[WIP] Here is the result of my quick test trying to create a looping volumetric waterfall, aiming to bring the final result into UE5.
by u/Khayyamo_o in UnrealEngine5
Making a realistic VDB waterfall is already difficult. Making it loop without a visible restart is a whole different challenge.
That is what VFX artist Khayyam Allahyari has been working on for an upcoming cinematic VDB waterfall pack.
That is what VFX artist Khayyam Allahyari has been working on for an upcoming cinematic VDB waterfall pack.
The idea came after noticing that many VDB waterfalls already looked good in Unreal Engine. The problem was that most of them did not loop cleanly. Once the animation reached the end, the restart was easy to spot.
After looking at reference footage, Khayyam noticed that large waterfalls behave somewhere between water and smoke. That made EmberGen a better fit than a traditional liquid simulation, which was the original plan.
The first goal was getting the overall shape right.
Everything starts as a steady stream of smoke falling downward. Noise and turbulence gradually break up the flow until it begins to feel more like falling water. At this stage, the simulation only defines the movement and shape.
Once the shape looked right, the next step was getting the loop to work.
Even a small difference between the first and last frame is enough to make the restart noticeable. Khayyam adjusted settings like buoyancy, vorticity, and smoke dissipation until the transition disappeared. Once the simulation reached the right shape, it was baked into a 128-frame loop.
Only then did the project move on to color. Looking at more reference footage, Khayyam noticed that this type of waterfall is rarely pure blue. Most of it looks almost white, with subtle blue and cyan tones near the bottom.
The waterfall is still far from finished. The shape still needs work, the source where the water begins looks too smooth, and more variations are planned. Khayyam also wants to keep improving the colors, speed, and overall volume.
Importing the VDB into Unreal Engine brings another problem.
The shape comes across, but the colors do not. They have to be recreated inside Unreal using masks generated from the simulation before they can be blended back together.
Work on the waterfall is paused for now while other projects take priority. Once the development resumes, Khayyam plans to keep refining it before releasing the pack on Fab.
Work on the waterfall is paused for now while other projects take priority. Once the development resumes, Khayyam plans to keep refining it before releasing the pack on Fab.
You can also check out Khayyam's other VDB projects, including cinematic meteors, a nuclear explosion, and a nebula pack.
- ArtStation: https://www.artstation.com/khayyam_al
- Cinematic Nebula VDB: https://www.fab.com/listings/fcca17e3-537f-43b7-89b5-e957c3c5aed9
- Cinematic Nuclear Explosion VDB: https://www.fab.com/listings/dd426fb2-49bb-4669-b137-012c778ac7f5
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