In this course, you'll learn how to master procedural quadruped rigging in Houdini — from real anatomy to production-ready controls.
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Curious about what this Houdini course is all about? Click the video to watch a trailer and learn what you'll learn inside Rigging in Houdini.
SKILL LEVEL
INTERMEDIATE
SOFTWARE
HOUDINI 21
LOCATION
100% ONLINE
Bodgan Lazar
CFX Supervisor
Bogdan is a versatile Houdini artist with expertise in procedural modeling, character rigging, cloth and muscle systems, and more.



OUR STUDENT REEL. 100% CREATED IN OUR COURSES.
In This course you will Learn how to create anatomically-accurate quadruped rigs in Houdini — from real bone structures to fully modular, production-ready components. In this course, you’ll build a biologically-inspired horse rig using procedural workflows, simulate muscle behavior with rig logic (no simulations required), and explore Houdini tools to customize limbs, reverse foot setups, and more. You'll also dive into procedural skin binding, stress test your rig with real movement cycles, and validate deformation against real anatomy.
Quadruped Anatomy & KineFX Basics: Study horse skeletal structure for realistic articulation -Intro to Houdini rigging pipeline using KineFX -Create basic joint hierarchies -Understand the relationship between anatomy and rig design
Procedural Skeleton & Pseudo-Muscle System: Build a procedural skeleton driven by anatomical landmarks -Use VEX scripting and VOPs to place and control joints -Create a pseudo-muscle system using joint behavior (no muscle sim) -Start separating logic from deformation
Procedural Skinning & Deformation Logic: Capture skin weights procedurally using curve-based approaches -Refine bind capture with custom guides -Prototype deformation: simulate muscle-like movement via joints -Implement joint–muscle interaction inside KineFX VOPs
Intro to APEX & Houdini 21 AutoRig Tools: Learn APEX system architecture and philosophy -Explore default AutoRig components (limbs, spines, etc.) -Understand how APEX fits into procedural rigging workflows -Begin replacing manual steps with reusable building blocks
Custom APEX Rig Graphs & Components: -Dive into APEX rig graphs: create logic-driven components -Build custom modules: reverse foot, multi-bone blends, shoulder setups
Prototype rig behaviors using node-based APEX logic Compare APEX vs. KineFX VOP for component-based rigging
Final Rig Assembly & Animation Test -Unreal, Maya -Complete and organize the full rig system -Use the APEX Animation node to create a run cycle -Test rig fidelity with deformation and animation
Overlay animated skeleton with real reference to validate accuracy -Prepare the rig for integration into production workflows (Unreal, Maya, etc)
5,000+
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WHEN DOES IT START?
SPRING SESSION
MAY 8, 2026
SUMMER SESSION
AUG 7, 2026
FALL SESSION
NOV 6 , 2026
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We don't want to just teach you a single concept. We're you're new partners in your VFX career. From 1-on-1 guidance to customized learning tracks, we are passionate about helping you get into the industry and progress in your career.
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This course is ideal for artists with basic Houdini knowledge and a general understanding of rigging!
If you are unsure if you are qualified for this course, please reach out to us at info@rebelway.net.
This course will require 5-10 hours a week with 50-100 total hours of active learning and practice by the end of the course.
Your exact time commitment per week will vary based on the topic, assignment, and personal learning style. We strongly recommend dedicating time each week to learn and practice. If you ever fall behind, don’t worry, you will have lifetime access to the lessons.
We have an interactive quiz that you can take to figure out the best course for your skill level. You can take the quiz here.
If you are a beginner or new to VFX, we recommend taking our Houdini Fundamentals course.
If you are already familiar with Houdini, we recommend taking Introduction to Houdini for FX. This course is designed to be an overview of the essential techniques required to work on realistic FX in a modern studio pipeline. By the end of this course, you will have an intermediate level of Houdini knowledge.
If you are an experienced Houdini Artist, or if you already have an intermediate-level knowledge of the software, you can pick and choose any course on the site. Most of our courses are designed to give you specific skills required for different VFX projects (Water, Magic, etc.). So feel free to pick and choose as it makes sense for you.
However, if you ever have questions about which course is right for you, please reach out to our Student Assistance Team by emailing info@rebelway.net. We’ll happily recommend the best course for you.
Our online program is designed to help aspiring VFX artists have a successful career in FX & CG. Unlike other online schools, our affordable courses are exciting and tactical. Through our courses, you will gain the exact skills you need to work on Hollywood-level VFX projects.
In fact, many of our alumni go on to get jobs working for studios such as DNEG, Blizzard, Framestore, Disney, and more.
No, our lesson content is not streamed live. This means you can take the course at your own pace. We’ve designed our program to work around busy schedules.
We recommend the same specs listed by SideFX on this page.
It would be helpful if you could have 32GB of RAM or more, but it isn’t 100% necessary. ]
Many Rebelway students take multiple courses at once. While you could certainly sign up for as many courses as you want, we don’t recommend taking more than two courses at a time. A typical course will take anywhere from 5-10 hours a week to watch and practice, so depending on your schedule you can determine if it is feasible for you to take multiple courses at once.
Also, you will have lifetime access to the course lessons. So if you decide that the course becomes too much to follow, you can always follow along at your own pace if you fall behind.
You’ll also have lifetime access to the discord channel so you can get feedback on your projects and work even after the course has ended.
Yes! We are an online VFX school that delivers actionable and relevant FX education to the world.
Our online system allows us to deliver affordable education to aspiring CG artists around the world.
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Every class has a dedicated professional instructor who will help you through lectures, project feedback, and Q&As. Every session is designed based on the needs of the student. As a result, every session is unique and updated with the latest FX techniques.
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Our courses are designed to guide you through different modules at a comfortable and exciting pace. As a result, modules unlock on a weekly basis. Once purchased you will immediately have access to week #1.
If you purchased any of our short formed mini-courses, you will receive access to every lesson immediately.
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