Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow (April 13, 2026, 5 days)

About Course

Authentic Hairstyles – Full Overview – English version

Authentic Hairstyles – Full Overview – German version

Learn professional hair and fur simulation inside a real VFX pipeline. This short, intensive course reveals the complete process behind lifelike hair creation using Maya’s XGen – the same methods used in studio productions.
Instead of theoretical demos, you’ll build a dynamic, production-ready hair system that can adapt to multiple shots efficiently.
Perfect for artists who want to elevate their character work and understand how professionals think, optimize, and deliver results.

Daily Schedule

*Course descriptions are subject to change as the software evolves and new tools are introduced, ensuring that our course content remains current and accurately reflects the latest updates.

*Die Kursbeschreibungen können sich ändern, wenn sich die Software weiterentwickelt und neue Tools hinzukommen, sodass unsere Kursinhalte stets aktuell bleiben und die neuesten Updates widerspiegeln.

Understand how and why we work with dedicated XGen patches
Learn how to create caches out of your animation
Dive into the world of XGen by creating descriptions and collections, and create guides for your character's hair
Take your guides to the next level by converting them to dynamic hair curves, ensuring they behave realistically
Gather the caches to bring your XGen to life
Learn the final steps to bring all elements together for rendering, making your character come to life with realistic hair and fur

Course Content

Day 1 – Kickoff
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” - Albert Einstein …especially when Houdini crashes and imagination is literally all you have left. Welcome to the course.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 1

Day 2 – Creativity Boost
“Creativity is intelligence having fun.” - Albert Einstein So if your simulation explodes unexpectedly today… congratulations, your intelligence is having a lot of fun.

Day 3 – Technical Motivation
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” - Dalai Lama Just like small parameter tweaks can completely break your scene. Power comes in tiny values!

Day 4 – FX Spirit
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela Like that render that said “2 hours remaining”… for 19 hours. Keep going - you’re almost there!

Day 5 – Farewell Day
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” - Steve Jobs And if you love CGI and VFX, you’re officially doomed (in a good way). Keep creating magic - and don’t forget to bring snacks to your next render marathon.

Add this certificate to your resume to demonstrate your skills & increase your chances of getting noticed.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow (April 13, 2026, 5 days)

About Course

What Will You Learn?

Course Content

Day 1 – Kickoff
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” - Albert Einstein …especially when Houdini crashes and imagination is literally all you have left. Welcome to the course.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 1

Day 2 – Creativity Boost
“Creativity is intelligence having fun.” - Albert Einstein So if your simulation explodes unexpectedly today… congratulations, your intelligence is having a lot of fun.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 2

Day 3 – Technical Motivation
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” - Dalai Lama Just like small parameter tweaks can completely break your scene. Power comes in tiny values!

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 3

Day 4 – FX Spirit
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela Like that render that said “2 hours remaining”… for 19 hours. Keep going - you’re almost there!

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 4

Day 5 – Farewell Day
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” - Steve Jobs And if you love CGI and VFX, you’re officially doomed (in a good way). Keep creating magic - and don’t forget to bring snacks to your next render marathon.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 5

Earn a certificate

Quick Links

Resources

Support

About Course

What Will You Learn?

Course Content

Day 1 – Kickoff “Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” - Albert Einstein …especially when Houdini crashes and imagination is literally all you have left. Welcome to the course.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 1

Day 2 – Creativity Boost “Creativity is intelligence having fun.” - Albert Einstein So if your simulation explodes unexpectedly today… congratulations, your intelligence is having a lot of fun.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 2

Day 3 – Technical Motivation “If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” - Dalai Lama Just like small parameter tweaks can completely break your scene. Power comes in tiny values!

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 3

Day 4 – FX Spirit “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela Like that render that said “2 hours remaining”… for 19 hours. Keep going - you’re almost there!

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 4

Day 5 – Farewell Day “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” - Steve Jobs And if you love CGI and VFX, you’re officially doomed (in a good way). Keep creating magic - and don’t forget to bring snacks to your next render marathon.

Authentic Hairstyles Animating XGen in a shot-based workflow, Day 5

Earn a certificate

Quick Links

Resources

Support

Day 1 – Kickoff
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” - Albert Einstein …especially when Houdini crashes and imagination is literally all you have left. Welcome to the course.

Day 2 – Creativity Boost
“Creativity is intelligence having fun.” - Albert Einstein So if your simulation explodes unexpectedly today… congratulations, your intelligence is having a lot of fun.

Day 3 – Technical Motivation
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” - Dalai Lama Just like small parameter tweaks can completely break your scene. Power comes in tiny values!

Day 4 – FX Spirit
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela Like that render that said “2 hours remaining”… for 19 hours. Keep going - you’re almost there!

Day 5 – Farewell Day
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” - Steve Jobs And if you love CGI and VFX, you’re officially doomed (in a good way). Keep creating magic - and don’t forget to bring snacks to your next render marathon.