Mascot Character Designer & Animator — iPad / 2D Animation

Project Overview

We are looking for a creative 2D character designer and animator to develop a unique, memorable mascot character that can become a recurring visual identity for our brand and marketing campaigns.

The mascot should feel modern, expressive, playful and highly adaptable, with the ability to communicate different moods, emotions and situations through poses, facial expressions and simple animations.

This is not just a one-off illustration. We want to create a reusable mascot system that can be used across social media, digital campaigns, videos, presentations, event branding and other marketing applications.

Scope of Work

1. Mascot Character Design

* Develop the mascot based on our creative direction and brand personality.
* Create a distinctive and recognisable character.
* Establish the character's visual style, proportions, colours and personality.
* Provide front, side and/or relevant character views.
* Create a master editable file with properly organised layers.

2. Expressions & Moods

Develop a library of expressions and emotions, such as:

* Happy
* Excited
* Curious
* Confused
* Thinking
* Surprised
* Angry
* Sleepy
* Celebrating
* Greeting / Waving
* Sad / Disappointed
* Cool / Confident

We are open to your creative suggestions for additional expressions.

3. Poses & Character Actions
Create multiple reusable poses, including:

* Walking
* Running
* Jumping
* Waving
* Pointing
* Sitting
* Dancing
* Celebrating
* Holding objects
* Presenting information
* Thinking

4. Animation
Animate the mascot for short-form digital content.

Examples could include:
* Waving
* Blinking
* Jumping
* Dancing
* Walking
* Reacting
* Changing expressions
* Celebrating
* Simple talking / lip-sync animation
* Looping animations suitable for social media

Animations should feel smooth, expressive and fun, without becoming overly complicated.

Deliverables
We would ideally like:

* Final mascot character
* Editable source files
* Layered character file
* Expression library
* Pose library
* Multiple short animations
* Transparent-background exports
* GIF/MP4/WebM exports where appropriate
* High-resolution PNG assets
* Character colour/style guide

Preferred Tools

We are open to different workflows, but experience with the following is preferred:

* Procreate
* Procreate Dreams
* Adobe Illustrator
* Adobe After Effects
* Adobe Fresco
* Canva

**Bonus:** Experience creating characters that are specifically structured for animation, with properly separated body parts and reusable assets.

What We Are Looking For
We are looking for someone who has:

* Strong character-design skills
* A good understanding of visual storytelling
* Experience creating expressive 2D characters
* Animation/motion-design experience
* Strong sense of colour and composition
* Ability to translate a brand personality into a character
* Attention to detail
* Ability to create clean, organised and editable files
* Good communication and willingness to iterate based on feedback

Most importantly, we want someone who can bring **personality to the mascot**, rather than simply creating a technically good illustration.

How to Apply
Please share:

1. Your portfolio, especially mascot/character design and animation work
2. 2–3 examples of characters you have designed
3. Examples of your animation work
4. The software/workflow you normally use
5. Your estimated timeline
6. Your quotation for the complete project

We are looking for a creative partner who can potentially work with us on multiple mascot animations and campaigns beyond the initial project.