Yep - I got mine yesterday as well. There's so much aural tradition with using Houdini. Those tricks that sit under menus in some packages in the past only lived in the minds of people in big houses in L.A. Toronto and London. Now it seems people can get a lot of that knowledge without having to live or work in any of those places.
Well down Craig! and all involved…
Found 70 posts.
Search results Show results as topic list.
Houdini Lounge » New Houdini Book
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
Houdini Lounge » Mac OSX Port?
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
Houdini Lounge » Dynamics and Effects tutorials..
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
Akshay
Also one more question, If any1 who had worked in maya creating effects and now creating in Houdini..could u please share the difference and any advantages of creating effects in Houdini as compared to maya. Akshay..
The main difference is proceduralism. Here is an abridged version of a document I put together for another purpose. I'm curious to hear people's reaction to it. It's starts with a definition of effects.
——————————————————————————–
- * Effects is often defined as anything that isn't a character, a prop or a set asset. Using this definition you quickly arrive at an almost infinite set of possible effects rig variations.
* Effects regularly involves interaction between other assets - Effects is often about data convergence, data interaction and data manipulation.
* Effects can draw on all sections of the computer graphics workflow. Creating effects requires everything from modeling, to animation, to surfacing, to shading, to compositing techniques and tools.
* Effects often happens at the end of the pipeline - just before or after lighting. To permit effects development to take place in parallel with animation and lighting it is necessary that effects systems be built in a procedural way. Procedural systems are adaptable to any changes that happen upstream in animation. Procedural modeling tools are therefore highly important for effects production. Procedural effects systems are also easy to re-use in multiple shots.
* Effects creation is a highly technical enterprise. There is really no such thing as an “effects artist” in the sense that an animator is an “artist”. There is usually little that separates shot work from rig modification. In a way anyone that can do effects is at least a junior level TD or a technical artist depending on how you want to look at it. Most companies won't hire effects staff who aren't very technical. There are so few places in which they are useful on a normal production.
In commercial production, the emphasis is on arriving at a look quickly, through whatever means possible. This is because most commercials have a limited number of shots, and each effect type often doesn't appear in more than one or two shots. For these reasons, in commercials it is possible to arrive at solutions through layers of non-reversible, non-procedural solutions. There is a large repertoire of layering techniques out there, and like layers of paint, you generally can't go back and alter your first layer four or five layers later. Also, if you need to change you first layer, you generally need to throw the painting away and start again.
There are two approaches to feature film effects production, and one is to develop effects in the same way that they are created in commercials - but on a larger scale. For one-off shots, this is still a cheap and acceptable way to work. For an effect that appears in more than a few shots - the reversibility of proceduralism becomes hugely advantageous. For effects that are likely to be needed in other projects - layering also ceases to be an efficient way to work. Again, good procedural engineering becomes of great value. There are a lot of studios that make effects in inefficient ways. Some by-products of poor effects production workflow include:
1./ Inconsistency of effects looks across shots and sequences.
2./ Massive artist burn out, and other related staffing issues.
3./ Massive technical support overheads, and overblown R+D budgets.
4./ Over-budget productions.
For many visual effects companies and feature animation studios this is not an acceptable way to work, and they have arrived at workflows that limit as many of these by-products as possible. Such companies focus on highly procedural systems with carefully exposed artist interfaces for printing massive numbers of elements. For companies planning to re-use systems, or who create effects for films with effects shot counts that number near to 1000 shots, it generally makes sense to do away with cottage industry techniques and use a mass-production model of production. In this model of production, automation and system re-use is extremely important. Being able to pass data through a pipeline which intelligently applies one process after another to incoming data is a feature of this model. This is called a procedural workflow.
Companies looking to undertake effects work on large projects generally aim for an effects workflow that seeks to avoid all common by-products of a poor effects workflow whilst catering to the implicit nature of effects creation described above.
1./ Consistency of effects look across shots and sequences.
2./ Limited artist burn out, and other related staffing issues.
3./ Low technical support overheads and no blown R+D budgets.
4./ Productions that include dramatic effects – but are still on budget.
5./ Using pre-existing technology wherever possible.
6./ Using tools that have a good procedural workflow that permit efficient effects pipeline construction, and re-use.
7./ Using tools that simplify and accelerate effects rig development for fast development and production turnaround.
8./ Tools that provide a good artist interface with which technically competent artists can quickly interact with underlying systems.
It is difficult to account for all possible effects with the “canned-effects” solutions offered in many entry-level 3D software packages. Inevitably creative direction demands things that the canned effect tool cannot provide. At that point the production workflow becomes extremely inefficient. Solutions for canned effects systems that have reached their limitations include hand painted 2D solutions, and expensive, slow programmer support.
The basic workflow in Houdini recognizes the nature of creativity and productivity, and is oriented around flexibility and procedural workflows. The learning curve is more steep for people with no computer graphics knowledge, but TD's with some mel experience tend to find it perfectly logical. To compliment it's procedural modeling tools, Houdini also offers a range of post-modeling deformation tools that are also procedural. Like Shake, Nuke and other high end procedural compositing packages, Houdini has a node type layout, so there is no need to work in a text editor to create effects rigs. At the same time it is possible to support viewport workflows as with other packages. In Houdini, effects TD's can view their data at any step as geometry shaded in a viewport, as data in a spreadsheet form, or as data summarized by clicking on the node itself. It is simple to bypass steps to see what are the resulting changes, and look at the data in the ways described above in many different places at once. This excellent data accessibility and interactivity accelerates the effects rig development and debugging. Houdini TD's never work blind as you might in a text editor. Houdini also simplifies system re-use. It is possible and in fact common to copy a Houdini scene file from one shot to another and have it work without any changes. Houdini is extremely open in its design and as a result provides superior data convergence and integration. Houdini provides excellent tools for accessing and modifying geometry attribute data attached to any asset. Houdini digital assets provide an easy way to abstract and encapsulate a workflow, or sections of a workflow - complete with user friendly UI - for re-use on other shots and other shows. Rig and workflow re-use is therefore simple, fast and stable. Houdini has built-in advanced support for multiple renderers. It is not necessary to break out the C++ API every time effects wants to access some internal data, or pass some new data to one of these renderers. Houdini has built in audio, compositing and non-linear animation tools. It has built in dependency controls for output drivers (ROPs) permitting the sequencing of complex workflows that intermingle multiple simulation, compositing, procedural modeling, lighting, non-linear animation and render layer procedures. Unlike other packages, it is rare to come across an effects problem that demands a C++ devkit solution.
——————————————————————————–
I hope that helps.
Houdini Lounge » JOBS: LAIKA - Head of Effects, Production (Entertainment)
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
LAIKA - Head of Effects, Production (Entertainment)
Description
The Head of Effects is the guiding voice and tie-breaking vote for all Effects animation processes and performance in the LAIKA Studio. This person aligns the creative and production management efforts to recruit, form, grow, and lead the Effects Department in the LAIKA Studio. This person has a comprehensive understanding of, and extensive experience in Stop Motion and/or CG animated effects in production.
This role works with creative and technical leadership of all the various shows to develop the studio’s different effects styles and approaches to effects animation. Use of organic and natural phenomena shapes and behaviors through particle systems and controllable simulations is essential.
The Head of Effects works in concert with the Head of production, other Department Heads, and creative and production management to conceptualize, identify, estimate, schedule, monitor, and oversee the studio’s effects animation for Production as well as New Project Development. This Person ensures that all effects animation on all projects is of the highest quality possible, while remaining within budget and on schedule.
Principal Duties and Responsibilities
Description
The Head of Effects is the guiding voice and tie-breaking vote for all Effects animation processes and performance in the LAIKA Studio. This person aligns the creative and production management efforts to recruit, form, grow, and lead the Effects Department in the LAIKA Studio. This person has a comprehensive understanding of, and extensive experience in Stop Motion and/or CG animated effects in production.
This role works with creative and technical leadership of all the various shows to develop the studio’s different effects styles and approaches to effects animation. Use of organic and natural phenomena shapes and behaviors through particle systems and controllable simulations is essential.
The Head of Effects works in concert with the Head of production, other Department Heads, and creative and production management to conceptualize, identify, estimate, schedule, monitor, and oversee the studio’s effects animation for Production as well as New Project Development. This Person ensures that all effects animation on all projects is of the highest quality possible, while remaining within budget and on schedule.
Principal Duties and Responsibilities
- * Participate actively in the recruiting, hiring, training, casting, performance, and evaluation processes for the Effects Animation Department.
* Help create and implement inter- and intra-departmental process improvements starting with a clear definition of Receivables and Deliverables moving in and out of the Effects Department.
* Provide leadership for the Effects animation team, including education, facilitating continued development through seminars and lectures, management of reference library, and mentoring for effects animators.
* Communicate priorities, issues, and pertinent information effectively up, down, and across the Effects Department.
* Provide information to the Head of Production and other Department Heads on developments, concerns, and potential problems within the department.
* Work to unify, inspire, and motivate the Effects animation team; actively pursue team-building opportunities and foster communication within the department across all shows and all projects.
* Monitor equipment and staffing needs, identify problem areas, and recommend improvements, utilizing I.T. and TD help from Technology as well as HR from Corporate LAIKA.
* Identify and resolve personnel issues; manage and proactively resolve Effects animator relations issues as they arise, partnering with Production Management and Human Resources; administer performance reviews and daily-weekly-monthly personnel feedback for the Animation Department.
* Foster individual career development and overall group direction.
* Assist in the design and implementation of the effects animation production pipeline, utilizing Software Development, I.T., and TD help from Technology.
* Work early with the Modeling and Rigging Departments to ensure their products are suitable for effects animators’ needs for control, functionality, usability, and performance.
* Work with R&D leadership for the continued development of all effects animation tools.
* Assist in bids, breakdowns, and defining production quotas and schedules by working with Effects Leads and the Production Management on each various project in the Laika Studio.
* Assist in the tracking, improved productivity, and creative excellence within the Effects Department.
* Work closely with creative leadership and production management to achieve artistic goals within budgetary limits and arbitrate sensitively between creative desires and production requirements.
Minimum Qualifications
* Extensive visual and technical experience in and mastery of environmental and character effects
* Extensive experience in Stop-Motion and/or CG effects animation techniques, covering a diverse range of productions, including commercials, music videos, television, and feature films.
* Passion for feature animated stories.
* Previous supervisory or leadership role with artists and technical people, working in conjunction with Production Management people.
* Creative background with good artistic eye.
* Ability to communicate accurately, tactfully, conveying competency, helpfulness and support.
* Completion of degree program or working equivalent.
For more information visit: http://apps.laika.com/jobs/detail/225 [apps.laika.com]
Technical Discussion » DOPs of the future?
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
It's interesting to see a lot of the Dynamics solutions that are coming out for other toolsets. I wonder though - do they provide a lot of power for back ends that aren't necessarily designed to handle that power? Houdini's proceduralism, and ability to handle complexity come in pretty handy with much of this kind of stuff. It's not all about the size of the engine after all…
I do agree that there needs to be a cool break-up Sop. (There's something in v9 that should make such rigs easier.)
I do agree that there needs to be a cool break-up Sop. (There's something in v9 that should make such rigs easier.)
Technical Discussion » linux & .aiff file problem?
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
Houdini loads all audio into RAM - so even with a bunch of ram and clever use of CHOP unloading, it's not really adept at work with larger audio track numbers and lengths. I tried what you're doing, and ended up using Houdini for generating control rate data (100-1000hz) and then funneling that control data into an outside synthesis package called Csound to do all the high sample rate processing. The Csound community has probably covered a lot of the problems you're looking to cover - and it's free! Here's a description (in badly dated marketing guise) of what I did:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/tstex/pan.htm [users.bigpond.com]
The whole “Pan” system is available for download on odforce codex “others” when it comes back. The interface was pretty clunky - what with there being no CHOP Hda's or python back in version 4. With python coming in v9 you'll probably be able to generate the interface more easily than I was able to with the hscript-perl-csound cludgeflow.
There's these as well:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/tstex/research.htm [users.bigpond.com]
Cheers
http://www.users.bigpond.com/tstex/pan.htm [users.bigpond.com]
The whole “Pan” system is available for download on odforce codex “others” when it comes back. The interface was pretty clunky - what with there being no CHOP Hda's or python back in version 4. With python coming in v9 you'll probably be able to generate the interface more easily than I was able to with the hscript-perl-csound cludgeflow.
There's these as well:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/tstex/research.htm [users.bigpond.com]
Cheers
Technical Discussion » Houdini to Maya and back again
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
Someone here actually wrote a bgeo I/O system for Maya. If you've gotta cache something out of Maya - it may as well be in a format others can use…
Technical Discussion » HOUDINI_*_PATH environment variable length limits
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
Hiya,
It is a limit of whatever is building your environment.
Some places put the environment in the shell, other places build it in perl or python and launch from that. It's pretty much related to systems outside Houdini though in any case.
Ciao
It is a limit of whatever is building your environment.
Some places put the environment in the shell, other places build it in perl or python and launch from that. It's pretty much related to systems outside Houdini though in any case.
Ciao
Technical Discussion » Help with normals
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
The facet Sop computes normals based on the prim normals, so once the prims are reversed the “compute normals” function in the facet sop that follows should fix the point notmals as well.
Cheers
Cheers
Houdini Lounge » Houdini reseller in Australia
- tstex
- 454 posts
- Offline
circusmonkey
Thanks Ive been put in touch. Out of interest are there any Australian people out there using / learning houdini ?
R
I'm an Australian, but I've been in the USA since 2003. Started on prisms 4.3, and have used every Houdini version since. i can almost use it now…
Let me know if there's anywhere in Australia considering using Houdini…
Cheers
-
- Quick Links