2009 Apprentice Challenge

Add VFX to our live-action footage, and you could win Houdini Master and PFTrack, worth $13,495 in total


For 3D artists, bringing together the virtual and the real can be a rewarding experience. So for the 2009 Apprentice Challenge, we’ve teamed up with leading developers Side Effects Software and The Pixel Farm to create the ultimate VFX challenge.

We’re asking you to add your own visual effects to one of two ready-tracked live-action shots, using any version of Houdini, then upload the results to YouTube, where the results can be seen by your peers.

If you don’t have access to a full seat of Houdini Master, don’t despair: in order to enter the competition, you can use Houdini Apprentice, available for free from www.sidefx.com.

This educational edition of the software includes virtually all of Houdini Master’s features, but adds discreet watermarks to rendered output. Renders are limited to 720x576 pixels in size: large enough to create work at the web resolution required here.

Alternatively, for $99, you could purchase Houdini Apprentice HD, which increases the render size to HD quality and removes the render watermark. This version is limited to use for personal projects, such as this competition.

For the contest, there are two sequences to choose from. The first is a street shot of a typical office building, while the second is a shot of a young man running down an alley. It’s up to you to enhance the scenes with your own visual effects: a swarm of killer bees, an alien invasion, or perhaps a meteor shower.

You can see an example of the kind of thing we're looking for at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JA6t9uA72Q. Let your imagination run riot!

Matching digital elements to live-action footage requires accurate camera-tracking data, so both shots have been pre-tracked for you using PFTrack. Please note that it is not necessary to own a copy of the software in order to enter the contest.

HOW TO ENTER
First, click on the link at the foot of this page to read Future Publishing’s standard contest terms and conditions. Please also note that the following specific terms and conditions apply:

1. This Competition is open to all worldwide residents of 16 years and over, except employees of Future Publishing Limited or any of its group of companies, Side Effects Software Inc, or The Pixel Farm; and

2. By entering this Competition you grant Future Publishing Limited and its licensees (including the Competition sponsors: Side Effects Software Inc and The Pixel Farm) permission to republish your Competition entry; and

3. By entering this Competition, you acknowledge that Future Publishing Limited (including its employees, agents and subcontractors) is not responsible in any way for supplying the prizes to the winners of this Competition and your only recourse in respect of the prizes is against the Competition sponsor(s)

Once you have read and agreed to these terms, fill in your contact details below and press the Submit button. You will receive an email containing instructions for downloading the live-action plates and a Houdini file with a tracked camera set up and ready to go.

Next, in Houdini Apprentice or Houdini Apprentice HD, add either a character or a visual effect to one of the live action sequences. Please note:

(a) Models can be imported from other packages but the final animation and rendering must be completed in Houdini.

(b) You can use either all or only part of the supplied image sequences in your final entry. If you need to trim the shot to support your idea, this is fine.

(c) Voices and other sound effects can be added to support your shot. This is not required but may help make your entry more appealing.

(d) Entries which contain obscene content and/or copyright infringements will be disqualified.

Now save out a movie file, upload it to the 2009 Apprentice Challenge YouTube group then email the YouTube URL to 3dw.competition@futurenet.co.uk to confirm your entry, including the words '2009 Apprentice Challenge' in the Subject line of your email.

Entries will be reviewed by Side Effects Software before being added to the group.

Entries must be posted before midnight (GMT) on 1 May 2009 to be eligible.

Entries will remain posted on YouTube for one month after the deadline then judging will commence. Since the popularity of your entry will be one of the criteria for picking a winner, this month will provide time for people to discover and react to your video.

Winners will be asked to provide Houdini files to verify its use for the contest.

Each winner will receive full commercial licences of Houdini Master, sold for $7,995, and PFTrack, sold for $5,500.

This competition is now closed.