Maxwell Render is an unbiased 3D render engine, developed by Next Limit Technologies in Madrid, Spain. This stand-alone software is used in the film, animation, and VFX industry, as well as in architectural and product design visualization. It offers various plug-ins for 3D/CAD and post production applications.
Overview Maxwell Render was released to the public as an early alpha in December 2004 (after two years of internal development) utilizing a global illumination (GI) algorithm based on a metropolis light transport variation. Next Limit Technologies released its latest version of Maxwell Render V4.2 in February 2018.
The physically correct rendering engine was originally used as a tool for animation and visual effects. Maxwell Render's trademark Multilight feature, which permits the changing of light intensities and colors in real time, was used in the feature film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
General features
Physically-based advantages Accuracy Advanced Ray Tracing Physical Sky Fast scene set-up Layer-based materials Multilight
Multilight™ FIRE: Fast Interactive Rendering Immediate feedback to make adjustments to lighting, materials and camera settings Materials Realistic Camera Model Real camera parameters: f-Stop, Focal length, Shutter speed, ISO, film size, diaphragm blades Memory Saving Instances Accurate 3D Motion Blur Hair, Grass and Fur Compatible with many hair systems: Maya Shave and a Haircut, Maya hair, 3ds Max hair, CINEMA hair, Ornatrix Volumetrics Particle Rendering Integration with RealFlow software Maxwell Sea Maxwell Volumetric Maxwell Grass Maxwell Scatter
Industry standard support Alembic AxF Deep compositing Pixar Open SubDiv Python scripting VDB
Network Rendering Post Production Post production plug-ins Channels Custom Alphas
Interaction with other software Maxwell Render for SketchUp is a simplified version of Maxwell Render, fully integrated into the SketchUp software application. Users can set the camera, lighting and environment, apply SketchUp or Maxwell MXM materials, and render and save image files. It is widely used in product design, architectural and engineering visualization.
Plug-ins 3D application plug-ins SolidWorks SoftImage MODO MAYA Houdini Rhinoceros SketchUp LightWave Graphisoft ArchiCAD Bonzai 3D REVIT 3DS MAX CINEMA 4D form Z Postproduction application plug-ins Photoshop Nuke After effects Third party supported plug-ins solidThinking blender
Version history 2004 Maxwell Render Alpha version 2005 Maxwell Render Beta version 2006 Maxwell Render 1.0
Maxwell Render 1.1 2007 Maxwell Render 1.5
Maxwell Render 1.6
Maxwell Render 1.6.1 2008 Maxwell Render 1.7 2009 Maxwell Render 2.0 2011 Maxwell Render Suite 2.6
Maxwell for Google SketchUp 2012 Maxwell Render 2.7
Maxwell Render Learning Edition
Maxwell Render 2.7.1 2013 Maxwell for SketchUp
Maxwell Render 3.0 2014 Maxwell Render 3.0.1
Maxwell Render 3.0.1.1 beta 2015 Maxwell Render 3.1
Maxwell Render 3.1.0.2
Maxwell Render 3.22016Maxwell Render 4.0.0.112017Maxwell Render 4.0.1.1 Maxwell Render 4.12018Maxwell Render 4.2.0.2 Maxwell Render 4.2.0.32019Maxwell Render 5.0
See also Ray tracing Kerkythea - A free unbiased renderer LuxRender - An open source unbiased renderer Octane Render - A commercial unbiased GPU-accelerated renderer
References
External links Official Website Maxwell Render V3 Next Limit Technologies (Parent Company) Official Forum Maxwell Render Resources Maxwell Render Tutorials Maxwell Render on Facebook Maxwell Render on Twitter