The VFX School – TableTop Food Simulation – Vol 01

WEEK 01 – COFFEE BEANS FLYING THROUGH THE AIR SETUP
We start our journey with a bang!
For our first project, we will create an RBD setup (Rigid Body Dynamics) in which we will make coffee beans fly through the air, producing subtle collisions between them to produce an elegant and eye-catching shot.
This week, you will learn how to set up a project, generate instances, randomize attributes, add speeds, control collisions, and create lights and materials. We will also teach you post-production tricks that save simulation time, and we will finish the project by rendering the final product.

WEEK 2 – BLUEBERRIES & CHOCOLATE CHIPS DROPPING ON A BED OF YOUGURT SETUP
The road becomes more exciting! Are you eager to know what our second project will be?
During the second week of the course, we will drop blueberries and chocolate chips on a bed of yogurt.
For this project, we will not perform simulations, but take advantage of the procedural workflow to create a deformation setup based on speed. This is fast, efficient, and produces a result of extremely high visual quality.
We will also create shaders for the different elements and will finish with a high-quality render.

WEEK 3 – MILK CHOCOLATE, COCONUT & CARAMEL POURING ON AN ICE CREAM BAR SETUP
Now, it’s time to simulate!
This week, we will be pouring milk chocolate, coconut cream and caramel on an ice cream bar. To achieve this, we will teach you how to use the Houdini’s Flip Solver.
We will create emitters, work on the different viscosities of each liquid, build shaders, and finish the week with another professional-quality render.

WEEK 4 – SPLASH USING A STREAM OF MILK & STRAWBERRY SETUP
And the simulation work continues!
In the penultimate week of the course, we will be developing one of the most colorful and striking shots possible in food simulations.
We will create a splash using a stream of milk and a strawberry. We will work with various attributes and collisions until we achieve the perfect shape. We will put great emphasis on Viscosity and Surface Tension to prevent the liquid from breaking and losing its shape.
As in the previous weeks, the work will include shading and rendering all the elements.

WEEK 5 – CROWN SPLASHES SETUP
Finally, we arrive at our last project!
In the last week of the course, we will create crown splashes, a highly sought-after FX in the industry. For this scene, we will launch about ten strawberries using the new Rigid Bodies workflow, and we will work in detail with the Surface Tension in Houdini until we achieve the perfect shape and motion.
To finish, we will create the materials and render our final product into a stunning scene.