Author: 16608038

As I have previously already done some research on Houdini due to the project  I did last term being based on the same thing, I can use the old blog post that I made as reference for this project. The link below is direct to the post I did on Houdini research last semester, it includes information on the features of the software, pros and cons, node use and films that used the software. Each of these aspects I learnt were valuable as it gave me a better chance of understanding the software before I went onto it.

https://med3017a-1819-gglevel3projectone.coursework.lincoln.ac.uk/2018/10/15/houdini-research/

As I am now starting to get a hang of the interface, one of the aspects I will further researching into is the node use as I have realised this software is much more heavily based on the technology and geometry side of things.

I accumulated some of my node research from the sideFX.com website, as I know that this information will be accurate due to Houdini being developed from this company.

Types of Nodes: http://www.sidefx.com/docs/houdini/nodes/index.html

Channel (CHOP) – Create filter and manipulate channel data

Compositing (IMG)  – Create, filter and manipulate image data

Geometry – are inside the geo objects and generate geometry

Dynamics (DOP) – set up the conditions and rules for dynamic simulations

Object (OBJ) – represent objects in the scene i.e. character parts, geometry objects/lights/cameras etc.

Render (ROP) – either render scene out or set up render dependancy networks

VEX – containers for VOP networks

VOP – allow definition of a program (like a shader) by connecting the nodes together, software then complies the network into VEX code.

Having a small understanding on how the nodes work in the software and how they are linked together to create the simulation will give me a more knowledgeable approach when in the creative process, this knowledge will allow me to increase my skill set and challenge my current capabilities.

The image above is what a ‘geometry node’ looks like. As I have already begun the process of creating ‘soft jellies’ this node is familiar to me, alongside an object node and render node. However, I have obtained a clearer understanding after seeing what components make up the geometry node. For example, when I was blindly making my way round the interface and struggled to see the object in the viewport, I didn’t realise that I had to highlight/select the component furthest right.

Comparing to other software i.e Maya:

Although Maya is good for modelling and texturing and – in terms of learning the software – Maya would be simpler to learn due to the easier set up and traditional workflow, the thing that makes Houdini good for this project is because i want to learn how to create VFX in ‘the elements’ i.e. water, fire, smoke and things that behave like a liquid or gas. Houdini is known for creating professional outputs that looks realistic. From my previous term I learnt that there were many films that used Houdini to create sequences involving sand (Spiderman) ocean (pirates of the Caribbean).

 

I started looking through a website called ‘Lynda’ (https://www.lynda.com/Houdini-tutorials/Houdini-Essential-Training/571627-2.html?srchtrk=index%3a1%0alinktypeid%3a2%0aq%3ahoudini%0apage%3a1%0as%3arelevance%0asa%3atrue%0aproducttypeid%3a2) as it provides information on beginners using Houdini, however I felt that it wasn’t providing any information that made sense to me as I usually learn through a process where I can see an outcome, so found a youtube tutorial where I could visually learn how to create a simulation before I begin to learn the technicalities behind it.

To begin with,  I want to create a simple simulation in Houdini in order to grasp the scope of the length each experiment may approximately take. As with my previous project I began by looking at rigid body and soft body simulations, I felt that I should follow a similar path as it slowly eased me into the software – hence looking at ‘soft jellies’ as this is similar to my bouncy ball simulation from my previous project.

When researching tutorials to follow I discovered there is little information out there that is straightforward to follow, this being said I found a youtube video that has a demonstration of how to do this kind of simulation.

I found this tutorial difficult to follow as it didn’t have any voice over, therefore with a couple of steps I had to work it out by myself with trial & experiment i.e. pressing certain keys, seeing whether there was any indication in my software that explained what to do etc.

The first step was to create a spherical object which was done after creating a geometry domain (essential for keeping object inside a certain area) and make sure that it is a polygon material. The image below is the stage I’m currently at, and to reach this stage I had to select the sphere tabs and change them to an ‘Organic Mass’ which ‘creates a solid finite element (FEM) object that is pliant and elastic, similar to muscle and fat’ (learnt after highlighting the OM tab) and copying and pasting each object so I eventually have three spheres on screen. To make the objects nodes expand and actually make the organic mass, I had to select the polygon and press enter on each object which also allowed me to put the OM into action and connect them together.

The following step was to add a ‘merge’ node so that I could connect the spheres together – this allowed me to see the three individual spheres through the viewport.

I then added a ‘cache’ to connect to the merging node, as without this my simulation would not move in the motion I desired.

I added a plane  (so jelly balls collide)

Enter the ‘AutoDopNetwork’ node system to change the values of the objects so that they collide more naturally.

added a camera and a sun light (need to change to jelly material)

added material after following the instructions that sidefx provided http://www.sidefx.com/docs/houdini/ref/panes/materialpalette.html

Subdivide and surface smoother (different) 1. affects the whole geometry and is the reason to make things look more natural once rendered out – had to create a separate node in 2. only a temporary affect while editing and doesn’t change the rendered look.

My Jellies Final Output:

Frames Rendered: 200

Render Time: 4 Hours

One of the things I am struggling with is the size of the software being on my laptop as I feel that its fitting onto a small screen and therefore is more condensed, resulting in smaller tabs which makes it more difficult to see accurately what I am doing. I solved the interface issue by changing it in preferences and making it larger, this way, I am able to see what I’m doing with more precision.

 

Student Name	Giordana Guerriero
Project Title	Advanced Physics Simulation Project
Tutor(s) Name(s)	Jon Holmes, Graham Cooper, Clive McCarthy, James Field
Group Members (If Applicable)	N/A

 

Project Type

Please select the optimum assessment strandfor your project, as described in the core module guide. Weighting for each submission component varies from strand to strand.

Type 1 MAJOR ARTEFACT	Type 2 PORTFOLIO	Type 3 EXHIBITION
	X

Brief Project Outline

A short outline of your proposed project

Last Semester I intended to learn different skills in the software ‘Houdini’ but as I focussed more on Blender, this semester is where I will take the knowledge learnt from Blender and apply it to Houdini. To begin with, the aim of this project is to start by creating different physics simulations i.e. fire, smoke, water, in Houdini and produce a show reel of the work in a final output – similar to how I structured my previous project in Blender. This being said, for the first few weeks I will keep my options open as I understand the scope of this project is larger than my last one as this software is more intricate. If this doesn’t go to plan, I could potentially switch my focus back onto using Blender but combine my knowledge of this and Chroma Keying to create VFX in live action scenes. My project type will be Portfolio, as the nature of the project involves some level of experimentation, I will be frequently updating it in my blog and there is 20% of the focus on research and development. It also gives a clearer aim of my project having a combination of small experiments to make up for the final output of my project submission. The concept of my idea will be similar to my previous project, as I will be bringing together the small projects in a final show reel of work to present to those in the industry. It will have before and after shots to show what the simulations looked like before the render and after the render.  My intended audience is those that are already in the industry and looking to hire. This way, I am more motivated to think about industry standard work and also will provide a good portfolio of work to take forward with me when looking for a media-based job. I will use YouTube to upload my final output so that I can imbed it into the spark page, my YouTube account has many different video uploads from my previous project and is therefore a suitable platform for my work to be seen.  My technical abilities will be challenged further in each element of this project. Whether I experiment in Houdini or create scenes with Blender, both will be a step further into my skills and the more I learn the more in-depth and refined my work will look. Providing a portfolio that reflects an experienced user with physics simulations. https://vimeo.com/226906993 I have taken inspiration from this show reel of work as it is from the SideFX Houdini website has been used in 2017 films/adverts. It allows me to see how the work I’m doing can be placed into industry level work i.e. Moana, The Smurfs etc.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bglBfYdNIvM this YouTube video is where I can take inspiration on if I am to go forward with live action sequences using Blender as it gives me an idea for potential scenes/narratives for short clips to solely demonstrate my skills.

Research Outline

A short outline of the research you will personally undertake as part of the project, including relevant texts. Try to add specific details where possible

Primary Research: Experimenting primarily in Houdini to test whether the scope of the project is possible for this semester. Following this, I will conclude on whether to continue in Houdini, or to revert back to Blender and create simulations as part of small live action sequences. Secondary Research: The main source of secondary research will be from YouTube tutorials as I believe that these are a fast and efficient way of gaining clear information on my project topic. I can refer back to my old blog that I did that has previous research on Houdini. One of the websites I found last term was https://filtergrade.com/houdini-overview-vfx-3d-modeling-software/ which is a Houdini overview and will be appropriate for this project as I can prepare for the difference between using Blender and the complexity of Houdini. https://www.lynda.com provides a lot of different video tutorials for beginners, with navigating the interface to understanding elements like lighting/dynamics/particles etc. This will likely be my ‘go to’ in terms of learning Houdini. If I was to take forward compositing a physics simulation/object made in blender into live footage, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCBZifZQEf0 this YouTube video has resourceful tips to take into consideration when experimenting with combining blender simulations with live footage To evidence that I will be developing my project alone, and after discovering that the use of blog posts gave me better time management, I will be uploading blog posts that explain each experiment, and demonstrate my work through discussion and comparison with the use of still images, time lapses and towards the end potential videos that can be used for other people’s tutorial purpose – to show that I have learnt new skills and can relay the information to others.

The campfire pitch has taken place in the second week and allows me to communicate the ideas I have for this project. As I have two potential ideas, I can voice both and get feedback from my peers that can help me come to a final decision of what to take forward into this semester.

Concept:

There are two different ideas at this stage which I could potentially take forward:

• applying blender knowledge to live action scenes

As I have learnt enough skills in Blender, I can now bring two skills together (chroma keying and physics simulations) to present a mixture of different scenes that demonstrate each skill from the previous semester and last year. i.e. a person running down a street with buildings collapsing, people sat around a campfire etc.

• going back to original idea of working in Houdini

Last semester, the original plan was to learn how to use the software Houdini but it turned out I had much to learn in Blender before I took the step into Houdini. This semester, I could potentially take the skills I’ve learnt and apply them to the new software and have a similar output to my previous work, the difference being the simulations being created in Houdini.

Concept targeting and how it will meet needs/expectations:

Each idea and outcome of skills I would have by the end of this term has the potential to be taken into the industry as they both skills are important in the industry. Having a combined skill would show that I am capable of working in the industry and keen to learn new skills. I am targeting a similar audience to last semester (industry companies) as it gives me purpose and motivation to learn and/or develop my skills.

How it will push my creative and technical ability:

Bringing two new skills togethers is something I haven’t ventured into before and this will be presented if I was to take the blender/live action route. Having a combined skill to take into to industry will allow my creativity to flourish for this semester and motivate me to learn more

Learning Houdini will push my creative ability as this is a software that have a minimal number of tutorials to follow unless I pay for some. I would be relying on the skills I learnt in Blender to develop my skills in Houdini, which is a slight risk however I have my old blog posts to refer back to if I experience any issues.

Feedback:

Could make a couple physics simulations in Houdini early on to see the scope of what the project might entail for the whole semester. and then follow up with experimenting with a few live action scenes using blender. This way I can explore both options and come to an ultimate decision to focus on. Having a portfolio will be best suited to both of these ideas, as it allows me to focus on my end product rather than worrying about organising an exhibition.