Redshift Proxies in Cinema 4D: Export, Materials, Texture Paths and Instancing
Redshift Proxies (.rs) keep heavy assets out of the scene until render time. The main points from Maxon's documentation:
- Export and place: File > Export > Redshift Proxy (*.rs), then Create > Redshift Proxy and point File Path to the .rs file.
- Why they are fast: Proxies load on demand and add almost no scene translation time, because the export cost is paid once.
- Changing materials: Materials From: Proxy File, Object, or Scene (match by name and prefix); only vertex data used at export is kept.
- Moving to another machine: A proxy references textures, VDBs and other proxies by path. Keep the same folders, or map paths with REDSHIFT_PATHOVERRIDE_FILE or _STRING.
- Rendering proxy-heavy scenes: On iRender servers with a 2 TB NVMe drive, you copy the project with its proxy and texture folders and render it with the same paths as on your workstation.
Redshift Proxies let you keep forests, crowds, set dressing and other heavy assets out of the Cinema 4D scene until the moment Redshift needs them. This guide covers when proxies help, how to export and place them, how to change their materials, and why a proxy that renders on your workstation can lose its textures on another machine.
Checked against the Cinema 4D and Redshift documentation, November 2026.
1. What is a Redshift Proxy and when should you use one?
A Redshift Proxy is a .rs file that stores geometry, materials and other scene data in a format Redshift can load directly. Cinema 4D only holds a lightweight placeholder, and Redshift loads the contents on demand, when a ray reaches the proxy (Maxon: Redshift Proxy object).
When a Redshift Proxy helps and when it gets in the way
From Maxon's Intro to Proxies documentation.
| Advantages | Limitations |
|---|---|
| Loaded on demand: only uses resources when a ray reaches the proxy's bounding box. | Edits mean changing the source scene and exporting again. |
| Almost no scene translation time; the export cost is paid once. | Geometry cannot be deformed after export; only position, rotation and scale can be animated. |
| Optimized on-disk format Redshift can use directly. | Animated proxies are per-frame caches and can be heavy. |
| Can hold meshes, hair, instances, volumes, lights, materials and even other proxies. | The original mesh cannot be recovered from the .rs file, so keep the source. |
Sources: Maxon Redshift: Intro to Proxies.
2. How to export and use a Redshift Proxy (step by step)
Settings checklist (copy or follow line by line):
Before export ........... final materials assigned; motion blur on if the proxy moves File › Export › Redshift Proxy (*.rs) Objects ............... All / Selected Objects Proxy Origin .......... as needed Frame range ........... for animated proxies Create › Redshift Proxy object File Path ............. path to the .rs file (keep it in the project folder) Preview ............... Off / Bounding Box / Mesh (+ Preview Percentage) Many copies ............. instance one proxy (Cloner or instances)
Step 1: Prepare the asset
Finish modeling and shading. Assign the materials you want to keep, because only vertex data those materials use is exported. Enable motion blur in the render settings if the proxy will move.
Step 2: Export
Choose File > Export > Redshift Proxy (*.rs), pick All or Selected Objects, and set Proxy Origin, compression and, for animation, the frame range.
Step 3: Place it
Create a Redshift Proxy object from the Create menu, set File Path to the .rs file, and choose a viewport Preview: Off, Bounding Box or Mesh with a Preview Percentage.
Step 4: Instance it
For many copies, instance the one proxy rather than loading it again; use a Cloner or instances with fixed tessellation.
Step 5: Check paths before sending the scene
Keep the .rs files, textures and VDBs in the project folder so they travel together.
Quick check: open the scene from a copied project folder on another drive; if any proxy shows as missing, its File Path is absolute or the .rs file is outside the project folder.
Options that decide how a proxy behaves
Export options from File > Export > Redshift Proxy (*.rs) and the Materials From modes of the Redshift Proxy object.
| Option | What it does | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Export: All / Selected | Exports the whole scene or only selected objects. | Export assets one by one for reuse. |
| Polygon Connectivity | Needed only to add tessellation or displacement after placing the proxy; increases file size. | Leave off if the asset already has its displacement. |
| Compress Data | Smaller files, slower export and loading. | On for network storage, off for fast local SSDs. |
| Proxy Origin | World Origin keeps global transforms; Objects Bounds centers on the bounds midpoint. | Objects Bounds for assets you will scatter. |
| Animation / Range | Exports a sequence named like name.0001.rs. | Enable motion blur before export if you need it. |
| Materials From: Proxy File | Uses materials saved in the proxy. | Default for finished assets. |
| Materials From: Object | Overrides all materials with the material on the placeholder object. | Quick clay or recolor of a whole asset. |
| Materials From: Scene (Match by name and prefix) | Replaces individual materials by matching names, using the Prefix field. | Look-dev changes without re-export; recommended when sharing proxies between applications. |
3. Why does a proxy lose its textures on another machine?
Because a proxy does not contain the textures themselves. It stores references to textures, VDBs and other proxies by their file paths. The figure shows what happens when the proxy moves and those paths do not.
If the render machine has the files at different paths, the proxy loads but cannot find what it references. Either keep the same folder layout, or set REDSHIFT_PATHOVERRIDE_FILE to a text file of “from” and “to” path pairs, or REDSHIFT_PATHOVERRIDE_STRING with the pairs directly. If both are set, the file version takes precedence (Maxon: Redshift environment variables).
4. How to instance proxies efficiently
- One proxy, many instances: Maxon notes that instancing a single proxy is much more efficient for memory and performance than placing many separate copies.
- Fixed tessellation only: adaptive tessellation cannot be used when instancing in Redshift.
- Material overrides on instances: remember that stripped vertex data, such as unused UVs, cannot be restored by an override material.
- MoGraph: clone the proxy with a Cloner in Render Instance or Multi-Instance mode, as described in our MoGraph guide.
5. Where should you render proxy-heavy scenes: SaaS or IaaS farm?
Proxies make scenes small to open but depend on external files. A SaaS render farm works when its uploader collects every .rs, texture and VDB with matching paths. An IaaS render farm such as iRender gives you a full machine: you copy the project folder with the same layout, fix any path with a path override if needed, and check the proxies in the RenderView before rendering.
These videos show Cinema 4D and Redshift jobs on iRender multi-GPU servers.
On iRender you rent a whole server with 2x, 4x or 8x RTX 5090 or RTX 4090 GPUs, with Cinema 4D and Redshift pre-installed; Prime members get activated Cinema 4D and Redshift licenses. Related: MoGraph clones in Redshift and Redshift displacement and tessellation. Real render times are in our Redshift benchmark, and plans are on the Cinema 4D Redshift render farm page.
6. Redshift Proxy FAQ
How do I create a Redshift Proxy in Cinema 4D?
Select the objects, choose File > Export > Redshift Proxy (*.rs) and set the export options. Then create a Redshift Proxy object with Create > Redshift Proxy and set its File Path to the exported .rs file, or enable Add Proxy to Scene during export.
Why is my Redshift proxy missing textures on another machine?
A proxy file references textures, VDBs and other proxies by their paths. If those files are not at the same location on the render machine, Redshift cannot load them. Copy them with the same folder layout or use REDSHIFT_PATHOVERRIDE_FILE or REDSHIFT_PATHOVERRIDE_STRING to map old paths to new ones.
How do I change materials on a Redshift proxy?
On the Redshift Proxy object, set Materials From to Object to override everything with the placeholder’s material, or to Scene to replace individual materials by matching names and an optional prefix. Proxy File keeps the embedded materials.
Can a Redshift proxy be deformed or animated?
The geometry inside a proxy cannot be deformed after export, but the proxy object can be moved, rotated and scaled. For deforming animation, export an animated proxy sequence, which stores one file per frame.
Should I instance one proxy or load it many times?
Instance it. Maxon notes that creating one proxy and instancing it is much more efficient for memory and performance than loading many copies. Instanced proxies only support fixed tessellation.
Does motion blur work with Redshift proxies?
Yes, if motion blur was enabled in the render settings when you exported the proxy. Settings such as frame duration are stored at export, so changing them means exporting again.
