The top AI tools for VFX pipelines Artists and Studios should use in 2026.

Top 10 AI Tools Transforming VFX Workflows in 2026

Upgrade your VFX Production with these AI VFX Tools

<p>The use of miniature models in film dates back to 1902 when French filmmaker Georges Méliès used a model rocket for the now-iconic moon landing scene in <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0000417/">A Trip to the Moon</a>. When Star Wars came out in 1977, the use of miniature models took the grand ideas of George Lucas and made them a reality.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/1024x792/f2c56e2943/a-trip-to-the-moon-le-voyage-dans-la-lune-34e45f-1024-1.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>Today's tutorial is intended to help VFX Supervisors, compositors, and filmmakers understand the process of shooting with miniatures on a green screen. We use a miniature and VFX collections like <strong><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/windy-snow-stock-footage">Windy Snow</a></strong> and <strong><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/free-snow-fx-stock-footage">free snow FX</a></strong> to create a Star Wars-style shot of the Millennium Falcon in Nuke and Unreal Engine.</p>
<p><strong>You'll learn:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>How to shoot miniatures for the best result in post</li>
<li>What to look out for when compositing miniatures</li>
<li>How to composite miniatures in a CG environment</li>
<li>How to create a realistic CG environment in Unreal Engine (using <a href="https://quixel.com/">Quixel</a> assets)</li>
<li>Creating accurate textures and shadows on the miniature</li>
<li>Realistically compositing the live-action and CG footage in Nuke</li>
</ul>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aeE7nokr07U" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p><strong>ActionVFX Assets Used:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/windy-snow-stock-footage">Windy Snow</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/free-snow-fx-stock-footage">Free - Snow FX</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/free-snow-textures-stock-footage">Free - Snow Textures</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/ice-and-frost-stock-footage">Ice &amp; Frost</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/atmospheric-smoke-fog-stock-footage">Atmospheric Smoke &amp; Fog Vol. 1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/atmospheric-smoke-fog-vol-2-stock-footage">Atmospheric Smoke &amp; Fog Vol. 2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/steam-jets-stock-footage">Steam Jets</a></li>
</ul>
<p>If you found this tutorial helpful, help us on our road to 150K subscribers on YouTube!</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@ActionVFXofficial">Subscribe on YouTube</a></strong></p>


Learn the pre-shoot, on-set, and compositing stages of a Star Wars shot using miniatures, Nuke, and Unreal Engine.

Miniatures in Production & Compositing (ft. Star Wars)

<p><strong>NO SPOILERS!</strong></p>
<h2>Why Environment Matters</h2>
<p>The Upside Down is a great example of how <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/blog/how-to-composite-atmospheric-smoke-fog">environment</a> VFX can impact the tone of a story. Across all five seasons of <em>Stranger Things</em>, the Upside Down is one of the most iconic environments of any show I can think of. It &quot;<a href="https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/the-secrets-behind-designing-the-multiverse-of-stranger-things">looks like your worst nightmare</a> — but also mind-bendingly mirrors the characters’ reality.&quot;</p>
<p>The team built the Upside Down with a mix of practical FX and a lot of VFX. Here's CoSA's breakdown from Season 1:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pO9d0q_Agw" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>(P.S. The VFX artists had some help from ActionVFX in later seasons!)</p>
<p>In this After Effects tutorial, Danasa teaches how to <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/blog/how-i-recreated-dune-part-two-vfx-in-my-at-home-studio">creatively combine practical VFX elements</a> to build an environment inspired by the Upside Down.</p>
<h2>Tutorial Resources</h2>
<p>You can follow along for free by downloading the project files <strong><a href="https://cms.actionvfx.com/rails/active_storage/blobs/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBcndJIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--08b8a1e2acfe5f3f6ebbccb20e15a8f3ef389f4f/Upside%20Down%20Project%20Files.zip">here</a></strong>.</p>
<p>What's included:</p>
<ul>
<li>Background plate</li>
<li>Assets from <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/smoldering-surfaces-stock-footage">Smoldering Surfaces</a></li>
<li>Assets from <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/air-particles-stock-footage">Air Particles</a></li>
<li>Assets from <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/atmospheric-smoke-fog-vol-2-stock-footage">Atmospheric Smoke &amp; Fog Vol. 2</a></li>
</ul>
<h3>Collections Used:</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/smoldering-surfaces-stock-footage">Smoldering Surfaces</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/free-burn-mark-textures-vol-1-stock-footage">Free - Burn Mark Textures Vol. 1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/atmospheric-smoke-fog-vol-2-stock-footage">Atmospheric Smoke &amp; Fog Vol. 2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/air-particles-stock-footage">Air Particles</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/foreground-smoke-fog-stock-footage">Foreground Smoke &amp; Fog Vol. 1</a></li>
</ul>
<h2>What You'll Learn:</h2>
<ul>
<li>How to use <strong>Nodal pan camera tracking</strong> to composite elements into the shot</li>
<li>How to create glowing portal FX</li>
<li>How to add floating atmospheric particles in post</li>
<li>How to create fake vine FX using <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/blog/three-practical-uses-for-noise-the-swiss-army-knife-of-vfx">fractal noise</a></li>
</ul>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iKo7NGaeBOY" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>If this was helpful, be sure to <strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@ActionVFXofficial">subscribe to our YouTube channel</a></strong> and hit the notification bell so you don't miss any tutorials!</p>


In this tutorial, you'll learn how to combine VFX assets to create an environment like the Upside Down in Stranger Things.

Stranger Things Upside Down Environment VFX | After Effects Tutorial

<p>The Nuke you know is evolving  and Nuke 17 is shaping up to be one of the biggest updates for 3D compositors in years. The Foundry has rethought how artists work inside the 3D environment, introducing a new level of control, speed, and integration. From USD import tools to motion blur tailoring and real-time material projection, this version isn’t just an upgrade, it’s a serious workflow shift.
And yes, we’ve already been testing it.</p>
<h3>A New Era for 3D in Nuke</h3>
<p>One of the most exciting aspects of Nuke 17 is how it reshapes 3D scene management. The GeoNode ecosystem, now out of beta, gives artists powerful tools to work with USD and Alembic files natively in Nuke. From import to refinement, the process is smoother, more visual, and customizable.
Need to isolate a mesh, apply a change, then reapply global tweaks? Use the new GeoMask and GeoClearMask nodes to surgically apply modifications without turning your script into spaghetti. Plus, thanks to the scene graph filtering, you can quickly select, isolate, or re-import elements based on your evolving needs — perfect for large, multi-pass workflows.
This directly supports artists who work with complex model-based assets, like those in our Humvee Collection, which was used in this walkthrough to demonstrate the update’s flexibility.</p>
<h3>Lighting and Cameras That Actually Behave</h3>
<p>Nuke 17 introduces streamlined support for camera and light data, both of which can now be pulled directly from your USD scene with a few clicks. This is made possible by the GeoImport system, which automatically populates camera and light values into Nuke, cutting down setup time significantly.
Better still, the lights now show up visually in the 3D viewer with color-coded interfaces, making it easy to tweak, identify, and balance them without diving through metadata. Reflection and visibility issues can be corrected with basic shader overrides, a big win for realism, especially when compositing real-world fire, explosion, or surface interaction footage.</p>
<h3>ACES 2.0 &amp; TBI Upscaler: Faster, Smarter, Sharper</h3>
<p>Color management gets a lift with <strong>ACES 2.0 now supported natively</strong>, giving studios working in HDR and wide color gamut a stronger baseline. The updated TBI scaler also unlocks faster image upscaling, boasting 98x GPU and 26x CPU performance improvements. These aren’t just impressive benchmarks, they translate to real-time playback and faster client approvals.</p>
<h3>Hello Ray Depth.</h3>
<p>Need to parent a digital card to a moving 3D object (like attaching smoke to a vehicle exhaust)? The new <strong>GeoTransform</strong> and <strong>GeoConstrain</strong> nodes let you snap to mesh vertices and bake or preserve animation. Whether you're tracking ActionVFX assets into your scene or anchoring digital dust trails to a destruction sim, these tools give you options. You can now iterate without redoing setups every time an animation changes.</p>
<h3>MaterialX Support &amp; Future-Proofing</h3>
<p>While still in beta, the early MaterialX integration gives Nuke a clearer future in modern DCC pipelines. You can now bring in Autodesk standard shaders directly into Nuke, which is a strong move for teams working between Maya and Nuke, especially for previews, look-dev, or quick material testing.</p>
<h3>Tailored Motion Blur</h3>
<p>Scanline Render also got an upgrade. You can now apply selective motion blur, adjusting which objects receive blur, how much, and how it’s calculated. This is huge for precision in fast-cut sequences or stylized shots where control matters more than realism.</p>
<h3>Watch Our Hands-On Nuke 17 Review</h3>
<p>Want to see these features in action?
We walked through the Nuke 17 beta using real assets from our <strong>Humvee</strong> collection to show exactly how the new tools work in a production-style comp. From scene graph filtering to practical lighting integration, it’s all in there.
Watch the full review here and see how Nuke 17 performs where it matters most: inside a real shot.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vFT6DBGP7FY" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<h3>Ready to Try It?</h3>
<p>The public beta for Nuke 17 is out now. Download it, experiment, and see how it changes your workflow.
And if you’re looking for assets that let you make the most of these new tools, you’ll find everything from fully 3D vehicles to multi-light practical fire, damage overlays, and AI-ready source clips in the ActionVFX library.
Build your scene faster with studio-grade assets → <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_Products">Explore the Library</a></p>


Get a first look at Nuke 17’s biggest features

Nuke 17 review

Nuke 17 Beta Is Here! 

<p>It’s that time of year again, but this time, we’ve come with more.
More collections. More bundles. More ways to save.
And for the first time ever, <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_ComfyUI">courses</a> are part of the deal.
The ActionVFX Black Friday 2025 Sale runs from <strong>Monday, November 24th at 12AM ET through Friday, November 28th at 11:59PM ET</strong>. And this year, the discounts hit harder than ever.
Here’s everything you need to know.</p>
<h3>The Deals</h3>
<p>Whether you’re a solo artist or managing a full VFX pipeline, there’s something here for you.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>40% off</strong> all <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_Products">Collections</a></li>
<li><strong>40% off</strong> <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_Courses">Annual Subscriptions</a></li>
<li><strong>40% off</strong> all <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_Pricing">Credit Packs</a> (5 or more credits)</li>
<li><strong>80% off</strong> <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_Bundles">Bundles</a>: our biggest, best-value offer</li>
<li><strong>20% off</strong> our VFX Course: <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_ComfyUI">Introduction to ComfyUI for VFX</a>
If you’ve been eyeing a specific library, building a wishlist, or just want to stock up, now’s the time to lock it all in.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What’s New This Year</h3>
<p>For Black Friday 2025, we’re opening the vault, which means brand-new products, first-time bundle deals, and a growing educational library now available at a discount.
This is the first year our <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_ComfyUI">ActionVFX Academy course</a>  is included in the sale — giving you access to real training, real tools, and smart, AI-assisted workflows that you can apply to your projects immediately.
Plus, with a massive expansion of our catalog, a-la-carte flexibility and new bundles make it easier to pick up just what you need, or everything at once.</p>
<h3>The Dollar Deal</h3>
<p>New this year. We’re putting 30 individual VFX assets on sale for just $1 each.
That’s not a typo. <strong>One dollar!</strong></p>
<p>These handpicked clips are scattered throughout the ActionVFX catalog like digital Easter eggs. You won’t find them listed together because this is a scavenger hunt.</p>
<p>Throughout the week, we’ll be dropping clues, hints, and mini-promos to help you find them. Follow us on social or keep an eye on your inbox. If you’re on a tight budget, this is your chance to grab powerful assets without breaking the bank.</p>
<p>Stay sharp. Stay tuned. And happy hunting.
<img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/1920x1080/a91da211bc/windy-fires-actionvfx.jpg" alt=""></p>
<h3>Plan Ahead — Or Jump In Now</h3>
<p>The sale closes at <strong>11:59PM ET on Friday, November 28th</strong>. No extensions, no late checkouts.
Want to get the most out of the sale? Start making a wishlist of your favourite collections now, and check back often on our socials and Discord for Dollar Deal hints.</p>
<h3>The Sale</h3>
<p>Explore the full <a href="https://bit.ly/BF_Products">Black Friday</a> event
Whether you’re freelancing, running a team, or prototyping a new IP, this is your week to stock up, save big, and get ready for 2026.</p>
<p>Avoid Missing Out.
<a href="https://bit.ly/4rkfrUK">Sign Up For Notifications</a></p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/960x540/f313d69845/actionvfx-black-friday-2025.jpg" alt="ActionVFX Black Friday 2025"></p>


Save up to 80% on VFX assets, bundles, and courses—plus find $1 asset deals hidden across the site in our Dollar Deal scavenger hunt.

ActionVFX Black Friday 2025

Collections. Subscriptions. Bundles. Courses!

<p>Starting today, you can once again purchase ActionVFX assets individually — no subscription required.</p>
<p>We’ve been hearing from you for months.</p>
<p>From freelancers working solo on fast-turnaround gigs...
From studio teams balancing multiple deliverables...
From artists deep in the comp, just trying to make the shot land...</p>
<p><em>“I don’t need a full library. I need one fire burst. One crack. One clean plate.”</em></p>
<p>So we brought back individual asset purchases to meet you where you are — in the middle of production, with a deadline approaching and no time to overthink.</p>
<h2>Built for Real Workflows</h2>
<p>We know not every project justifies a full subscription. Not every timeline gives you the freedom to explore a library. Sometimes, you just need one solution — fast.</p>
<p>With this change, you can now:</p>
<p>🎯 Download any of our 12,000+ VFX assets on-demand
🎯 Pay only for what you use
🎯 Grab the one shot that solves the problem and move on</p>
<p>This is for the moments between the big deliveries. The quick wins that still need to look rock solid. The &quot;just one more&quot; that saves the day in comp.</p>
<h2>For Studios &amp; Artists That Move Fast</h2>
<p>Have a client who keeps changing the brief?
Need to fix a shot for review without breaking the budget?
Want to prototype a concept before pitching a full sequence?</p>
<p>Now you can drop in a single asset — like a dust wave, muzzle flash, or ember burst — without reworking your pipeline or committing to a plan.</p>
<p>It’s a better fit for teams that need to stay nimble. And a smarter option for artists who know exactly what they’re looking for.</p>
<h2>You Still Get the Same Quality</h2>
<p>Every element in our library — whether you subscribe or buy individually — is:</p>
<p>✔ Shot practically
✔ Pre-keyed or designed for comp
✔ Color-matched across collections
✔ Available in 2K, 4K, or higher
✔ Used in productions by Netflix, HBO, and major game studios</p>
<p>We’ve built our reputation on realism, and that doesn’t change — no matter how you access the files.</p>
<h2>We Listened. You Changed Our Roadmap.</h2>
<p>The return of individual purchases wasn’t in the plan — but you made it clear that it needed to be.
This is for the teams running tight pipelines. For the artists patching holes at the eleventh hour. For the producers juggling fixed budgets and moving deadlines.</p>
<p>You're the reason this change happened.
Any Asset. Any Time.</p>
<p>Whether you’re delivering final shots today or pitching the next big thing tomorrow, we’ve got your back.</p>
<p>👉 Explore the full ActionVFX library
https://bit.ly/al-a-carte
Download just what you need — and get back to making great work.</p>


Now available: purchase ActionVFX assets individually with no subscription. Get only what you need, when you need it—built for flexible, fast-moving VFX workflows.

Individual Purchasing Is Back At Actionvfx

You Asked. We Listened.

<p>If you’ve ever tried converting VFX elements into game-engine-ready assets, you know it can be… painful.</p>
<p>That’s why DJ from Undertone FX teamed up with ActionVFX to streamline the entire process. This video <a href="https://youtu.be/hbqYcgj1ZCY?si=8g_luchDNphBwwMA">tutorial </a>walks through how to take high-quality ActionVFX stock footage, like our Dirt Blasts collection, and turn them into clean, optimized flipbooks ready for Unreal Engine.</p>
<p><strong>Spoiler:</strong> We have a <a href="https://bit.ly/47swKuT">After Effects template</a> that does the heavy lifting.</p>
<p>It starts with importing your ActionVFX element — in the tutorial, DJ uses an asset from our Dirt Blasts collection, but the process works for any of our elements. From there, he walks through a smart technique for fading the edges of the VFX using a noise-based mask and gradient ramp. This isn’t just a visual polish; it prevents your flipbook from creating distracting hard edges when rendered in-engine.</p>
<p>Every frame of the element is also carefully centered to ensure that when it’s triggered in Unreal, it feels grounded and accurate. DJ explains how to make subtle alignment shifts so the core of the explosion hits exactly where you need it in gameplay — which makes a real difference in how immersive the final result feels.</p>
<p>Ground removal is handled with clean matte passes and masks, making it easy to isolate only the parts of the effect you need. Once everything’s isolated and cleaned, DJ moves on to scale and resolution — breaking down how to match your comp to power-of-two dimensions like 2048x1024, which are optimal for game engine integration. This keeps assets consistent and optimized across production.</p>
<p>And then comes the part most artists dread: building the actual flipbook. But with the included After Effects template, this step is already automated. With built-in expressions, your sequence is automatically split into frames — 64, 128, 256, whatever fits your needs — and laid out in a clean tile grid. No spreadsheets. No hand-editing frames.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/8192x8192/fed9ae8175/actionvfx-in-unreal-engine.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>The <a href="https://youtu.be/hbqYcgj1ZCY?si=8g_luchDNphBwwMA">tutorial</a> even covers how to generate a normal map for your asset using AE plugins — a huge bonus if you’re trying to add lighting and realism in-engine. Whether you’re outputting for mobile or cinematic games, this workflow gives you a system you can reuse and scale.</p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hbqYcgj1ZCY" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>If you’ve been sitting on a library of great VFX assets but haven’t had time to convert them into usable flipbooks, this is the shortcut you’ve been waiting for. Whether you’re building your own internal library or prepping for live engine use, this process is faster, cleaner, and easier to control and it works beautifully with any ActionVFX clip.</p>
<p>We built this template so that you can get right to the creative part, without sacrificing quality or wasting time.</p>
<h3>Ready to build your own?</h3>
<p><a href="https://bit.ly/47swKuT">Download the free After Effects template</a> today and start converting your ActionVFX assets into game-ready Unreal flipbooks.</p>
<p>Want something pre-built? You can also find flipbook-ready collections on our <a href="https://bit.ly/3WFW7mM">Unreal Fab Store</a>.</p>
<p>Explore. Create. And start building VFX that feel like they were made for your engine, because now, they are.</p>


Turn ActionVFX elements into Unreal Engine flipbooks with our free After Effects template.

Create Realtime FX with Practically Filmed Assets

A step-by-step workflow for VFX footage into flipbooks for real-time production in Unreal Engine.

<p>In most VFX libraries, fire stands still.
With <a href="https://bit.ly/4nQwfAr">Windy Fires</a>, it doesn’t.</p>
<p>This new collection from ActionVFX was built specifically for shots in motion; explosions racing past camera, fire rolling across vehicles, or flames reacting to atmospheric re-entry.
49 practical elements, captured in real-world wind conditions, <a href="https://bit.ly/4nQwfAr">Windy Fires</a> brings cinematic movement that CG can’t fake.</p>
<p>But what makes it work is it's authenticity.</p>
<p>We sat down with Zac VanHoy, Asset Development Supervisor, to talk about the production behind this collection and what makes these elements different.</p>
<h3>Fire in Wind</h3>
<p><em>“I wanted to bring something fresh to our library that I've never seen done anywhere else,”</em> Zac says.</p>
<p>Where simulations struggle to deliver natural variance, practical fire reacts in unexpected ways. That’s exactly what makes it feel real and why we knew we had to shoot it live.
It was about solving a visual gap many artists face: stock fire that doesn’t respond to motion.</p>
<h3>Why Film Practically?</h3>
<p>“CG has its place, but real fire gives you behaviour you’d never design on your own” Zac explains.</p>
<p>With a full FX team on set and a pyrotechnician leading the fire rigs, we dialed in specific fuel types and wind speeds to push flame behavior across a wide range — all while maintaining safety and control.</p>
<p><em>&quot;The biggest challenge we faced was getting the fire to burn large enough and long enough in the high winds. Simply putting fuel on a surface wasn't going to work. Our pyrotechnician brought some great ideas to the table and helped us solve this problem using specific types of fuel and foam to soak in the fuel and give us a longer burn time in the strong winds.&quot;</em>
<img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/2000x1333/1d0df22ac7/actionvfx-assets-filmed-practically.jpg" alt=""></p>
<h3>Capturing Fire That Feels Dangerous</h3>
<p>Filmed with the RED V-RAPTOR 8K, every element was captured with cinematic exposure, controlled motion blur, and high-speed slow motion where needed. ND filters were key to preserving detail while maintaining depth of field and clean ISO ranges.
<em>&quot;The benefit of filming real fire is that you don't have to worry about it not looking real, because that's impossible.&quot;</em></p>
<p><strong>The collection includes:</strong></p>
<p>6 angles (including at-camera shots)</p>
<p>Multiple wind intensities</p>
<p>Real-time and slow-motion options</p>
<p>Pre-keyed EXR, ProRes 4444, and R3D</p>
<p>2K, 5K, and 6K resolutions</p>
<p>Paired with smart compositing, real fire offers depth and light play that’s hard to fake. And when you’re building sequences under tight timelines, that realism helps speed up creative approvals and reduce the need for simulation clean-up.</p>
<h3>Final Thoughts from Zac</h3>
<p><em>&quot;I hope they feel excited and thankful for time saved. I hope they feel the excitement because the assets help them take there shot to a level that exceeds their expectations and I hope they feel thankful because the assets help save them time and money from having to do sims or higher on-set pyrotechnicians.&quot;</em></p>
<h3>Explore the Collection</h3>
<p><a href="https://bit.ly/4nQwfAr">Windy Fires</a> is available now.
Grab production-ready fire that moves with your shot.</p>
<p>View the Collection → <a href="https://bit.ly/4nQwfAr">Windy Fires</a></p>
<p>49 clips. Pre-keyed. Cinematic motion. Real wind.</p>
<p>Now available in EXR, ProRes, and R3D — in 2K, 5K, and 6K.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/2000x1333/0aa67089f0/windy-fires-production.jpg" alt=""></p>


Go behind the scenes of Windy Fires with Zac VanHoy and discover how ActionVFX captured real fire in high wind for cinematic, production-ready VFX assets.

Windy Fires: The Most Dynamic Fire VFX Assets We’ve Ever Created

Fire in motion brings a different kind of intensity.

<p>In our latest tutorial, we break down practical techniques for compositing blood that actually feels grounded — whether it’s on walls, floors, props, or people. If you want your scene to hold up in motion and match the lighting and texture of the environment, these are the tricks you’ll need.</p>
<p>And yes — you’ll want to <a href="https://youtu.be/pqgueXVnspQ">watch the full tutorial</a>. But here are some key insights to get you started.</p>
<h3>1. Choose The Right Assets</h3>
<p>Not all blood elements are created equal.
If you’re using static textures or low-res clips, your shot will always feel flat.</p>
<p>ActionVFX blood assets are high-resolution and constantly moving, which means they ripple, spread, and distort in realistic ways. Whether you’re using pools or sprays, this movement is key to selling the effect — especially in slow motion or high-action sequences.</p>
<p>Looking for maximum flexibility? Go for the EXR collections, which offer:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Lighting passes for realistic integration</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Greater control over highlights and shadows</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Scale flexibility without losing quality</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>2. Use the Right Color Space</h3>
<p>This might seem basic, but it’s often overlooked.</p>
<p>Each ActionVFX asset collection comes with a listed color space — make sure to match it inside your compositing software (Nuke, After Effects, Resolve, etc).</p>
<p>If you're in the wrong color space, your blood will either clip, crush, or look completely disconnected from the scene. Get this right early and save yourself the grade headaches later.</p>
<h3>3. Match Practical with Digital</h3>
<p>Whenever possible, try to add practical blood to your set — even just small amounts.</p>
<p>Why? Because matching your digital blood to real-world drips or stains helps anchor the effect. You’re no longer starting from a blank surface, you're blending, enhancing, and extending what's already there.</p>
<p>This makes your comp feel more like a clean extension than a bold insert.</p>
<h3>4. Integrate Lighting, Not Just Color</h3>
<p>Blood is reflective. It catches highlights. It shifts with ambient tone.</p>
<p>To push your realism, use lighting passes (available in EXR formats) or create your own with blend modes.
Here’s how:</p>
<ol>
<li>Duplicate your blood layer</li>
<li>Tint it with a soft red-orange glow</li>
<li>Add a wiggle expression to opacity</li>
<li>Set the blend mode to Add or Linear Dodge</li>
</ol>
<p>This gives your blood subtle specularity that responds to the light source, making it feel like it’s really on the surface, not floating above it.</p>
<h3>5. Break It Up — Avoid the “Sticker” Look</h3>
<p>Too often, blood elements are just slapped onto a surface with no integration.
To avoid that, try these:</p>
<ul>
<li>Use corner pinning to follow floor or wall angles</li>
<li>Add subtle warp/deform effects for pooling behavior</li>
<li>Mask edges with soft feathering and real-world grime</li>
<li>Match grain and motion blur to your plate</li>
</ul>
<p>Even better: use ActionVFX assets filmed from multiple angles, so you can pick the one that fits your shot’s perspective.</p>
<h3>Want to See It in Action?</h3>
<p>We cover all of this in the full tutorial, using blood pool elements, camera-tracked surfaces, and lighting passes to build a clean, believable composite from start to finish.</p>
<p>🎥 Watch the full tutorial now:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pqgueXVnspQ" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<h3>Enter the Goremania Giveaway</h3>
<p>While you’re here — don’t miss Goremania.
You could win the ENTIRE <a href="https://bit.ly/40etbW0">Blood &amp; Gore Category</a> plus $100 in ActionVFX store credit</p>
<p>Every action you complete earns you more entries.
Plus: all gore assets are 20% off for the entire month of October.
🎯 Enter now → https://bit.ly/goremania_part2</p>
<p>Want your shot to feel brutal, cinematic, and completely unskippable?
Start with smart compositing. And always choose the assets that hold up under pressure.</p>
<p><strong>#MadeWithActionVFX</strong></p>


Pro tips for realistic blood compositing in VFX—lighting, integration, and asset choice that sells the shot.

How To Composite Blood Like A Pro (Without the Mess)

Creating believable blood in VFX is about how you treat it in the shot.

<p>Halloween may be make-believe, but realism is kind of our thing.</p>
<p>And after learning that our blood and gore assets are “too real for YouTube,” we’re taking that as the highest possible compliment.</p>
<p>Welcome to Goremania 2025. This October join the celebration of brutal realism, over-the-top mayhem, and practical VFX you can feel in your gut.</p>
<p>This year, we’re going big. New assets. Big prizes. More mess.</p>
<h3>💀 What’s Up for Grabs</h3>
<p>You can win:
Blood Pools Vol. 1 – the tried-and-true fan favorite
Blood Pools Vol. 2 – our brand-new collection dropping Oct 16
$100 in ActionVFX Store Credit – to get whatever else you’re missing</p>
<p>Each winner gets all three. And yep, we’re doing this twice!</p>
<p><strong>Giveaway #1:</strong> Ends October 16 (winners announced that day)
<strong>Giveaway #2:</strong> Starts October 16 (featuring the ENTIRE Blood &amp; Gore Category)</p>
<p>That's right. From October 16th you could win the Blood &amp; Gore Category.
899 Assets. Perfect for your Horror Films.</p>
<h3>🧛 How to Enter</h3>
<p>Visit the [Goremania Giveaway Page]https://bit.ly/goremania_part2)
and complete any of the listed actions.
Each one earns you more entries, so the more you do, the better your odds.</p>
<p>✔️ Follow us on social
✔️ Share with friends
✔️ Explore gore collections
✔️ Drop your name in the blood-soaked hat</p>
<p>Quick. Easy. Zero jump scares.
Share Your Creations Using The Hashtag <strong>#Goremania</strong></p>
<h3>🩸 20% Off All Gore Assets — All Month</h3>
<p>From arterial sprays to oozing wounds and wall textures, all blood and gore collections are 20% off for the entire month of October.
No codes. No tricks. Just realistic, pre-keyed carnage built to save you time and gross out your colorist (in a good way).</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/600x338/f5ef659ecc/medium_dripping_blood_vol-1_thumbnail_v05-1.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>Every collection is exported or shot practically with cinematic lighting, available in high resolutions, and designed to drop right into your comp with no mess (outside of frame, anyway).</p>
<h3>👇 Don’t Miss This</h3>
<p>🧟‍♂️ Giveaway closes Oct 31st — enter now to win.
🩸 <strong>Gore assets are 20% off all month</strong>.
🎯 <a href="https://bit.ly/goremania_part2">Enter the Giveaway</a></p>
<p>🎯 Browse the <a href="actionvfx.com/collections/blood-gore/category">Gore Collection</a></p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/1600x900/4cafda2ccf/goremania_giveaway_avfx.jpg" alt=""></p>


Win blood VFX assets + $100 credit during Goremania. 20% off all gore collections all October.

ActionVFX Goremania Giveaway

Win New Assets, Store Credit, and Unleash the Blood

<p>There’s a shift happening in the industry and no, it’s not about replacing artists with AI.
It’s about supporting artists with tools that make their work faster, cleaner, and more creative.</p>
<p>That’s exactly what the <a href="https://courses.actionvfx.com/comfyui-for-vfx">Introduction to ComfyUI for VFX</a> course was built to do.</p>
<h3>Launched as the first official course from ActionVFX Academy</h3>
<p>It’s already helped hundreds of artists and studios streamline their compositing workflows using ComfyUI — a free, powerful, node-based interface for Stable Diffusion.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/3840x2160/702f35b208/rotoscoping-comfyui-vfx.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>Whether you’re dealing with digital cleanup, relighting, roto, or just want a better way to prototype complex looks, this course gives you a system to integrate AI into your existing VFX pipeline — without losing control or quality.</p>
<h3>What Is ComfyUI, and Why Should VFX Artists Care?</h3>
<p>ComfyUI is a node-based interface for AI image generation using Stable Diffusion. But while most people use it for concept art and image-to-image stylization, this course shows how to use it for production-level tasks, like:</p>
<p>You’ll learn how to generate clean plates without frame-by-frame painting, create smart mattes with ControlNet, relight subjects using depth maps, build image-based set extensions through inpainting, and export layered EXRs ready for compositing in Nuke, After Effects, or Resolve.</p>
<p>If you’ve ever found yourself spending hours patching backgrounds, painting out crew, or building masks by hand, this course gives you real alternatives that scale.</p>
<h3>Built for Working Artists</h3>
<p>Plenty of tutorials explain how to generate “cool-looking” AI images. But Introduction to ComfyUI for VFX is designed to help working professionals solve real problems — like delivering clean comps under pressure.
You’ll learn how to:</p>
<p>In this course, you'll build a ComfyUI workflow designed for VFX—not just AI art—using LoRAs, IP Adapters, and ControlNet to handle real production tasks, automate tedious cleanup without losing precision, export clean EXRs for your comp app, and use AI as a creative assistant, not a replacement.</p>
<p>The course is structured across 15 modules, each building toward a system you can use across clients, short films, game cinematics, and professional VFX shots.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/3840x2160/706f8ae2d6/comfyui-for-vfx-nuke.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>What Students Are Saying</p>
<p>The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive — not just in reviews, but in how artists are already applying what they’ve learned.</p>
<p><em>“Taking Intro to ComfyUI for VFX was a great experience. Starting with no prior knowledge, the course gave me a solid foundation and showed the real potential of ComfyUI to simplify heavy tasks and free up more time for the creative side of compositing.”</em>
— Alejandro Laviada, Digital Compositor</p>
<p><em>“I came to this course knowing nothing at all about Comfy. I’ve found it to be a great introduction to the possible workflows, and it was all explained in a very understandable way.”</em>
— Leo Weston, VFX Supervisor</p>
<p>These aren’t one-off comments. They reflect what so many artists have said: this is practical AI for VFX.</p>
<h3>Why Learn ComfyUI Now?</h3>
<p>Studios are already integrating AI tools into their pipelines — not to replace artists, but to reduce the manual burden of repetitive work.
And whether you're in commercials, feature films, or game cinematics, being able to create AI-assisted mattes, background replacements, and set extensions is becoming a valuable skill.</p>
<p>This course gives you a future-proof advantage by showing how to use AI tools the way a professional compositor would, with control, quality, and accountability.</p>
<h3>Less Guesswork, More Creative Time</h3>
<p>The future of VFX won’t be defined by who knows the most buttons — but by who uses their time best.</p>
<p>That’s what this course is about: giving you your time back. Less brute-force masking. Less frame-by-frame cleanup. More creative direction. More actual compositing.</p>
<p>Whether you’re freelancing, managing a pipeline, or just trying to stay ahead of the curve — Introduction to ComfyUI for VFX will change how you work.</p>
<p>👉 Enroll now and start learning the AI workflow VFX artists actually use:
<a href="https://courses.actionvfx.com/comfyui-for-vfx">https://courses.actionvfx.com/comfyui-for-vfx</a></p>


Learn how VFX artists are using ComfyUI to speed up cleanup, roto, and relighting. A practical, production-ready AI course built for real workflows.

ComfyUI For VFX

A Smarter Way to Composite: Why VFX Artists Are Turning to ComfyUI

<p>Creating realistic fire VFX doesn't have to mean expensive simulations or endless render times. With the right assets — and the right approach — you can build cinematic fire entirely in post. And if you’re just getting started or want a testbed to practice your comp, the <a href="https://bit.ly/3AAwUlL">ActionVFX Practice Footage Library</a> is a great place to start.</p>
<p>These free, production-style plates let you hone your skills on real-world footage without the licensing headaches — and they’re perfect for testing fire composites, light interactions, and scene-building workflows.</p>
<p>Now let’s break down what makes fire believable — and how to make it work in your shots using only ActionVFX stock elements.
<a href="https://youtu.be/lL2iH9TjNVw?si=nLnk-9iCv5nztVqk">Watch Full Tutorial</a> For Support.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/4096x2160/722505ce95/pf0086-01_clip-1_bmdgen5_4k-5-36-53-16.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p><a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/man-crawling-in-burning-room">Download The Practice Footage</a></p>
<h3>1. Skip the Sim — Use Real Fire Footage</h3>
<p>Simulations can be time-consuming and unpredictable. If you’re working solo or on a tight deadline, pre-keyed fire footage saves you hours of work — and arguably delivers a more realistic result. That’s because these elements were captured in-camera, under real lighting, with natural physics baked in.</p>
<p>ActionVFX fire bursts, ground fire, embers, and smoke layers build a multi-depth composite. Real fire footage doesn’t just look better, it behaves better.</p>
<h3>2. Start With a Solid Camera Track</h3>
<p>This is crucial. If your scene has camera movement — especially handheld — a 2D planar track isn’t enough. Fire needs to move with the environment. In this shot, the artist used a full 3D camera solve via SynthEyes, but most software (After Effects, Blender, Nuke, Resolve) has built-in 3D tracking tools.</p>
<p>The goal is to lock your fire to the world, not the frame. Even slight parallax issues will break the illusion.</p>
<h3>3. Roto Your Foreground — It’s Worth It</h3>
<p>Even if you’re not doing face replacement or keying, rotoscoping is essential in fire composites. Without it, your flames sit awkwardly on top of the subject, destroying the depth of your scene. In this tutorial, the subject was rotoscoped using a simple mask — enough to let fire elements slip behind and “live” inside the shot.</p>
<p><strong>Pro tip</strong>: keep your roto loose if the fire is fast-moving. It adds to the realism and saves time.</p>
<h3>4. Relight the Subject — This Is What Sells It</h3>
<p>This is where most fire composites fall apart — the fire is there, but the subject doesn’t react to it. Real fire is dynamic. It flickers, it wraps, and it casts light that moves. If your character isn’t being lit by the flames, the whole illusion breaks.</p>
<p><strong>How to do it?</strong>
First, the footage was brought into DaVinci Resolve Studio, where a Depth Map was generated to isolate the subject from the background.</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p>Using that depth information, the scene was exported as two relight maps — one from the left and one from the right — to simulate firelight wrapping around the actor.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Back in After Effects, each relight map was placed above the footage and set to Add blend mode.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Each layer was tinted with a warm fire hue (orange/yellow) to match the flame source.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Then a wiggle expression was applied to the opacity, simulating the chaotic, unpredictable flicker of real fire.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<p>This technique creates a reactive lighting effect that behaves more like practical on-set fire — shifting intensity and casting realistic color back onto the actor. It also allows you to control the timing and behavior of each light pass independently, adding nuance and depth.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/4096x2160/da3a589628/pf0086-01_clip-1_bmdgen5_4k-5-36-53-16-trer.jpg" alt=""></p>
<h3>5. Don’t Skip the Glow Pass</h3>
<p>This technique adds depth and scale. In the example, the artist uses a soft, warm glow just behind the masked subject to simulate light spill and ambient fire bloom.</p>
<p>It anchors the fire to the environment and makes it feel like it’s really pushing out light and heat.</p>
<h3>6. Distortion, Sparks, and Smoke — Fire’s Real Behavior</h3>
<p>To go beyond just “looking hot,” your fire composite needs environmental reaction.
In this shot, that includes:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Heat distortion</strong>: subtle warp to mimic rising heat</li>
<li><strong>Floating embers</strong>: drifting sparks give a sense of atmosphere and movement</li>
<li><strong>Smoke layering</strong>: softens edges and fills the volume</li>
</ul>
<p>Use distortion sparingly — too much can ruin your plate — but it’s essential for high-heat shots.</p>
<h3>7. Match Your Grade (Then Grade It Again)</h3>
<p>Trying to force each fire clip to match your plate can lead to inconsistency. Instead, build your composite first — fire, glow, light, smoke, distortion — then apply a unified color grade on top.</p>
<p>This brings everything into the same color space, simulates lens behavior, and helps your composite feel like one shot, not layers stacked together.</p>
<h3>Assets Used</h3>
<p>Every element in this shot came from ActionVFX:
🔥 <a href="https://bit.ly/46woqtQ">Fire Bursts</a>
🔥 <a href="https://bit.ly/46woqtQ">Ground Fire</a>
💨 <a href="https://bit.ly/3dDQhiJ">Smoke Plumes</a>
✨ <a href="https://bit.ly/3edgULF">Embers &amp; Sparks</a>
🌫 Heat Distortion Overlays</p>
<p>Whether you're in Nuke, After Effects, DaVinci Resolve, or Blender, these assets are drag-and-drop ready — built to integrate seamlessly with your workflow.</p>
<h3>Watch the Full Breakdown</h3>
<p>Want to see how this all comes together in action?
<a href="https://youtu.be/lL2iH9TjNVw?si=nLnk-9iCv5nztVqk">Watch Now</a>
We’ve put together a complete tutorial walking through every step — from 3D camera tracking to glow passes, heat distortion, and fire relighting using ActionVFX assets.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/1280x720/6b0261a5f3/makefirevfxlookreal.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>🔥 No simulations. No guesswork. Just practical, repeatable fire compositing that works.
👉 <a href="https://youtu.be/lL2iH9TjNVw">Watch the Tutorial Now</a> and start building better fire shots today.</p>


Discover how to build realistic fire scenes using VFX footage — no simulations needed. Learn tracking, relighting, glow, and distortion techniques in our latest tutorial.

Creating Realistic Fire Using VFX Stock Footage

Learn how to composite fire that feels real, all using ActionVFX assets.

<p>AI isn’t coming for the VFX. It’s already here.
And for artists who want to stay relevant, competitive, and creatively in control, it’s time to stop watching from the sidelines and start integrating it into your workflow.
That’s exactly what our new ActionVFX Academy course is built to help you do.</p>
<p><strong>Intro to ComfyUI for VFX</strong>
<a href="https://bit.ly/3IR8kBm">Sign-up Now for Early Bird Discount of 30% Off! </a>
Exclusively on ActionVFX Academy.</p>
<h3>This Isn’t Just Another AI Tutorial</h3>
<p>We’ve seen the YouTube thumbnails and the “prompt-to-magic” hype.
**That’s not what this is. **
This course is for compositors, technical artists, and VFX pros who care about real production quality, and want to understand how AI can support that work without replacing the fundamentals.
Taught by <strong>Doug Hogan</strong>, this is a structured, 15-module deep dive into ComfyUI — one of the most powerful AI tools in the VFX space right now. Whether you’re using it for lookdev, matte creation, clean plates, set extensions, or asset generation, this course gives you a repeatable, practical workflow that’s ready to plug into real-world shots.</p>
<h3>What You’ll Actually Be Able To Do After This Course</h3>
<p>By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:</p>
<ul>
<li>Install and configure ComfyUI for your local or cloud environment</li>
<li>Build and troubleshoot image generation workflows from scratch</li>
<li>Use ControlNets, LoRAs, IPAdapters, and inpainting techniques effectively</li>
<li>Generate usable mattes, clean plates, and utility passes</li>
<li>Extend sets, create stylized variants, and design objects for 3D workflows</li>
<li>Export EXRs properly and upscale images for final output</li>
</ul>
<p>Everything is structured to build a modular, production-ready AI workflow that you can plug into your own projects, no matter the budget.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>AI can’t feel like a slot machine. If we’re covering AI-based workflows, we explain what it’s doing, why it matters, and how to recreate it with confidence.
<em>Doug Hogan, Course Instructor.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<h3>Designed for Artists Who Refuse to Fall Behind</h3>
<p>This course is built for those who need clarity, control, and creative freedom in a rapidly evolving landscape:</p>
<p><strong>VFX Artists &amp; Compositors with Node-Based Experience</strong>
Especially valuable for Nuke users, this course digs into how AI integrates into established workflows—so you’re not left wondering if these tools are gimmicks or game-changers. You’ll learn how to implement them without breaking the visual continuity or pipeline conventions you already rely on.</p>
<p><strong>Students Preparing for a Changing Industry</strong>
Whether you're finishing a VFX degree or pivoting into the field, this course gives you a practical, grounded understanding of AI’s real role in production. You’ll gain insights that go beyond theory, skills studios are already starting to expect.</p>
<p><strong>Supervisors &amp; Leads Looking to Stay Strategic</strong>
If you're exploring where AI fits in your pipeline, this course presents concrete use cases and red flags. Learn how to evaluate tools not just for their novelty, but for how they can support efficiency, quality, and ethical production standards.</p>
<p><strong>Independent Creators &amp; Freelancers Navigating New Terrain</strong>
For those working solo or in small teams, AI can either be a shortcut or a stumbling block. We’ll show you how to use it responsibly and practically: saving time without compromising your voice or values.
If you’ve ever felt like AI tools are a black box of buzzwords and instability, this course pulls the curtain back. We’re teaching exactly how it works, how to use it, and how to know when to use something else.</p>
<h3>Made by Artists.</h3>
<p>We’re a studio-backed team of artists who believe that the more you understand your tools, the better your work becomes. This course is about helping our community stay sharp, confident, and ahead of the curve.
AI isn’t a threat to VFX, misunderstanding it might be. We’re here to bridge that gap, responsibly, clearly, and with full transparency. The more you understand how to use AI, the more you can use it your way.
This is essential core knowledge for artists looking to retool in a rapidly changing industry and unlock some exciting creative possibilities along the way.</p>
<h3>Sign-Up Now</h3>
<p>The full course drops September 2nd, but you can secure your access today.
Whether you’re looking to experiment, retool, or lead your team into the next chapter of VFX workflows, <strong>Intro to ComfyUI for VFX</strong>, is your starting point.</p>
<p><a href="https://bit.ly/3IR8kBm">Sign-up now and get 30% Off</a></p>
<p>Built for artists. Structured for production. Backed by ActionVFX.</p>


Announcing ActionVFX's First Course | Introduction To ComfyUI For VFX

ActionVFX's First Ever Course!

Introduction to ComfyUI For VFX By Doug Hogan

<p>We're spotlighting <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/c/vfx-magic">VFXMagic</a>, a passionate creator who’s turned their fascination with destruction into a high-impact, hyper-usable new collection: <a href="https://bit.ly/44Ga7So">Concrete Wall Cracks</a>.</p>
<h2>The Need For Wall Cracks</h2>
<blockquote>
<p>“I've always been passionate about VFX and love exploring high-quality real-life footage. ActionVFX has been my go-to source for top-tier elements across all kinds of effects. Since it has played such a big role in my creative workflow, I’m excited for the chance to give back and contribute to the platform that’s inspired and supported so much of my RnD work.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>That mindset, driven by curiosity and creative momentum, is exactly what makes this collection stand out. Inspired by a recurring problem in many destruction scenes, <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/c/vfx-magic">VFXMagic</a> set out to fill a real gap in the market… by quite literally creating cracks in the wall.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“As an Artist, I often found the need for clean, realistic wall crack elements that could integrate easily into destruction scenes. This inspired me to create a wall crack simulation in Houdini that captures the kind of detail and realism often missing from standard stock footage.”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Made In Houdini</h2>
<p>This isn’t your typical crack decal or basic fracture pass. The attention to detail and usability shows from the very first frame.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“I created this in Houdini, starting by hand-drawing the cracks. I then fractured the geometry based on the crack areas and paid special attention to debris breakup, edge details, and surface realism. Once the simulation was finalized, I rendered the footage with a clean background to ensure it’s easy to composite into any pipeline.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Even better? The collection includes options built specifically to support different workflows.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“The selection pass to isolate the inside crack or falling debris is what I find most useful, it makes it easy to interact and blend with any footage.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The end result is a set of assets that are easy to drop in, adaptable to a wide range of environments, and crafted with realism from the start.
<img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/1152x648/411c89e04d/wallcrack.gif" alt=""></p>
<h2>Built for Filmmakers, Compositors, and Storytellers</h2>
<p>VFXMagic didn’t just make these assets for themselves, they made them for anyone telling stories with damage, destruction, or atmospheric decay.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“This product is ideal for VFX artists, filmmakers, and content creators who need quick-to-use, realistic wall damage or destruction layers. I imagine it being used in action scenes, architectural breakdowns, or to enhance sets with environmental storytelling.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Whether you’re crafting a Hollywood-level collapse or subtly aging a background wall in a short film, this collection has the range and flexibility to do both. It’s cinematic, clean, and surprisingly efficient to use.</p>
<h2>What Makes ActionVFX Different?</h2>
<p>Many platforms offer a place to upload assets. But very few make contributing feel like a true creative collaboration.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Its focus on high-quality, production-ready assets that are curated specifically for VFX artists. As someone who works on complex simulations, I appreciate the consistency, realism, and variety that make integrating their elements into professional workflows seamless.”</p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<p>“I must say, they are very open to ideas, and it’s a pleasure working with them. The program helped me turn my creative experiments into valuable resources for other artists, while also motivating me to maintain high production standards in my personal work.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This is what we’re proud of. Our contributor platform is giving artists a reason to keep creating. A place to turn technical play into polished product. And a global audience that sees the value in every frame.</p>
<h2>The Value of Sharing Your Work</h2>
<p>At ActionVFX, we often hear from contributors that just knowing their work might be used in something larger is a massive creative motivator. For VFXMagic, that impact is deeply personal:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“It’s an incredible feeling to know that my work could become part of films, games, or commercials seen around the world. As an artist, there’s nothing more rewarding than seeing your efforts contribute to storytelling on a global scale.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And while the <a href="https://bit.ly/44Ga7So">Concrete Wall Cracks</a> collection hasn’t hit the big screen just yet, they’re watching closely.</p>
<p>“Not yet, but I’m really looking forward to seeing how other artists use it. That’s the most exciting part, watching your work become a small piece in someone else's big creative vision.”</p>
<h2>Filling the Gaps</h2>
<p>At its core, the ActionVFX library exists to fill production gaps — and this collection nails that goal.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“There aren’t many clean, high-quality wall crack simulations that are easy to composite and come with flexibility like selection passes. This kind of asset saves time for artists who want destruction details without building everything from scratch.”
When we say <em>&quot;crafted by artists, for artists,&quot;</em> this is what we mean.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>What’s Next from VFXMagic?</h2>
<p>The creative momentum isn’t slowing down. VFXMagic already has plans to expand their contributions with more types of destruction and realism-rich elements.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“If given the chance, I’d love to create a collection featuring glass cracks, metal tearing, cloth tearing, and large-scale earthquake-style destruction. These elements add a lot of impact and realism to action scenes and are always in demand across different types of projects.”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Become a ActionVFX Contributor</h2>
<p>So if you’re a VFX artist who’s passionate about sharing your tools with the community — just like VFXMagic, we’d love to hear from you. Until then, take a look at what they’ve built.
👉 Download the <a href="https://bit.ly/44Ga7So">Concrete Wall Cracks Collection</a> and see what happens when detail, usability, and creative intent come together.
High-quality VFX elements, crafted by artists for artists</p>


VFXMagic’s Concrete Wall Cracks collection shows what’s possible when artists create with production in mind. Learn how it was made.

Creating Concrete Wall Cracks 

A personal project into a go-to damage asset for filmmakers—plus why it’s easier than you think to do the same with ActionVFX

<p>When the ActionVFX team kicked off our recent asset production, we were focused on solving a real production gap. Artists were having to warp flat wounds, animating stills, or leaning on time-consuming paint overs just to sell a burn. We knew we could offer something smarter: realistic, animated practical burn wounds that react and disturb. That’s how we came to create the <a href="https://bit.ly/4nJ0BoR">Burning Flesh collection</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;We knew we could do something that would be animated and grotesque and would just get something really fresh and new that would fit well with like a body on fire or burn wounds&quot;.
<em>Zac VanHoy, ActionVFX’s Asset Development Supervisor.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Our goal was to create an asset that integrates into real workflows across horror, action, sci-fi — and sells the pain.</p>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/1920x1080/7ff69b64ae/burningflesh.gif" alt=""></p>
<h2>These Wounds Move</h2>
<p>Burn wounds in VFX are more than surface damage. They ripple, crackle, bubble. They respond to trauma, heat, movement. We built the <a href="https://bit.ly/4nJ0BoR">Burning Flesh collection</a> to do the same.
They’re fully animated practical elements, shot with blistering realism in high-resolution and designed to live inside your composite. Some assets pulse. Others shred or peel. All of them are deeply textured and deeply uncomfortable.
This makes them perfect for:</p>
<ul>
<li>Body-on-fire shots</li>
<li>Explosive aftermaths</li>
<li>Horror reveals</li>
<li>Sci-fi weapon burns</li>
<li>or supernatural attacks</li>
</ul>
<p>Because the elements are already reacting to heat and light, they comp in naturally. You spend less time selling the effect and more time building the story.</p>
<h2>Filming Practical Burning Flesh FX</h2>
<p>Making this collection meant committing to the kind of practical shoot you don’t fake.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“We also used some mixtures that you might would find in like a school project volcano… to get some fizzing and bubbling as well.”
<em>Zac VanHoy, ActionVFX’s Asset Development Supervisor.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p><img src="https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1002378/2000x1333/453ec359fe/fx-pros.jpg" alt=""></p>
<p>Collaborating with FX pros to build layered prosthetics and heat-reactive materials that would behave like burning flesh.</p>
<p>This shoot required full precision: prosthetics were timed to deform under heat; lighting rigs were calibrated to expose the wound textures at multiple burn stages. With controlled fire sources, blistering compounds, and high-speed capture, we were able to simulate how skin bubbles, splits, and chars in intense scenarios.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“It definitely gives you something that you're not going to be able to easily simulate in CG.”
<em>Zac VanHoy, ActionVFX’s Asset Development Supervisor.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Realistic Burn FX</h2>
<p>Burning Flesh is built for the kinds of moments that leave an audience stunned.
We made this because we saw too many burn effects fall flat. Zac VanHoy, our Asset Development Supervisor, led this project from early tests through to post-production. What came out of it is a toolset that bridges creativity and technical control.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;It’s something that is shot for real which always is a leg up… real fire, real explosions that we film… there’s still little nuances that you are going to get, imperfections that you're going to see when using and filming real objects and assets.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
<p>It hits that rare sweet spot: gross enough for horror, controlled enough for feature work, flexible enough for game cinematics, shorts, or commercial VFX.</p>
<p><strong>Ready to Use</strong>
The Burning Flesh collection is live now. Every clip is built with artists in mind, designed to work across After Effects, Nuke, Resolve, Fusion, Unreal, or whatever your pipeline calls for.
<em>Explore the collection:</em> 👉 <a href="https://www.actionvfx.com/collections/burning-flesh-stock-footage?position=1&amp;query_id=73d3235494df8cd40fcb756b62dc08f1">Burning Flesh Stock Footage Collection</a></p>
<p>Tag us <em>#MadeWithActionVFX</em> with your results, we love seeing how you use the assets.</p>
<p>If your next shot calls for trauma, tension, or something that makes people flinch — ActionVFX has the assets you need.</p>


Realistic burning flesh VFX assets—filmed practical effects to save time, boost realism, and outperform CG in fire and burn scenes.

BTS: How We Created the Burning Flesh Collection for VFX Artists

Whether you’re comping a post-explosion trauma shot or a body-on-fire horror sequence, nothing kills the realism faster than a wound that just sits there, unreactive to heat, motion, or lighting. The market is filled with flat textures, static decals, or digital paintovers that fall apart once you try to bring them to life.  So we built something new.