Master Rigging: APEX in Houdini
Not a “Maya Person”? Curios about APEX, but never had an interesting project to motivate you?
Like transforming robots? Well, look no further!In this Intermediate / Advanced course on Rigging a Robot with Houdini’s APEX, you’ll have the opportunity to explore this efficient, procedural rigging framework. ILM artist Mizuki Yamada will take you through the entire process, from a quick overview of APEX with simple examples, to rigging a complex transforming robot asset and animating your creation…all inside Houdini. As a bonus, Mizuki also shares his workflows for terrain creation, material design in Substance Painter (with provided textures), lighting/rendering in Solaris and Karma, compositing in Nuke, and more tips and tricks along the way.

*Note: Maya is used briefly to create the initial locators for the rig. However, a Houdini workflow is also included.

While we do cover a basic APEX workflow in this workshop, the primary focus is on rigging robotic characters. As such, this is NOT an introductory course. Human characters and skin deformation are not covered. It is also advised that you have some prior knowledge of both VEX and VOPs in order to progress smoothly in this Intermediate / Advanced level course.
But wait, there’s more!
Our teaching approach is hands-on & project-based.
We cover the theory and put it into practice so you can learn how to think like an artist.
Learn the Basics of robot rigging theory in houdini with simple examples.
Bring your creation to life using APEX in houdini!
Model a terrain asset in houdini to add visual depth to your scene (complete with scattered trees).
Efficiently transform complex geometry from one form to another.
Learn how to render your robot using Solaris and Karma in houdini.
get inspired & create

During this 7 Week intensive Workshop, Mizuki will guide you through the process of rigging a robotic character in APEX.

We will start with a basic example to get everyone comfortable with general rigging terminology and APEX in Houdini. Next we optimize our geometry for rigging. From there we move deeper into APEX and create the necessary components for a proper rig.

Then things get serious, as we dive deeper into APEX and begin to rig our assets (robot, jet, sword). Once the rigs are complete, the animation process begins! We then complement our beautiful animations with environment creation, lookdev, lighting, rendering, and compositing. 

After completing this workshop, you should be armed with the knowledge and confidence to tackle any robotic rigging project that comes your way. Are you up for the challenge?Enroll now and let’s transform those ideas into reality!