VFX 350 / Fall 2026 / Fowler

Project 2 – Procedural Modeling: Complex Scene

Date Assigned:	Class 1 (out for reference) / Class 8 (start)
Reference Due:	Class 8
Date Due:	Class 13
Optional Redo:	Class 15

Checklist

Goals

To learn how to use and understand procedural approaches when creating objects and scenes. This assignment will focus on the student becoming familiar with Houdini and mastering the use of copy / foreach or instancing (repeated elements with variation). Be aware of the power of packed primitives.

The emphasis for Project 2 is on procedural variation in a complex scene — you should have visual variation whether you are using copy / for-each / instancing or other methods. The goal is to create a scene with complexity using procedural techniques.

Requirements

Examples of scenes could be: a forest with variation (L-systems not required), a field of corn, lily pads in a pond, groceries or toys on a store shelf, a city street with a variety of buildings, candy on a table, and so on.

Provide a sketch or reference image for your choice.
As with all your class work, you must use Houdini for all aspects of the project.
You must use procedural variation (copy family / for-each / instancing). There should be visible variation of some kind in the individual copies.
Animation is not required but is welcome if pre-approved; this is to be a still image.
Lighting and composition count.

These are the minimum requirements.

All aspects are to be completed in Houdini.
(Nuke for compositing, Substance for textures allowed.)

Considerations

The scene should be complex enough to serve as a good context for the goals of the assignment. A simple example where the proper technique is used would be better than a very complex example not properly presented.

Visual variation can be achieved by manipulating attributes such as pscale, orient, materials, textures and possibly having variations on the objects — usually 5 variations combined with attribute changes will eliminate the "Where's Waldo" effect.

You should allow time for this assignment to apply lighting, simple shaders, and rendering. Be aware that a complex scene can be built very quickly — make sure that you can render it, do test renders as you are building to avoid any surprises.

Use Karma.

You may be required to present and explain your work in class on or near the due date.

Submission Guidelines

The project will be submitted to your dropbox in a directory named:

F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title/

The directory must contain the following files:

F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.hipnc
F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.pdf – a breakdown of your project as you would describe it to a fellow Houdini user. It is very important to be able to explain your work. See the template in the class notes top table. Cite your sources.
F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.jpg (or .png — no TIFs): rendered in high resolution (1920 × 1080 minimum). Other aspect ratios accepted.
F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title_Compare.jpg
F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.mp4 (optional)

Expected Directory Structure:

F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title/
├── F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.hipnc
├── F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.pdf
├── F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.jpg
├── F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title_Compare.jpg
└── F26_V350_P2_LastnameFirstname_Title.mp4  (optional)

Additional Required Files

Reference image(s) should exist in your project proposal folder in Dailies and should be included in your compare image

In your .hipnc file, ensure that paths are relative to the $HIP global variable (e.g., $HIP/tex/filename.jpg) and not absolute paths.

Naming conventions constitute 5% of your grade. This is the naming convention that will be used for all projects. Failure to comply will also affect your professionalism grade.

Grading

Refer to the grading rubric posted on the class website or Blackboard.