CREATE A FLAMING CHARACTER

Use Houdini to build your scene and add some fiery pyro effects

A guide to producing a burning-hot creation with the help of Houdini and its pyro effects

for many of us it can be easy to let the software we use lead us on the journey to our end result, when really we should be taking charge and making the tools do what we need. This makes us learn how to implement our various tools into our work, but sometimes one particular application doesn’t allow us to reach our end goal, or possibly not in the most productive manner. At these times we need to build a pipeline, where we take the most suitable tools for the job and make them fit together.

In this tutorial I will guide you through my preferred workflow for working on scenes that entail lots of modelling, texture work and simulations, for a visual effects shot.

I’ll concentrate less on the modelling and painting and more on the overall scene setup, as I think it’s the approach to the process that is more valuable here. Besides, you probably won’t be working towards the same rendered output as me anyway.

The main chunk of this process will take place in Houdini, which has some excellent simulation tools, with some presets that can save a lot of time. It also has very robust IOS, so getting your textured mesh in from a different application is simple, as is then taking it through to another if you require it.

The most important aspect of this tutorial is to discover an overall process to help you get the results you need.

A note on Houdini. This is an incredibly powerful piece of software, with versatility and a non-destructive nature which enables you to perform edits that feel almost like time travel, meaning you can edit a creation made earlier, while retaining anything you did since. This is a joy and can be a life saver if changes are made late in the day, but it does come with a bit of a steeper learning curve. The payoff is substantial though, so I suggest you get the basics down first!