Rive Animator & Illustrator

About The RoleWe're looking for a Rive Animator & Illustrator to bring our mascot Milo and the Mathspace experience to life through expressive motion, character animation, and interactive design.You'll play a key role in shaping the emotional heartbeat of the Mathspace product from Milo's encouraging gestures and playful emotes to animated interfaces that make learning feel more fun, personal, and rewarding.The ideal candidate is a skilled illustrator and animator with deep expertise in Rive and vector-based illustration (Adobe Illustrator). You'll collaborate closely with our product experience team to design, animate, and systemize motion assets that scale across Mathspace's ecosystem.RequirementsKey Responsibilities🎬 Character Animation & IllustrationDesign, rig, and animate Milo across a wide range of emotes, actions, and celebrationsCreate and maintain a reusable animation library supporting multiple contexts (learning, feedback, reward, and seasonal events)Illustrate and rig Milo outfit and accessory variations aligned with gamification themes (shop, expedition, classroom, etc.)Evolve Milo's animation language to reflect emotional nuance, encouragement, and humour🕹️ Gamification & Interactive DesignAnimate and illustrate core gamified features including Tug of War, Class Expedition, Shop interactions, and celebration sequencesCollaborate with UX/UI designers to enhance clarity and delight through microinteractions, animated icons, and responsive motionHelp develop the Avatar Creator system, allowing students to personalise their Milo avatar with earned or purchased items🎨 Content Creation & Cross-Team SupportSupport the creation of gamification assets such as shop accessories, themed backgrounds, and collectible itemsContribute to marketing and communications content through short animations, promotional illustrations, or social-ready assetsExplore opportunities to introduce animation and interactivity within math problem templates, enhancing engagement and understanding⚙️ Systems & CollaborationBuild and manage Rive state machines for responsive, interactive motionPartner with developers to ensure seamless animation integration and performance optimisationMaintain an organised and scalable asset library and documentation for future growthEssentialSkills & ExperienceStrong portfolio demonstrating vector illustration and expressive 2D animationAdvanced skill in Rive (state machines, triggers, interactivity)Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator or equivalent vector design toolsSolid understanding of character rigging, motion principles, and UI/UX animationAbility to work collaboratively with designers and developers to deliver scalable animation systemsDesirableExperience designing for education, games, or youth-focused digital productsFamiliarity with Figma, and After Effects for animation prototypingUnderstanding of visual storytelling, reward mechanics, and motivational feedbackPassion for education, creativity, and making learning feel inspiring and approachableWho You AreYou're a creative technologist who loves using motion and character to make digital experiences feel alive. You care deeply about how art and animation can make learning fun, rewarding, and emotionally resonant. You'll play a pivotal role in expanding Mathspace's creative capabilities helping us grow from a high school focused product into one that inspires primary through secondary students to learn with confidence and joy.💡 Business Case SummaryWhy This Role MattersMathspace is investing in the emotional and motivational layer of the learning experience. To support our mission of making mathematics more engaging, we need dedicated expertise in illustration and animation to:Expand and maintain Milo's animation library, ensuring emotional variety and reuse across the student experienceDevelop gamified content (avatars, shop items, celebrations, backgrounds) that reinforces motivation and personalisationExpand our gamification experience library (e.g. alternatives to the spinning wheel and support partnership collaborations)In a full time capacity the role would also supportMarketing and brand storytelling with animated assets that showcase product charm and personalityEnhance interactive learning templates, using animation to visualise abstract math concepts and feedback momentsExpected OutcomesIncreased student motivation, time-on-task, and positive reinforcement through animated feedbackScalable in-house animation pipeline reducing reliance on freelancers or static illustration assetsBroader audience appeal as Mathspace expands into younger age groups (Years 3-6)Stronger brand distinctiveness through consistent, character-driven motion languageWhat this role is notThis role is not designed for Illustration of content that's primary purpose is to be static e.g. print textbook content. They will sit across product and brand design with primary squad engagement with Elephant.BenefitsWhat We Offer The opportunity to use technology to transform Mathematics education. Great team - no politics, no egos. Commitment to work-life balance and flexibility. Flexible remote work with a Sydney office for a true hybrid experience. We partner with pledge1percent.org to donate 1% of time, product and profit to help nonprofits in our community. Each employee has 2.5 days to volunteer with the charity of their choice