Maxon, the makers of the highly regarded Cinema 4D digital content creation (DCC) software, has decided to enter the crowded and competitive real-time architectural visualization software market with a brand new plugin solution.
Their new solution will function as a plugin that extends the capabilities of popular BIM and 3D design solutions used by architects globally. They are entering the market with a plugin for Nemetschek sister company Vectorworks first, but others will soon follow.
Real-Time Redshift
Maxon has arguably possessed the world’s best and fastest rendering engine in Redshift for years. The company’s technology has empowered top artists to achieve the impossible with imagery in multiple creative disciplines, from Hollywood to architecture. However, typical architects have generally not leveraged Redshift as it’s a tool that would be found in 3D visualization agencies and studios. Now that is changing with Maxon bringing the power of Cinema 4D and Redshift to the real-world, real-time architectural design workflow that has become the standard way architects are now working.
Something big is coming indeed! Maxon is coming to the ArchViz market in a big way with new real-time plugin solutions for all the major BIM and design modeling tools.
The company’s new solution will first work with Vectorworks, allowing Vectorworks-based architects to move from real-time previews to stunning final renders within a unified ecosystem.
Maxon will preview its new solution in partnership with Vectorworks at the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design 2025 in Boston, June 5-6, 2025, at booth 563.
“By combining the BIM design intelligence of Vectorworks with the cinematic power of Maxon rendering technology, we’re delivering more than just a plugin. We’re giving architects a powerful yet intuitive tool that elevates their work visually, without adding complexity, so their designs can be expressed as intended with clarity and emotion,” said David McGavran, CEO of Maxon. “This is a major milestone in Maxon’s mission to empower every artist across industries.”
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“We are dedicated to empowering our customers with tools tailored to their specific workflows. Our new partnership with Maxon addresses a significant challenge faced by AEC professionals: the need for a real-time rendering solution that seamlessly integrates with Vectorworks and evolves alongside it,” said Vectorworks Senior Director of Rendering Dave Donley. “By developing this integration with direct input from our users and ensuring feature parity for both Mac and Windows from the outset, we are providing our customers with a reliable and future-ready solution. With Maxon’s proven rendering technology, this integration will introduce powerful new features that streamline Vectorworks customers’ workflows, reduce friction in the design-to-visualization process, and enable them to fully express their limitless design vision.”
Product Details
Maxon’s new offering features real-time visualization, smart asset libraries for architectural realism, cross-platform performance, and powerful workflow management. And with a simple click of a button the scene that is created inside Vectorworks with the new Maxon plugin can be sent to Cinema 4D for more advanced architectural visualizations, including advanced procedural animations and simulations.
Key features include:
- Native plugin — features intuitive controls and is seamlessly integrated within the Vectorworks BIM environment, providing a unified ecosystem
- Cinematic visual fidelity — very high quality visuals create emotional resonance and realism using the same Maxon technology used to create rich visuals users see in feature films and television.
- Real-Time workflow — rendering happens in real-time in a separate plugin window sync’d with the primary Vectorworks viewports. As users work in either updates happen in the other window.
- Cross-platform support — unlike many other competing solutions on the market, the new Maxon real-time Redshift-based rendering solution works on both Mac and Windows platforms.
Importantly, the material libraries of Vectorworks are compatible with the new Redshift plugin’s rendering capabilities and some materials will be auto-up-dated with their equivalents from the Maxon solution’s asset library. “One of the most interesting things about our solution is that it is 100 percent Redshift technology from end to end,” says McGavran. “So you will start in Vectorworks and you’ll be using Redshift technology and all of the assets that we have in our Maxon asset browser.”
More Info to Come
Architosh will be publishing an in-depth feature next week that will likely answer more questions that readers will have about this news. So stay tuned!