tools

Lookdev rig for Houdini /  by Xuan Prada

Hello patrons,

In this video I show you how to create a production ready lookdev rig for Houdini, or what I like to call, a single click render solution for your lookdevs.

It is in a way similar to the one we did for Katana a while ago, but using all the power and flexibility of Houdini's HDA system.

Talking about HDA's, I will be introducing the new features for HDA's that come with Houdini 18.5.633 that I think are really nice, specially for smaller studios that don't have enough resources to build a pipeline around HDA's.

By the end of this video you should be able to build your own lookdev tool and adapt it to the needs of your projects.

We'll be working with the latest versions of Houdini, Arnold and ACES.

As usually, the video starts with some slides where I try to explain why building a lookdev rig is a must before you do any work on your project, don't skip it, I know it is boring but very much needed. Downloadable material will be attached in the next post.

Thank you very much for your support!

Head over to my Patreon feed.

Xuan.

byWord /  by Xuan Prada

At the beginning of the days I used my iPad just for fun but now I use it in a professional way for a lot of different tasks.

This time I’d like to talk to you about one of the applications that I most use on my iPad every single day.

I’m talking about byWord.
It’s a simple text editing software for Mac, iPad and iPhone. Nothing fancy here you might think, and you’re probably true, but the good thing about byWord is that you don’t need to think about anything but writing.
byWord is simple, clear, tidy and will keep you focus on writing, that’s it.

I use it for all writing related stuff, from blogging to outline courses. From planning shootings to write emails. You won’t be distracted by things like type fonts, colors or menu tools.

byWord has nice features like syncing with Dropbox or iCloud, so you can keep all your content in different devices or in the cloud.

Another nice feature is the dark theme which turns your screen to black and your text to white.
This is very useful for dailies sessions, you can write down feedback easily from your vfx supe under dark light conditions in the daily room.
I usually write a few words and then on my desk I just expand all this key words to complete a text with the whole feedback given and a small strategy to address it.

If you are involved in writing related tasks go to http://www.bywordapp.com and give it a try.

Mari 2 Maya script /  by Xuan Prada

I was lucky enough to find this simple but effective script to import your Mari textures in to Maya in a really quick way.
It is a Python script created by Kushal Goenka.

Follow these instructions to install the script.

# Mari2Maya – PyMEL Script
# Written by Kushal Goenka ( Animation Maniac )
# kushalgoenka@gmail.com
# http://AnimationManiac.deviantART.com

# Description:
# This Script Automates the Process of Setting up given MARI Texture Patches
# into one Single Layered Texture in Maya.

# Setup:
# Copy Script to ‘\maya\2012-x64\scripts’ folder. ’2012-x64′ might by different.
# Source the Script. ( Script Editor > File > Source Script… )
# Call the Python Command: ‘Mari2Maya()’ (or add to Shelf)

# Requirements:
# Export textures from MARI with ‘$UDIM.extension’ at the end.
# For Example: $ENTITY_$CHANNEL_$UDIM.tif >> Castle07_color_1003.tif

# Instructions:
# 1. Drag Texture Files into Hypershade.
# 2. Drag Select all Imported Texture File Nodes in the Hypershade Work Area.
# 3. Run the Script. via ‘Mari2Maya()’ Let the Magic happen.

Download.