Hop,
As I do not have yet any video making-off of the short, just a few screens to show you the type of effects done with Houdini.
Pop simulation + Particlefluidsurface, rendered with Mantra
Pop simulation + Metaballs, rendered with Mantra
As you can see, the goal was not to do a complex simulation, but a working one. After, it's more a compositing work and trying to obtain something 2D.
It is my first short like this but the 2D/3D mix was something very interesting to do