Twinmotion 2024.1 is here!

Twinmotion 2024.1 is here, and it’s packed with new features that will make your architectural visualizations even more stunning and immersive! In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the highlights, including animation sequencing, render layers, scattering tools, and more, as well as improvements to Lumen, Path Tracer, and bloom controls.

Animation sequencing tools

Twinmotion 2023.2 introduced the ability to import animated files. In this release, it’s a whole lot easier to work with those files with the new Sequence media type and Action Cam camera. Additionally, in the media preview window, you can view the path of the animated camera.

By combining these tools, you can:

Create intricate videos that synchronize animated files
Precisely add camera position keyframes over time
Incorporate camera movement pauses
Speed up or slow down movements
Retime keyframes automatically for a consistent camera speed

Render layers

With render layers, you can isolate different elements of your scene into separate layers by assigning Layer IDs to assets in your scene. These layers can be exported with included transparency (PND or EXR), or as simple black and white masks.

Small foliage from imported assets

Twinmotion’s extensive library includes a variety of trees and shrubs that incorporate smart effects like wind, seasonal color change, leaf loss, and snow. In 2024.1, you can now import your own assets and apply the new Foliage master material to it, giving you access to all the same effects and realistic translucency.

This new material comes with a choice of gradients for both color change and leaf loss across the year, supporting a wide range of tree species. Separate materials can be applied to foliage, blossoms, and fruit, giving full control over the coloring and timing of these elements.

High-fidelity fabrics

Standard and thin fabrics require a different approach when it comes to rendering. The new Fabric master material allows you to select from one of two updated shading models so you can simulate a wide range of textiles — including cotton, linen, silk, wool, polyester, and velvet — at higher fidelity. Ten new fabrics have been added to the Twinmotion library to get you started.

New scattering tools

Twinmotion already offers the ability to paint assets into your scene with a brush or scatter them across an entire surface, but this release takes it to a whole new level. You can now easily populate defined paths or areas of your scene with just the degree of randomness you need to make it look natural or constrained to a greater or lesser degree.

With a few clicks, you can create an open path using the Spacing tool or a closed one using the Area tool, and automatically apply your chosen assets to them. Then, adjust density, randomness, and other factors to your heart’s content.

Other improvements and enhancements

Deterministic animation

A new ‘Random seed’ value can be set for Animated Humans and the animation of characters, vehicles, and so on, along paths, so you can create and play identical animation sequences in exported media. You can also adjust the random seed to change the result.

Parenting Animators

You can now create more sophisticated animations—such as a helicopter taking off with a spinning rotor or a solar system—thanks to the new ability to combine Animators (Rotators and Translators) by parenting one onto the other in the Scene graph.

Filmback options

Filmmakers can now constrain the camera view to match the sensor or film frame dimensions of common real-world cameras, as well as using custom values for the height and width. The result? You can have confidence that the shots you frame in Twinmotion are achievable in the actual shoot—a must when it comes to accurate previs, for example.

Enhancements to Lumen and Path Tracer

This release sees performance improvements for hardware ray tracing, benefiting both Lumen and the Path Tracer. Lumen also receives additional global performance optimizations, support for more lights, and higher-fidelity results with translucent meshes — which are now captured in reflections and refractions. Meanwhile, the Path Tracer sees optimizations on shader compilation and performance for decals and volumetric fog.

New bloom controls

When you look at bright lights through real-world cameras, you’ll see an effect known as bloom. This release offers new controls that enable you to adjust bloom intensity and create starburst effects, with a choice of 12 different pattern textures.

Ambient occlusion texture input

You can now add a texture for ambient occlusion (AO) on the standard material, and AO textures are now imported by default on Quixel, Sketchfab, and glTF assets. This provides added contrast by reinforcing shadowed parts of the models when rendering in Standard or Lumen modes.

Download and try Twinmotion today.

Twinmotion is free to individuals and small businesses with less than $1 million in revenue.