Cinema4D MCP Server

How to use

You use an MCP client (Claude Desktop) to send commands to the Cinema4D MCP Server. Start the Cinema4D socket server inside Cinema 4D, then access MCP tools in Claude Desktop by looking for the hammer icon in the input box. The available tool commands let you query the scene, create objects, modify transforms, manage MoGraph, run Python inside Cinema4D, render frames or previews, and more. Initiate actions like adding objects, adjusting materials, setting keyframes, or executing Python code directly from Claude and have them applied in Cinema 4D.

To ensure smooth operation, run the Cinema4D socket server first, then open Claude Desktop and select the Cinema4D MCP tools. Use commands to perform tasks such as creating cameras, lights, MoGraph clones, and dynamics, or to render previews and frames. The system returns context for created objects so that subsequent commands can reference those objects reliably using their identifiers.

How to install

Prerequisites: You need Cinema 4D (R2024+ recommended) and Python 3.10 or higher for the MCP Server component.

1) Clone the project repository.

git clone https://github.com/ttiimmaacc/cinema4d-mcp.git
cd cinema4d-mcp

2) Install the MCP Server package in editable mode.

pip install -e .

3) Make the wrapper script executable.

chmod +x bin/cinema4d-mcp-wrapper

4) Set up the Cinema 4D plugin inside Cinema 4D and start the socket server.

- Copy the file c4d_plugin/mcp_server_plugin.pyp to Cinema 4D's plugins directory (path varies by OS). After copying, open Cinema 4D and start the socket server from Extensions > Socket Server Plugin.

5) Configure Claude Desktop to connect to the MCP server.

// Development/unpublished server configuration
"mcpServers": {
  "cinema4d": {
    "command": "python3",
    "args": ["/Users/username/cinema4d-mcp/main.py"]
  }
}

6) If you publish the server, configure Claude Desktop to use the wrapper command.

"mcpServers": {
  "cinema4d": {
    "command": "cinema4d-mcp-wrapper",
    "args": []
  }
}

Additional sections

Configuration and troubleshooting steps are described below to help you get the MCP server running smoothly and to diagnose common issues.

get_scene_info

Get summary information about the active Cinema 4D scene, including object counts, camera, and scene state.

list_objects

List all objects in the scene with their hierarchical structure.

group_objects

Group selected objects under a new null to organize the scene.

execute_python

Run custom Python code inside Cinema 4D to perform actions or automate tasks.

save_scene

Save the current Cinema 4D project to disk.

load_scene

Load a .c4d file into the current scene.

set_keyframe

Set a keyframe on a specified object property such as position or rotation.

add_primitive

Add a primitive shape (cube, sphere, cone, etc.) to the scene.

modify_object

Modify transform or attributes of an existing object.

create_abstract_shape

Create an organic, non-standard abstract shape.

create_camera

Add a new camera to the scene.

animate_camera

Animate a camera along a path (linear or spline-based).

create_light

Add a light source to the scene.

create_material

Create a standard Cinema 4D material.

apply_material

Apply a material to a target object.

apply_shader

Generate and apply a stylized or procedural shader.

validate_redshift_materials

Check Redshift material setup and connections.

create_mograph_cloner

Add a MoGraph Cloner with various layout options.

add_effector

Add a MoGraph Effector such as Random or Plain to the clone.

apply_mograph_fields

Add and link a MoGraph Field to objects.

create_soft_body

Add a Soft Body tag to an object for dynamics.

apply_dynamics

Apply rigid or soft body physics to objects.

render_frame

Render a frame and save to disk (file-based output).