010
    • Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard (PS3, Xbox 360) – March 2009
    • Ben 10:Alien Force (PS2,Wii,PSP) – October 2008
    • Dead Head Fred (PSP) – August 2007
    • Flushed Away (PS2,GC) – Oct.2006


Vicious Cycle Software, Junior Artist (June – Aug.2005)

  • Lip sync, keyframe animation of background characters, model/texture/animate props
  • Shipped:
    • Dora the Explorer:Journey to the Purple Planet (PS2,GC) – Oct.2005

Education:


Animation Mentor, Advanced Character Animation Studies
(2009 – 2011)

Savannah College of Art and Design, Bachelor of Fine Arts in Animation (2002 – 2006); graduated Magna Cum Laude

Skills:

  • Software: Maya, MotionBuilder, Photoshop, Unreal Engine 5
  • Additional Skills: Facial animation, Motion capture systems/shoots, 2D animation, storyboarding, life drawing