Checklist
- ☐
.hipnc
- ☐
.jpg beauty shot (1920 × 1080)
- ☐
.mp4 — 5–10 seconds, 1920 × 1080, H.264
- ☐
.pdf technical breakdown (or link to breakdown website)
- ☐ Blog — progress presented in dailies format (mandatory, 10% of grade)
Goals
To explore techniques discussed during the quarter and produce a well-rounded
portfolio piece. This project requires a blog documenting your
progress, which counts for 10% of the total 35% project grade.
Requirements
The specifications are purposefully broad to allow you to explore Houdini in the
manner you are most interested in.
- Shot length: 5–10 seconds (longer shots require pre-approval).
- Resolution: 1920 × 1080 pixels (or the maximum size reasonable
to produce if rendering toward the end of the quarter).
- Present progress in dailies / blog format the class before the
due date — this is mandatory and counts toward your final grade.
- Your project must include at least one of the following:
pyro, fluid, or crowds.
- You will produce a visual technical breakdown for the shot.
- Integration with a background plate is optional but encouraged only if you have
those skills.
These are the minimum requirements. Optional choice
is pending professor approval.
Considerations
Use your time management skills wisely. Examples of projects will be discussed in
class.
You are not required to work in groups, but this is an option if you have a plan —
group work must be pre-approved.
Submission Guidelines
Submit a directory named:
S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title/
S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title/
├── S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.hipnc
├── S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.pdf (or link to breakdown website)
├── S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.jpg
└── S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.mp4
This directory must contain:
- S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.hipnc
- S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.pdf
— technical breakdown, or a link to a website where the breakdown exists.
References must be included.
- S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.jpg
— beauty shot, high resolution 1920 × 1080.
Note: always render to EXR;
convert to JPG/PNG using mplay, Photoshop, or IrfanView.
- S26_V428_P_LastnameFirstname_Title.mp4
— approximately 5–10 seconds of animation, high-quality H.264 compression,
1920 × 1080 pixels. Any file > 1 GB will not be accepted. Use Handbrake
(free, Windows) with H264x codec.
No spaces in filenames! Strict adherence to these naming
conventions is required and is reflected in the grading.
Failure to comply with naming conventions will also affect your professionalism grade.
Grading
Producing a well-rounded portfolio piece is important. The project will be judged
on completion, complexity, organization
and clarity, proposal, and presentation.
A well-executed simpler project is preferred over an incomplete complex one.
See Rubric.
What Professor Fowler is looking for:
- Does your shot include pyro, fluid, or crowds as required?
- Have you presented consistent progress through the blog/dailies?
- Is the technical breakdown clear and well-referenced?
- Is the shot complete and polished within the allotted time?
Pushing further — what moves a grade into the "A" range:
- Evidence of exploration well beyond what was covered in class.
- Consistently presenting progress during dailies.
- Exceptional complexity of effects.
- Exceptional technical breakdown.
- Exceptional look development (lighting, texturing, and rendering).
- Integration with a photographic background plate.