Tutorial: Art Directing Explosions using Axiom in Houdini
The Gnomon Workshop has released Art Directing Explosions using Axiom in Houdini, a guide to professional VFX workflows, recorded by Wētā FX’s Ganesh Lakshmigandan.
The workshop provides over seven hours of video training in Houdini and Axiom, Theory Accelerated’s GPU-accelerated sparse volumetric fluid solver for Houdini.
Master current professional VFX techniques for creating art-directiable simulations
In the workshop, Lakshmigandan reveals how to create a professional-quality explosion shot, covering the process from start to finish.
He begins by analyzing reference footage, then uses the Axiom solver (the tutorial requires version 3.1 or higher) to create the smoke and fire simulation.
Lakshmigandan uses Houdini’s Solaris look development toolset and Karma renderer to shade, light and render the shot, compositing the render passes in Nuke to complete the shot.
Topics covered include current professional SOP tricks for creating emitters, and splitting up simulations into art-directable elements.
As well as the training videos, viewers of the workshop can download Lakshmigandan’s project files. The background building is a commercial asset from CGTrader vendor Enterables.
About the artist
Ganesh Lakshmigandan is a Senior FX Techical Director at leading international VFX company Wētā FX. His movie credits include Avatar: The Way of Water, Dune: Part One and Dunkirk.
Pricing and availability
Art Directing Explosions using Axiom in Houdini is available via a subscription to The Gnomon Workshop, which provides access to over 300 tutorials.
Subscriptions cost $57/month or $519/year. Free trials are available.
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