3D Architectural Animation Services

What is the difference between architectural animation and a 3D walkthrough?

A 3D walkthrough is the eye-level kind: the camera moves through the rooms at walking pace. Architectural animation is the wider term, and on this page it means the films shot from outside: the approach, the massing, the landscape and the building in its street. For a film through the interior, see our 3D walkthrough services. Both come out of the same model, so one project can carry both.

Exterior flythrough animation

The camera lifts off the ground and moves around the building: the approach from the street, the entrance, the facade in daylight and at dusk, the roofline against the sky. It is the format for a building that has to be read in its context.

Aerial and masterplan animation

For a scheme bigger than one building, the camera starts high and comes down: the plot in its neighbourhood, the phases, the routes between blocks, the open space. A planning committee or an investor reads a masterplan film in a minute where a plan drawing takes a meeting.

Combined exterior and interior films

One film that lands outside and goes in: from the approach to the front door, through the lobby to the apartment and out to the view. Developers ask for it when a scheme has to sell as a whole, and the interior part is shot to the same rules as our walkthroughs.

Architectural animation for architects

An architect's film usually has three audiences: the competition jury, the planning committee and the client who signs off the design. The jury wants the idea in 60 seconds, the committee wants the building in its street, the client wants to see what changes on the ground. We storyboard all three from one route and one model, so a design change updates every version.

Architectural animation for real estate developers

For an off-plan launch the film runs on the sales gallery screen, on property portals and in social ads, and it is cut from the same model as the launch stills on our real estate rendering page. A 60-second film is the usual starting point.

Can the film show the building on its real site?

Yes. The site is built the way we build it for our exterior stills: for Grosvenor Place in Belgravia, made for Savills, the views sit over a laser scan of the existing limestone facade; for the Seychelles island resort the island was rebuilt from satellite imagery, sun and tide data before anything was rendered. A film uses the same site model, so the building sits on the ground it will stand on.

What do you need from us?

• the model (Revit, AutoCAD, SketchUp, Rhino or FBX) or 2D plans, sections and elevations;
• the site plan and the landscape plan, plus any survey, drone or site photos;
• the materials of the facade and the hard landscaping;
• the deadline that matters and where the film will be shown.

From brief to delivery in seven steps

1. You send the files and the deadline.
2. We reply with an estimate within 1 hour.
3. We agree the camera path on the site plan.
4. You review a rough preview of the path before anything is rendered.
5. Two rounds of revisions on the preview and the look are included in the estimate; more are available on request.
6. We render, edit, grade and add the voiceover.
7. You receive the 4K master, with the final 48 hours before your deadline held for render and post.

The model is built in 3ds Max and rendered in V-Ray and Corona on our own farm of six Threadripper nodes; the full stack is on our 3D walkthrough page.

How much does architectural animation cost?

The same model as our walkthroughs: £2,500 covers setup and the first 60 seconds of 4K animation, then £1,000 for each additional 30 seconds. These prices cover the film, not the 3D model of the project: building the building and its site from your drawings is quoted on top, by size and detail. When the film comes with a CGI package for the same scheme, the model is already built and is not charged twice. The calculator is on our price list.

How long does an architectural animation take?

From two weeks at the least, scaling with the site and the runtime. The estimate states the delivery date with the price, and the final 48 hours before your deadline stay held for render and post.

How long should an architectural animation be?

An exterior film is set by the route rather than the floor area: a single building reads in 60 seconds, a masterplan with phases needs longer. We set the runtime against the site plan in the estimate, because a film that overstays loses the room.

• The film: a 4K master in MP4 or MOV, with sound design and AI voiceover included in the edit.
• Social cuts: shorter vertical and square versions for LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok.
• Hero stills: high-resolution frames pulled from the film for the planning pack, the brochure and the site hoarding.

Do we get the source 3D files?

We deliver the final video and image files. Releasing the source project files is a transfer of intellectual property and is handled as a separate licence.

The same model also gives you the still images for the scheme: see our architectural visualization service.

What should I look for in an architectural animation company?

Three things. A site that looks real: ask how the context is built, from a survey, a scan or satellite data, or drawn by eye. A render farm behind the deadline, so the last 48 hours are a commitment rather than a hope. And a price you can put in a budget before the first call.

Do you make architectural animation for projects in Dubai, the UAE or Saudi Arabia?

Yes. Our Gulf work so far is interior: the NEOM Innovation Hub walkthrough film in Saudi Arabia and the Siro One Za'abeel VR tour in Dubai. Exterior films for the region run on the same pipeline from London; only the timezone changes.