# Filament — Real-Time Physically Based Rendering Engine by Google

> A cross-platform PBR rendering engine for Android, iOS, Windows, Linux, macOS, and WebGL2.

## Install

Save as a script file and run:

# Filament — Real-Time Physically Based Rendering Engine by Google

## Quick Use
```bash
git clone https://github.com/google/filament.git
cd filament
./build.sh release
```

## Introduction
Filament is an open-source real-time physically based rendering (PBR) engine created by Google. It targets mobile platforms first but runs on Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows, and WebGL2, making it a versatile choice for 3D applications and visualization.

## What Filament Does
- Renders physically based materials with image-based lighting
- Supports glTF 2.0 model loading out of the box
- Provides a material system with a custom shading language
- Offers post-processing effects like bloom, SSAO, and tone mapping
- Includes tools for baking environment maps and compiling materials

## Architecture Overview
Filament uses a retained-mode rendering architecture with a multithreaded backend. The engine abstracts GPU APIs (Vulkan, Metal, OpenGL ES, WebGL) behind a unified driver layer. The material system compiles shader code at build time into optimized per-platform binaries using the matc compiler.

## Self-Hosting & Configuration
- Build from source using CMake on Linux/macOS/Windows
- Android builds use Gradle with bundled AAR artifacts
- iOS builds produce universal frameworks via CMake
- Configure rendering quality with Engine::Config at initialization
- Material definitions use .mat files compiled by the matc tool

## Key Features
- Mobile-first design with low overhead and small binary size
- Full PBR pipeline conforming to the Google Filament design document
- Multithreaded rendering with automatic GPU command batching
- Built-in glTF viewer (gltf_viewer) for rapid asset preview
- Java/Kotlin bindings for native Android integration

## Comparison with Similar Tools
- **Three.js** — web-only, JavaScript; Filament is native C++ with WebGL export
- **Babylon.js** — browser-focused; Filament prioritizes mobile native performance
- **bgfx** — lower-level rendering abstraction without a built-in PBR pipeline
- **Ogre3D** — general 3D engine; Filament is leaner with a PBR-first approach
- **wgpu** — Rust GPU abstraction layer; Filament ships a full rendering pipeline

## FAQ
**Q: Does Filament include a scene graph or ECS?**
A: No. Filament provides rendering primitives; scene management is left to higher-level frameworks like Sceneform.

**Q: Can I use Filament for games?**
A: Yes, though it focuses on rendering. You would pair it with a separate physics and audio engine.

**Q: What shading models are supported?**
A: Lit (standard PBR), subsurface, cloth, and unlit models are available.

**Q: Is Filament used in production?**
A: Google uses Filament in the Android Scene Viewer and Google Maps 3D features.

## Sources
- https://github.com/google/filament
- https://google.github.io/filament/

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Source: https://tokrepo.com/en/workflows/asset-62cd5eca
Author: Script Depot