In honor of the teaser trailer for Dune: Part Three releasing this week I decided it was time to finish recreating one of my favorite shots from Dune: Part Two.
This establishing shot of the Harkonnen Arena is one of my favorite shots in the whole trilogy (so far) and it was lot of fun to rebuild in Houdini. Also because it’s all in Houdini, I decided to extend on the arena setup a bit and allow multiple stadium silhouettes, this let me change the input shape for the network that created the stadium and everything else after that was done procedurally! I’m a huge fan of the Hexagon shaped arena but think the triangle used for the original film itself was the best overall.
And no arena would be complete without a champion fighting, so I had to add Crag and get him in a few of the renders!
This whole project was created 100% in @sidefxhoudini Houdini, and rendered in Karma + Solaris. Some light color grading (mostly desaturating) was done in COPS and some lens distortion added through a Karma Lens Material.
Let me know which stadium you like best! Also feel free to DM me for the project files, I’ll be releasing these on my YouTube once I get a breakdown completed
Houdini has a reputation for being hard to learn (likely the hardest 3D program to get started with).
But it doesn't have to be, and it doesn't have to be hard to use.
The truth is that most artists are learning it backwards.
They spend weeks trying to memorize nodes - what every parameter does, what every button means - before they've even understood the most fundamental parts of Houdini.
The real secret?
Houdini isn't about nodes.
It's about data.
Once you understand what data is flowing through your network, you don't need to memorize anything.
You just pick the node that does what you need.
That single shift - from thinking in terms of nodes to thinking in terms of data - is the SINGLE biggest thing that changed how fast I learned and made progress in Houdini.
That shift was so helpful that I spent 15 months building a full beginner course around it.
If you want to learn Houdini the better way, then comment "houdini" and I'll send you my full beginner course for free.
Cheers,
Will
I’m trying to make 3D easier.
Not just easier to learn.
But also
Easier to plan.
Easier to hire for.
Easier to manage.
Easier to create.
Easier to finish.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be building and sharing more info around The Studio Flow™, The Studio Method™, and The Studio Squad™.
The goal is simple:
Help artists create better 3D work, help studios hire better 3D talent, and help teams complete more ambitious 3D projects with less chaos.
If you’re a 3D artist, studio, agency, or creative team trying to make better 3D work…
Follow along.
I’ve been busy working behind the scenes for years. But stopped posting online.
That’s now a BIG PROBLEM.
These past few years I have been “collecting infinity stones”
I’ve been leveling up my skills and learning new things, but funny enough the last thing I ended up learning was probably the most important of them all.
How to actually run a business.
So now I’m fixing that.
I haven’t been posting, because I’ve been busy building.
And it used to be that the posting about what I was building, took longer than building the thing itself.
So, I’m making a system to fix that.
My goals are pretty wild, almost delusional at this point.
So to achieve them, there’s a lot of work I need to do.
* A lot of projects to complete
* A lot of posts to make
* A lot of ideas to share
* A lot of momentum I need to build
And a lot of attention I need.
Not attention in a bad way, but attention in a way that leads more eyes to what I have to offer.
So to do that I need more content.
And the best way to do that is to make it easier to create more content.
I need to build systems to reduce friction.
(sounds sexy I know)
But it’s the single most important thing I can work on now.
This post you’re reading now, was made with the goal of making future posts easier.
Idea → Draft → Edit → Design → Post to IG
I used to spend a whole day on this process.
But in the future I’ll spend less time (hopefully)
More output + the same amount of input = more leverage.
And that means faster progress towards my goals.
And that also means, I’ll be able to share more of that progress with you.
More of the mistakes I make
More of the systems I build
More of what works and what doesn’t.
I’m building,
* A 3D studio
* A game studio
* A 3d education program
* A better way to run a business online
If that sounds interesting to you, then follow me for more.
And if you want that free Houdini course I mentioned, just comment “houdini” and I’ll send it to you!
Cheers,
Will
I just spent a week organizing and deleting 26TB of old 3D files.
Not because I was bored.
Because next Tuesday, I’m starting one of the biggest Houdini projects I’ve ever created.
After almost 8 years freelancing in 3D, I had nearly 40TB of files spread across a dozen hard drives.
Old client projects.
Old renders.
Unused caches.
Half-finished ideas.
Backups of backups.
Experiments I forgot existed.
And for almost two years, I kept telling myself:
“I’ll organize it later.”
But later turned into another project.
Then another drive.
Then another one.
And eventually, the clutter just became normal.
But with Level 7 starting next week inside LEVEL UP: Houdini, I wanted a clean slate.
This project is going to be different.
The goal is simple:
Create a crazy cool Houdini project.
And document the entire workflow from initial idea to final pixels.
Planning.
Pipelines.
Environments.
Simulations.
Shot building.
Problem solving.
Final renders.
All of it.
So before starting, I finally cleaned everything up.
I backed up 14TB of the files I needed to keep.
Then I deleted the rest.
26TB gone.
And honestly, the more I deleted, the clearer I felt.
Not just about the drives.
But about the project.
The hard drives are clean and ready to go.
The ideas are rolling in.
And the project is kicking off soon.
Follow if you want to see the progress.
And comment “houdini” if you want to start learning Houdini, and I’ll send you my FREE beginner course.
⚠️IMPORTANT ⚠️
If you’re (or want to be) a …
- 3d artist
- VFX artist
- 3d generalist
- modeler
- compositor
- fx Artist
- look-dev / asset Artist
- 3d director
- or something similar
AND you have interest in landing more freelance work, making more per freelance project, landing your first freelance job, or you’re a freelance pro looking to scale up your business to run like a full studio and make more $$$ 🤑
Then I’m working on something that I think you’ll be interested in.
comment “potato” below and I’ll send you the first step
⬇️
@instagram hopefully this gets in front of the right people 🫡
Also the song has nothing to do with this post, it’s just a cool vibe and I like the track! @surfacesmusic keep up the great work 🔥
⚠️IMPORTANT ⚠️
If this is you and you want to reach out to me then don’t leave a comment, just reach out directly by DMs, that way I can get back to you and ask more specifics on exactly what you’re looking for.
If you’re ever (or plan to be) on the lookout for 3D artists in the next 3 months then you’ll want to get in touch.
And if you want to leave a comment just for the algorithm to better share this post then go ahead and do that!
@instagram hopefully this gets in front of the right people 🫡
Also the song has nothing to do with this post, it’s just a cool vibe and I like the track! @surfacesmusic keep up the great work 🔥
The Ultimate Guide to Making A Carousel.
First, never choose one clear idea.
Make it about personal branding, storytelling, authenticity, mindset, lead gen, your new hobby, and something you saw on Reddit and you thought was cool.
The goal is confusion - this creates a HOOK.
Ideally, nobody knows what the post is about, including you. This creates clarity.
Next, make the first slide incredibly weak.
Avoid tension. Avoid clarity. Avoid any reason to keep reading.
Try:
“A few thoughts…”
“Some things I’ve been learning…”
or the timeless classic:
“The Ultimate Guide”
Perfect. Now it sounds long and important before they even swipe.
Then put way too much on every slide.
One point per slide is for amateurs.
“Those are rookie numbers… you gotta pump those numbers up”
You want paragraphs.
Bullet points.
Tiny text.
A quote.
A side note.
Maybe a diagram no one asked for.
The reader should feel like they accidentally opened a rental agreement.
Do not structure the carousel, either.
Let slide 2 explain something slide 6 needed.
Let slide 5 introduce a random framework.
Let slide 7 repeat slide 3, but longer.
This hooks retention because they had to PUT IN WORK to really get the value.
The more they work for it,the more clarity they experience.
A good carousel should feel like being lost in a parking garage.
Now the design.
Use at least 4 fonts.
Add beige. Then a second beige. Then a third beige that is somehow different.
Throw in grain, fake tape, highlighter, shadows, arrows, stickers, and one tiny headline gasping for air.
Remember: if the idea is weak, decoration must become the strategy.
For the writing, sound as inhuman as possible.
Open with:
“In today’s fast-paced world…”
or
“One thing I’ve come to realize is…”
Take one simple point and stretch it across 6 sentences.
If a line feels clear, ruin it with extra nuance.
You are not trying to communicate.
You are trying to sound important.
And finally, the CTA:
Ask for everything.
“Save, share, comment, follow, DM me, tag a friend, send this to your team, and check the link in bio.”
Ultimately the more work you ask the reader to do, the more opportunities you will have for conversion.
