VEX custom node I created to simulate pseudo-physics for shattering a glass mesh
Full view of the shattered glass animation and the chamber mesh, with UVs transferred to the color attribute
Custom VEX code that generates a target-attraction spiral force, randomly dispersing the initial point positions toward the target geometry
Custom HLSL code for generating a 2D sprite that simulates metaballs behavior
Niagara geometry cache renderer used to play the Alembic shattered wall animation
Niagara Fluid plugins used to simulate liquid particles, combined with the Houdini Niagara cache plugin to export a position-to-target particle animation
Personal project exploring advanced VFX workflows and custom tool creation.
In Houdini, I developed a pseudo-physics simulation using VEX to procedurally shatter a glass mesh. The result was exported as an Alembic cache and integrated into Unreal Engine via Niagara’s Geometry Cache renderer.
In addition, I wrote a custom VEX script to generate a position-to-target animation, where particles scattered across a disc mesh transition toward a deforming target animation. This setup was exported using the Niagara Point Cache node, capturing only the particle position, orientation, id and velocity data. Inside Niagara, I transformed this cached animation into a fluid particle simulation to recreate a stylized metaballs effect using Niagara fluids.
To enhance control over the appearance of the fluid—particularly the meatballs blobs visible while the liquid is still contained in the chamber glass—I created a custom HLSL node. This shader generates a 2D sprite-based meatball effect with adjustable parameters for blob count, size, speed, and more. This allowed me to give the animation a more hand-crafted, stylized look while retaining full creative control over its behavior.
You can find some custom HLSL material nodes I used for this effect in my Gumroad shop (UV tile and offset, rotation and skew), along with my full SoulbeamFX energy beam course — a complete guide to creating a cinematic beam effect from scratch in Unreal Engine --> https://gloompixstudio.gumroad.com/