Maxon Computer GmbH is a German software company that produces software for content creators. The company’s product lines include the 3D software Cinema 4D, the Red Giant tools for editing, motion design and filmmaking, Redshift renderer and the digital sculpting and painting software ZBrush as well as the mobile sculpting app Forger. The company’s cross-platform benchmarking application Cinebench is used by developers, reviewers and users to evaluate hardware performance.
 | |
| Industry | Computer graphics Benchmark |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1985 |
| Founder | Harald Egel, Uwe Bärtels and Harald Schneider |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | CEO David McGavran |
| Products | Cinema 4D ZBrush Redshift (renderer) Red Giant Forger Universe Cinebench |
| Owner | Nemetschek (2000–present) |
Number of employees | 300 |
History
editMaxon was founded in 1985 by three college students, Harald Egel, Uwe Bärtels and Harald Schneider.[1][2] They had purchased their first computer, an Atari ST, and agreed to write a book about the basic programming language that ran on the ATARI ST, the GFA-BASIC Buch.
The first issue of ST-Computer was released in January 1986.
In 1991, after two years of development, the first version of Cinema 4D was launched in December 1993. This was followed in May 1994 with an upgrade to Cinema 4D V1.5, with improvements in rendering quality. Cinema 4D became Maxon Computer's flagship product.[3]
In January 2000, Nemetschek, a leader in architectural CAD Software, bought a 70% stake in Maxon in order to acquire a high-quality renderer for their CAD models, as well as to enter the multimedia market and later introduced version 6 of Cinema 4D XL
Cinema 4D Release 10 was presented in 2006.
Announcement of Cinema 4D Release 11 at Siggraph show, Los Angeles, in 2008.
The company's program Cinebench is used to test computer hardware capabilities.[4] The most recent version is R23 released in 2020.[5]
Maxon is considered one of the major companies in 3D animation and graphics.[6]
Maxon acquired Redshift in mid-2019,[7] merged with Red Giant, creators of unique tools for editors, VFX artists, and motion designers later that year,[8] and acquired Pixologic, the makers of ZBrush in 2021.[9]
References
edit- ^ Davydova, Jena (9 September 2019). "Animation Software Market is Expected to Rise at a Remarkable CAGR..." Innovative Reports. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Arndt von Koenigsmarck (2002). Maxon Cinema 4D 7: A Workshop for 2D/3D Graphics Pros. Peachpit Press. pp. 12–. ISBN 978-0-201-73136-1.
- ^ Rick Parent, David S. Ebert, David Gould, Markus Gross, Chris Kazmier, Charles John Lumsden, Richard Keiser, Alberto Menache, Matthias Müller, F. Kenton Musgrave, Mark V. Pauly, Darwyn Peachey, Ken Perlin, Hanspeter Pfister, Jason Sharpe, Mark R. Wilkins, Martin Wicke, Nicholas Woolridge, Steve Worley. Computer Animation Complete: All-in-One: Learn Motion Capture, Characteristic, Point-Based, and Maya Winning Techniques. Morgan Kaufmann. 13 October 2009. p. 284. ISBN 978-0-12-378564-0.
- ^ Buzzi, Matthew (29 August 2019). "Razer Blade 15 Advanced Model (Mid-2019, OLED)". PCMAG. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Legrand, David (6 March 2019). "Test Cinebench R20 est là, uniquement pour tester des CPU". inpact-hardware.com (in French). Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Doan, Kenneth (11 September 2019). "3D Mapping Market 2019 explosive growth with technical aspects by major players Autodesk, Apple Inc, Google, SAAB, Intermap Technologies, Cybercity 3D, ESRI, Topcon Corporation". Tribune City. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ "Maxon buys Redshift | CG Channel". Retrieved 24 April 2020.
- ^ "Maxon and Red Giant to Combine Forces 2971699 | NEMETSCHEK". www.nemetschek.com. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
- ^ "Maxon Announces an Agreement to Acquire the Assets of Pixologic, Makers of ZBrush". Yahoo.com. Retrieved 16 December 2021.