Software developer SideFX has announced its first global “How To Houdini Tutorial Contest,” inviting artists and educators to create learning content based on the new features in Houdini 21. The contest celebrates the teaching side of the Houdini community and aims to expand the library of free, production-relevant learning materials available to users.
According to the company’s official announcement, the contest opened on 1 October 2025. Submissions must be centerered by 33 December 2025. Voting takes place in January 2026, and winners will be announced in February. Because of the inconsistent deadline reporting, entrants are advised to check the official SideFX contest page before uploading their lessons.
How to enter and what counts
To participate, artists must create and publish a tutorial built in Houdini 21 and upload it to their SideFX user profile. A corresponding submission form completes the entry. Tutorials can be text-based or video-based, though video lessons must total at least ten minutes. All titles must start with “How to…” and demonstrate a reproducible workflow leading to a finished result, such as a beauty render, turntable, or real-time capture.
Submissions must focus on practical workflows rather than demonstrations of pre-built scenes or results. Free assets from platforms such as PolyHaven or KitBash are allowed, provided the licensing terms permit free educational use. Distribution of restricted or paywalled assets is prohibited.
Lesson types and eligible topics
Each tutorial must fall under one of four “Lesson Types.” A Beginner Lesson introduces new users to Houdini’s procedural approach. A Node Reference Lesson explains a specific node or feature. Gamedev & Realtime Lessons cover workflows for game-engine or real-time contexts. Finally, Production Workflow Lessons focus on intermediate or advanced, production-ready methods.
The contest’s topic categories include VFX (such as pyro, destruction, and fluids), World Building (terrain and foliage), Lookdev (USD, Solaris, Karma), Characters (rigging, CFX, crowds), Modeling (procedural techniques), Gamedev/Realtime (engine export, shaders), and Pipeline/AI (PDG, Python, or VEX).
Prizes and recognition
The Grand Prize winner will receive a one-year Houdini FX licence, official SideFX merchandise, a copy of VFX Made Easy with Houdini by Alasgar Hasanov, and three months of access to Houdini.school. Each Lesson Type Winner will receive a one-year Houdini Indie licence, the same book, merchandise, and three months of Houdini.school access.
Full contest rules
According to SideFX’s official guidelines PDF, the contest is open worldwide to individuals aged 18 or older, excluding SideFX staff and contractors. The tutorial must be created and published within the contest window using Houdini 21. Entrants retain copyright over their content but grant SideFX a perpetual, royalty-free licence to use, reproduce, and distribute the submitted lessons. In addition, the Houdini community is granted a non-exclusive licence to adapt and publicly perform the tutorial, though redistribution or resale is forbidden.
Only one submission per Lesson Type is allowed, and an entrant can win only once. Tutorials must be in English, and all content must comply with fair-use and software licensing terms. The judging panel will evaluate entries based on production clarity, relevance to Houdini 21 features, instructional quality, and reproducibility of results. Judges’ decisions are final, and prizes are non-transferable.
Why it matters
The contest gives production artists a structured opportunity to share expertise while gaining visibility among peers and the SideFX team. For studios and educators, it provides a curated window into practical workflows for the latest Houdini release. For SideFX, the initiative deepens community engagement while expanding its ecosystem of educational content.
