Technical Animator Intern (LIONDRAGON Studio, Pack Intern, Spring 2026)

**This internship is hosted by LIONDRAGON STUDIO and sponsored by the Nevada Career Studio (NCS).

Students are highly encouraged to visit the Nevada Career Studio during our drop-in hours or use our Virtual Resume & Cover Letter Review service BEFORE applying for these positions. Resumes and cover letters that do not meet NCS expectations will not be included in applicant packages to employers. 

LIONDRAGON STUDIO

About LIONDRAGON STUDIO:

LIONDRAGON STUDIOis a full production game studio. We offer a practical STEM internship for students ready for hands-on experience in innovation, directly supporting the creation of local STEM jobs. We design and develop enterprise-grade software platforms, cloud-based servers, applications, and games. We create Proof-of-Concept and prototype applications (SaaS) for startups. We are actively plugged into the Reno entrepreneurial community and serve as a reliable resource for the Innevation Center.

Internship Description:

LIONDRAGON STUDIO offers a practical STEM internship focused on the technical animation workflow. We seek students with prior animation experience in 2D animation tools like Spine 2D or After Effects. Interns will focus on optimizing and integrating animation assets for games and animation pipeline workflow across target platforms (Godot, Cocos2D, Swift UI). Interns will receive mentorship while contributing to high-impact projects, building a solid foundation of professional, marketable skills.

Duties/Responsibilities:

• Integrate and optimize 2D animations (Spine/After Effects) for smooth performance in game engines (Godot, Unity) or native UIs (Swift UI).
• Develop custom tools and scripts (Python, ExtendScript, C++) to automate asset scaling, batch process compression, and manage cross-platform export.
• Automate animation setup by writing tools for breaking static assets into animatable parts and generating preliminary animation data.
• Write proprietary Adobe plugins for Photoshop exports and After Effects imports/exports, including support for complex effects.
• Diagnose and resolve technical issues related to animation footprint, engine crashes (stack trace isolation), export, implementation, and performance.
• Integrate and optimize 2D animations (Spine/After Effects) for smooth performance in game engines or web/native UIs.
• Focus on animation performance optimization and animation production speed-up techniques.
• Complete 150 hours of work as an intern (15 hours per week) by the end of April.

Goals and Expectations of the Intern:

The goal is to have the intern successfully produce, optimize and integrate animation assets (Spine/After Effects) to enhance the game and animation pipeline workflow across target platforms (e.g. Godot, Swift UI). We expect the intern to focus on technical problem-solving and pipeline efficiency to deliver production-ready, high-performing animation systems.

Required Qualifications:

• Must be a degree-seeking undergraduate OR graduate student at the University of Nevada, Reno during the Spring ‘26 semester 
• Fall ‘25 or earlier graduates are not eligible for the Wolf Pack STEM Internship Program
• Student must be enrolled in a major or minor program in the following colleges: 
  • Agriculture, Biotechnology, and Natural Resources (CABNR) 
  • Business 
  • Engineering 
  • Science 
  • Public Health/Orvis 
• The intern must demonstrate a solid understanding of animation principles with prior, demonstrable experience using professional animation software such as Spine 2D or After Effects. 
• A foundational understanding of the technical implementation of assets into a digital environment (game engine or application) is essential.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with a specific target platform—Godot, Swift UI, X-Code, Unity—is preferred. 
• Proficiency in scripting languages like Python and ExtendScript, and exposure to C++ for engine-level modifications and custom tools.
• Demonstrable experience writing scripts to automate export, batch process assets, or implement Spine Runtimes for custom engine integration.
• Prior experience working with animation pipelines, such as Godot's AnimationTree or Unity's Mecanim system, is a distinct advantage.
• Exposure to Machine Learning (ML) or Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its application to asset creation, procedural animation generation, or optimization.
• Bonus points for experience troubleshooting pipeline inefficiencies or optimizing assets for real-time performance.

Desired Schedule for Intern:

15 hours per week Friday afternoons/Saturdays/Sundays Feb-Apr 2026. 

Pack STEM internships require interns to complete 150 hours during their internship. It is the intern’s responsibility to ensure this requirement is met.