Yuki Ito released their second water FX reel ever, followed by an FX breakdown reel showing how the artist takes water scenes from blockout to fluid simulation setup to final renders.

Ito is a fully self-taught CG artist, which makes their ability to set up live-action-quality water simulations all the more impressive. On Twitter/X, the artist shared that all this time, they have been mastering Houdini and Nuke after work and on weekends.

Even though, as Ito emphasizes, they have no academic background or professional experience in CG, the quality of their Houdini fluid simulations has been consistently high. Experienced artists praise Ito for their thoughtful, nuanced work with water behavior and lifelike renders. 

In the 2026 showreel, you can see how Ito blocks out foam bubbles, sets up their water particles using Houdini's FLIP fluids, creates meshes for scenes with collision, and adjusts the lighting to achieve the subtle glow from underneath the water surface.

Since, like many other 3D and VFX admirers, we are enthralled with Ito's water scenes, we have covered them multiple times. Check out the full versions of some of the scenes from the artist's 2026 showreel: a glowing fantasy fluid simulation, a photorealistic foam simulation, and a collision water FX with a coastal rock.

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