Houdini FX Supervisor Demo Reel 2024

[@Daisy-ex1oq]

Amazing work!👏👏👏

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks a lot!

[@TanmaySakhale-official]

m doing fx work from past 1 year ....seeing this kind of work stimulate my nerves to work more hard at fx... it would be honour to work with you someday. Awesome work man.

[@AhmadGhourab]

You can do it! Just pick some footage out there of a real world effect, say a real building demolition, then work away trying to match it. It's always best to have a real reference, and show that you were able to make a CGI version that closely matches it, than to do something standalone. That way you are forced to learn how to control your simulations and see what makes them look real (size, speed, scale of noise etc...)

[@bUildYT]

@@AhmadGhourab just started the gnomon workshop, there are a few good ones, also for axiom volumes, any other important resources ud recomend to reach pro lvl ? (thx so much for the video, uve no idea how motivating it is to see the coolest movie szenes r done by people using the very program im learning rn, or maybe u do haha)

[@호랑디]

mind blowing...... thanks for inspriation

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you so much!

[@AitorEcheveste]

This music makes everything so epic! amazing FX work

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you Aitor! :)

[@edelob]

Wow! Excellent job! Loved the stranger things 4 especially!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks a bunch. The Stranger Things parts were actually some of my favourite to work on too! :)

[@WorldCitizenForPeace]

So talented !

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank youuuu!

[@pixerto3danimation478]

superb Ahmad! a kick ass reel and a kick ass guy!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks man, really appreciate it!

[@FxArtistDeva]

Really Impressed! and Inspired 🙂

[@ameralhomsi8967]

OMG, man! Your demo reel left me completely stunned. I think that’s the most enjoyable FX reel I’ve ever seen! Also, when I saw that you’re Palestinian, it made me very happy and proud. I wish you all the best in your career and your life! Free Palestine ❤

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you Habibi! Really appreciate it, especially the last bit, hope to live to see the day Filisteen is free!

[@Maksim-ji9tt]

Очень крутые работы, наверное долго к этому шёл)

[@AhmadGhourab]

Спасибо! 16 лет, не считая школы. Но, честно говоря, большую часть того, что я делаю, я узнал за первые 5-7 лет :)

[@Mikus_Ficus]

Wow! Speechless! Great work Ahmad!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks @Mikus_Ficus, appreciate it :)

[@gratefulpixels928]

First of all its one my Fav Songs , And Second this Reel is Like.... Am Out Of Words ❤❤❤. Please guide us sir , Am Also Learning FX and Comp. Additionally you worked on Movies which Exactly Inspired Me ❤❤❤ . Thanks from the Bottom of my Heart

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you for the comment, really appreciate it! :)

[@TUYGVISUALCREATIVES]

oh man, what a joy for the eye

[@kegsfx8603]

Stunning reel! Amazing shots, captivating flow and a nice touch on the "contribution labels " ;)

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you! :)

[@kevinramirez3559]

Reel´s God ahha , i loved your job

[@DaggSamet]

Congraglulations. Great video sir!!!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you!

[@jontysb]

This has to be the best Houdini Fx demo reel I've ever seen! The level of detail and mastery in each shot is beyond inspiring. Respect++. Can you also suggest me resources to learn Houdini Fx? Like some courses or workshops or anything that helped you achieve this level. Thanks :)

[@AhmadGhourab]

Honestly there are no courses or workshops. Just time and experience. The best way to get there is to get a job at a bigger studio working on this sort of work and then pick up peoples setups for more complex shots and study them or use them! That’s how I learned :)

[@viktor_tsou]

good work!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks!

[@toho_99]

So it was you ! sick work man

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks a bunch!

[@jamit63]

amazing work. also i love the "call-out" idea

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you, this means a lot. The demoreel ended up taking 3 months because I kept trying different solutions, then canning them before settling on this. Still would try some more ideas in hindsight!

[@jamit63]

​@@AhmadGhourab It used to be a bit tedious having to pause and check the bottom of the screen to understand the role, but this callout approach is much clearer. Awesome idea . i would use in mine

[@AhmadGhourab]

Would love to see the results when you do! Let me know if you ever do do that :)

[@PrinceBisht-xy6vg]

You're ultimate menace to the fx industry.Bow to your artistic side

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks man!

[@MrStarsora]

Looking great Ahmad :) He has talents with a great personality 😊

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks a ton, you're too kind!

[@jisinthomas4574]

Insane stuff🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you!

[@UgandarTeja]

Superr work 😲👏👏👏👌

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank youuuu :)

[@Mindworks009]

Insane work

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks you!!

[@asura007_]

Amazing mannn 🔥🔥

[@kastinante6883]

You are as amazing as your works🔥🔥🔥

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you so much 😀

[@vrajthakkar3662]

Amazing stuff

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you! :)

[@ZAIDARTSS]

It's inspiring to see amazing Arab artists shine huge respect man

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks, really appreciate it!

[@IliaSancher]

Such an impressive work!!! I have a question. Can these kinds of shots like this massive city destruction ( 0:38 ) be created in a normal pc? for example using i7 or i9? I want to know the pc requirement for these works And by the way brother, I am really sorry about your country... It must be so hard seeing all these. But we are Muslims and we know what we should do

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you so much Ilia! The answer is a mixed bag. In theory, yes, it’s possible. In reality, it would require a level of optimization, time and know how that would be impractical. The simplest way would be to simulate each aspect separately one at a time, then use delayed loads to render sets of elements with deeps and combine them all in comp. But that’s a LOT of simulations that would take forever for one artist. The example you’re referring to had around 10 FX artists and 2 months of work, and countless render-farm time.

[@teukuaulia4270]

superb showreel!! im planning to learn houdini, is 16gb RAM enough for creating beginner level showreel?

[@AhmadGhourab]

Heya! It’s a good start. But it really depends on then scale of the elements you’re attempting to simulate. Most of my work in film before 2013 was done with 16GB of ram, personally I feel like 32-64 GB is a better range.

[@AhmadGhourab]

Oh and thank you!!

[@ArielZestyandSpicy]

LOVED IT!!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you Ariel!!

[@ITSOVER-o4k]

Hey Ahmad , right now i am studying advfx plus at Maac India, and currently learning Houdini , i want to be vfx supervisor. Can you please share some tips or any hints that will help me in future ?

[@eggyrepublic]

why do this not have a million views?

[@AhmadGhourab]

haha, right?:p Thank You @eggyrepublic!

[@amstudio4148]

this is really super amazing mr ahmed ❤❤❤❤, I hope someday to be an amazing FX Artist like you. If you have a short time could you please just recommend or guide me to some courses that I should take to start my career in order to in work in film/TV industry like rebelway courses for Houdini and Nuke! , my best wishes Ahmed Mahmoud

[@AhmadGhourab]

Hi Ahmed. Thank you so much! I honestly don't know much about the courses out there, it's been so long since I've done any if I'm being honest. I do hear good stuff about Rebel Way. For courses, the students we hire from lostboys-studios.com/ generally tend to be the best. Additionally, if you want to go down the technical route like me (I tend to code tools, build setups, etc...) then the MSc program at Bournemouth University, www.bournemouth.ac.uk/study/courses/msc-computer-animation-visual-effects, was great for helping me launch my career!

[@M_Artist1574]

I am junior Fx artist in a studio doing Fx on 3ds max... we are shifting into Houdini. I am very confused where to start from. Can you please tell me the right path to start form....

[@AhmadGhourab]

Hey there! Personally I would start simple. I’d pick one FX field (say smoke simulations) pick one reference (for example, a youtube video of a chimney smoke) and match it extremely closely. I wouldn’t leave it until it’s dynamics are almost indistinguishable from the reference, even if it takes months. The logic behind this is that you train your eye to see physicality of real world elements (how smoke moves, the different scales of noise, the speed, how it reacts to forces etc), and you learn how to manipulate simulation tools to achieve that physicality.

[@carlosfxartist]

cool stuff mate!

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks Carlos!!

[@1ne7evN]

amazing work brother .where should i start? what are the prerequirments to make something like this ?

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you! I actually commented on another user's (MisterWombo) who had a similar question. Let me tag you there and let me know if you have any questions!

[@RIPxBlackHawk]

After this thumbnail this has to be great

[@AhmadGhourab]

Hah, if only you knew how much deliberation went into that darn thumbnail lol. Thank you!

[@pollyleung7549]

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@wewantmoreparty]

🤘

[@ayubkhonsodikov4738]

you dont do workshops for students?

[@AhmadGhourab]

Unfortunately not at the moment. But it was something on my radar to eventually do!

[@RahulDGRT]

I have been Influenced 😮

[@AhmadGhourab]

Happy to hear it :)

[@johnchae37]

eyegasm

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thank you!

[@davilima4112]

wow

[@AhmadGhourab]

Thanks :)

[@MarcosArtTV]

انت مصري ؟ نفسي الاقي حد مصري شغال علي هوديني

[@AhmadGhourab]

لا، أنا فلسطيني. لكن هناك الكثير من العرب والمصريين يعملون في هذه الصناعة :)

[@MisterWombo]

Hi sir! i have a question! And i really wanna know ur opinion as 16-year VFX veteran that u are. Would u recommend focusing on just one or 2 softwares to improve in VFX? Is an smart move go beyond that ammount? What about 3 or 5? As a begginer this doubt crossed my mind and i have no one who ask to. Thank u very much btw! and amazing video! 🫡

[@AhmadGhourab]

Hello! Thank you for the kind words :) So it depends, when you say VFX, do you mean FX like what I do, or do you mean some other field like lighting, animation and so on? If you mean FX then I would make three arguments. The first is, you only really need to learn Houdini. Don’t overstretch yourself trying to learn everything. The second is, it’s not about the software, its about the art! A great VFX artist isn’t the person who knows the software the best, it’s the person who can make the most physically accurate effects in the shortest time. The third is focus. Focus on one discipline, like volumetrics (smoke/fire), destruction, or fluid simulations. This will allow you to spend a lot more time learning all the associated tools, watch reference footage to understand their physicality, then land a job. After that you can diversify. But the most important thing is, get reallllly good at one thing so you can get your foot in the door. A bonus 4th point is, please avoid any abstract work unless you want to go into something like projection mapping. That sort of work can look cool, but ultimately it’s really difficult to hire people who do abstract cause most the work in VFX is realism based!

[@MisterWombo]

@@AhmadGhourab Woah! I didn´t expect such a good and elavorated answer! You not only answered my question but even more! So thank you very much! =) With your first argument u already hit my doubt. As a begginer i tend to stretch myself pretty hard trying to learn everything just by the sake of learning. Im actually learning Houdini but plus to that i added some more softwares.. (Nuke, Blender, Unreal Engine and Davinci Resolve) And I realized that the learning curve is pretty slow that way. So maybe I need a change of strategy. Lucky me that you gave me a good "map" to follow with your answer! So once again sir, thank you very much! 🫡

[@TanmaySakhale-official]

@@AhmadGhourab thanks for your insightful advice.

[@AhmadGhourab]

My pleasure! Nuke would actually be useful, but up to a point. A good FX artist generally creates renders with the mindset of using AOVs in Nuke to make them look great. For example, with fire I generally don't just render the fire and call it a day. I render AOVs (temperature passes, depth, etc) and then in Nuke I use color corrects to make the fire look hotter, bring out more detail, integrate it into the shot better etc... But first I have to have a good sim and good renders! So definitely do that first then move to Nuke to see how you can get the most out of it. That way you'll only learn what you need to learn about Nuke!

[@AhmadGhourab]

@1ne7evN

[@alansaver5779]

🤩

[@ITSOVER-o4k]

Hey Ahmad , right now i am studying advfx plus at Maac India, and currently learning Houdini , i want to be vfx supervisor. Can you please share some tips or any hints that will help me in future ?

[@AhmadGhourab]

Hey there! Difficult question. I was an FX Supervisor (now retired from Film) not VFX supervisor. There aren’t really any specific rules. Every VFX supervisor is different, as are their skill sets, the projects they work on, and the expectations they’re held to. My personal view is that the best VFX supervisors are the ones who understand the entire VFX pipeline (enough to be able to work effectively with all teams), have a clear vision of what the client wants (no egos, those are the worst ones, VFX supervisors are not art directors, they’re middle men), and have great leadership skills (motivate their team, lead by example, are open to feedback, alternative solutions). But, one step at a time, VFX supervisor position will take you atleast a decade to get to, good followers make good leaders, so I would recommend first being amongst the best at your initial positions :)

[@ajith_view9964]

wow