Houdini Hacks – 3D Dynamics for Absolute Beginners

This course is designed to teach beginners the basics of using Houdini for creating procedural animation, specifically a particle system. The course includes an introduction to the Houdini interface, 3D dynamics, and attributes.

Through a step-by-step process, students will learn how to create their own unique particle system from scratch, including techniques such as curve generation, pscale attribute, sweep node, and color from groups. The course also covers camera animation, exporting a flipbook, materials and rendering, compositing inside Houdini, and bonus tweaks.

This class is suitable for beginners with no prior 3D experience required, and is based on a project that was originally designed to inspire the instructor’s younger sister to explore Houdini’s proceduralism without overwhelming her.