Redshift
Redshift is a production-grade GPU renderer built for speed and flexibility, offering support for complex scenes, ray tracing, and tight integration with tools like Cinema 4D, Maya, Houdini, Blender, and more.
Redshift is a powerful, biased GPU renderer developed by Maxon, designed to handle the needs of high-end 3D production while keeping render times low. It supports out-of-core rendering, complex shaders, and advanced ray-traced features, making it ideal for animation, cinematic VFX, motion graphics, and product visualization. Redshift balances speed and realism, giving artists full creative control without sacrificing performance.
What It Does Best
Fast GPU Rendering: Leverages NVIDIA GPUs to accelerate complex scenes and reduce render times dramatically.
Flexible Shading & Lighting: Supports advanced materials, subsurface scattering, volumetrics, and ray-traced GI.
Wide Integration: Natively supports Cinema 4D, Houdini, Maya, 3ds Max, and Blender (experimental).
Who It’s For
Motion Designers: Rendering animations and graphics with high visual fidelity and tight deadlines.
VFX & 3D Studios: Creating photoreal effects, environments, and assets for film and TV.
Freelancers & Indie Creators: Looking for a performant rendering solution with professional output.
What Makes It Unique
Redshift stands out for its combination of GPU acceleration and production-grade rendering features. Unlike some real-time engines, it offers full control over shading, AOVs, and render passes—while outperforming many CPU renderers in speed. It’s also tightly integrated into Maxon’s creative ecosystem.
Before You Start
Requires an NVIDIA GPU with CUDA support; Windows and macOS (Metal) are supported.
Sold via subscription or included in the Maxon One suite (with Cinema 4D, ZBrush, etc.).
Supports ACES, OCIO, and integration with professional VFX pipelines.
Final Thoughts
Redshift is a reliable GPU renderer for artists and studios working on high-quality animations, product shots, or VFX sequences—delivering cinematic visuals with production-ready tools and fast turnaround.