MUNICH—ARRI announced today that it is selling its global equipment rental business in Europe, the United Kingdom, and North America to H2 Equity Partners. Illumination Dynamics—ARRI’s lighting and power equipment rental business—will remain part of ARRI and is not included in the transaction.

Coming several months after ARRI announced that it was being acquired by Riedel Communications owner Thomas Riedel, ARRI said the divestiture “is a planned and significant element of ARRI’s long-term strategic development.”

ARRI said that a key rationale for the transaction is to resolve a structural conflict of interest between ARRI’s manufacturing business and its own rental business: as a manufacturer of camera and lighting technology, ARRI supplies customers and partners worldwide, some of whom compete with its rental activities.

Through this transaction, ARRI said it will sharpen its focus on the development, production and commercialization of innovative camera, lighting and software-based technologies, thereby strengthening its role as an independent and trusted technology partner to the global media and entertainment industry.

“This transaction is a milestone in ARRI’s strategic transformation and future positioning,” said Thomas Riedel, owner of ARRI as well as founder and owner of Riedel Communications and the Riedel Group. “It enables us to direct our investments even more specifically toward the further development of our technologies and new growth areas. At the same time, it allows the rental business to continue to develop independently and to unlock additional market potential.”

The management buy-out is led by ARRI Rental's existing UK-based leadership team of Dana Harrison, Russell Allen and Tamim Essaji, in partnership with H2 Equity Partners.

Dana Harrison and Andy Shipsides will continue their leadership responsibilities in the respective regions and will, together with their teams, ensure long-term customer relationships and operational continuity. Harrison will also serve as CEO of the global rental business.

The new standalone rental group will transition to its own brand after a customary transition period.

MUNICH, Germany—ARRI has unveiled the ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme camera supporting high frame rate output of up to 8x for live productions using traditional SDI workflows.

With ARRI’s Live Production System LPS-1, the camera enables the emotion and drama of live entertainment events to be broadcast not just in ARRI image quality, but also in beautiful slow motion, enhancing creative options for producers and directors.

ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme comes permanently pre-installed with the existing High Speed License for ALEXA 35 and a new High Frame Rate SDI License. When combined with the ARRI LPS-1 Fiber Camera Adapter and Fiber Base Station (and a standard slow-motion playout server such as SimplyLive or EVS) the camera outputs HFR at up to 8x in HD or 2x in UHD. Up to 4x HFR can be output via a single SDI connector, and higher speeds are split across both SDI outputs.

Frame rates up to 330 fps use the camera’s full dynamic range of 17 stops, while a Sensor Overdrive mode enables frame rates up to 480 fps at a dynamic range of 11 stops. Whatever frame rate is chosen for the slow-motion feed, the system simultaneously outputs a live feed for broadcast, allowing operators to switch between the program frame rate and HFR in real time. A unique phase-blending feature provides control over motion blur and shutter effects in the live feed.

Broadcasters have embraced the ARRI Multicam System because it transforms the visual impact of live coverage, elevating production value and enriching audience experience.

With its Super 35 sensor, high dynamic range and sensitivity and exceptional color fidelity, ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme delivers a base look that stands out from the crowd. Users can choose looks from the ARRI Look Library, try ARRI’s Multicam looks or build their own LUTs—with traditional live painting still possible no matter what look is chosen.

Sports broadcasting is a key application area for the ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme with coverage of indoor, outdoor, individual and team events set to benefit. The camera’s wide dynamic range helps capture high-contrast environments, such as winter sports, while the cinematic image quality conveys the full emotion and drama of decisive moments—all in slow motion.

Since a separate high-speed camera is no longer required, the HFR content now has the same ARRI look as the regular feed, and a consistent visual style is assured across both the live coverage and highlight reels.

Seamless integration is fundamental to the ARRI Multicam System. When using ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme for a live production, everyone from the engineers and operators to shaders and directors can do their job in the normal way. The LPS-1 Fiber Base Station simply plugs directly into the slow-motion playout server, and an HFR signal is available from the camera via a standard baseband workflow for easy incorporation into the live coverage.

The ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme is now available to order.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced an expanded Management Board and a streamlined operating structure as part of an effort to strengthen innovation, execution, and global customer alignment.

As part of those changes, Frank Eischet and Marcel Koutstaal have joined ARRI’s Management Board alongside David Bermbach and Chris Richter.

The company said that the expanded leadership team combines operational, financial, product, and commercial expertise needed to support ARRI’s long-term growth and evolving role as a provider of integrated solutions across the Motion Picture, Live Entertainment, and Content Creation industries.

At the same time, ARRI is simplifying its organizational structure by consolidating responsibilities previously divided between the Camera Systems and Lighting business units. The new setup strengthens the focus on comprehensive solutions for our target markets rather than individual product categories, accelerates decision-making, and brings product development, operations, and commercial execution into closer alignment worldwide.

ARRI said that for customers, this translates into faster delivery of solutions and a more seamless experience across ARRI’s camera, lighting, and service portfolio.

“ARRI is entering a new phase focused on investment, integration, and scalable growth,” said Thomas Riedel, owner of ARRI. “By expanding the Management Board, we are strengthening the connection between technology, operations, and commercial execution. Frank Eischet deepens collaboration within the Riedel Group, while Marcel Koutstaal adds valuable international expertise to accelerate innovation and operational performance across the company.”

Frank Eischet joins ARRI’s Management Board as Chief Financial Officer on an interim basis. Coming from Riedel Communications, he will continue in his role at Riedel while supporting ARRI’s financial and strategic development, further strengthening collaboration within the group. The CFO position will be permanently filled in the upcoming weeks.

Marcel Koutstaal joins the Management Board as Chief Operating Officer and assumes responsibility for ARRI’s global operations and companywide product development activities. He brings extensive international leadership experience in large-scale operational optimization and high-end camera technology, combined with deep expertise across studio, outside broadcast, remote, and cloud-based production environments.

David Bermbach assumes responsibility within the Management Board as Chief Product Officer, leading ARRI’s unified product strategy across camera and lighting technologies with a strong focus on integrated solutions. He will strengthen alignment between innovation, roadmap, and customer needs across the portfolio and continue ARRI’s transformation into a provider of integrated solutions across hardware, software, and services for Motion Picture, Live Entertainment, and Content Creation.

Chris Richter assumes the role of Chief Commercial Officer within the Management Board and continues to lead ARRI’s global commercial organization, including sales, rental, and corporate communications. He will drive a consistent worldwide approach to customer engagement, commercial execution, and brand positioning.

“We are bringing product, operations, and commercial leadership closer together to respond faster to evolving customer and production requirements worldwide,” said David Bermbach and Chris Richter. “Strengthening the operational backbone within ARRI allows us to set a clear focus on supporting the Media &

Entertainment industry in these times of change, scale innovation and deliver even greater value to our customers and partners globally.“

With the expanded Management Board and streamlined organizational structure, ARRI advances its vision as the “Trusted Technology Leader for the Next Generation of Media & Entertainment.”

Riedel Communications has named Marc Engroff as chief financial officer and will transition Frank Eischet to group chief operating officer under a strategic initiative to strengthen its operational management, the company said.

The restructuring follows Riedel Group CEO Thomas Riedel’s purchase of camera and lighting technology maker ARRI and is meant to bolster the management structure of Riedel Communications while enhancing coordination and governance at the Riedel Group, the company said.

In his new role as CFO, Engroff assumes responsibility for finance, control, M&A, global purchasing and IT, among other key corporate functions, Riedel said.

Eischet’s new priorities will include a greater focus on strategic alignment, operational scalability and the continued development of global structures, Riedel said. He will continue as a managing director of Riedel Communications.

“Frank has been instrumental in building the structures that have enabled Riedel’s growth over the years,” Thomas Riedel, Riedel Group CEO and founder of Riedel Communications, said. “With Marc, we are appointing a highly capable and trusted leader from our own ranks who combines strong financial expertise with a proven ability to translate data into strategic direction. This evolution strengthens Riedel Communications operationally while further developing our leadership at the Riedel Group level.”

Eischet joined Riedel in 2011 as chief financial officer and managing director, the company said. During his tenure, Riedel grew from a company with less than 50 million euros in revenue to one generating more than 250 million euros alongside significant international expansion, Riedel said.

Engroff joined Riedel in 2024, most recently as director, group controlling. Prior to Riedel, he held several finance leadership roles at Deutsche Telekom, a company he joined in 2008.

“I am very grateful for the trust that Thomas and Frank have placed in me,” Engroff said. “I take on this responsibility with humility, supported by my outstanding team, which has been with me along the way, and by many great colleagues across the organization. Looking ahead, I am excited to continue shaping Riedel’s development while ensuring we support its growth in a sustainable and resilient way.”

Added Eischet: “Riedel’s success has always been a team effort. I am proud of what we have achieved together over the past years and grateful to have been part of this journey. With Marc taking on the CFO role, we are strengthening our operational foundation even further. I look forward to focusing more on the broader development of the Riedel Group and driving the next phase of our growth.”

For more on Riedel, visit its website.

MUNICH, Germany—ARRI has unveiled Omnibar, a compact, battery-powered, multicolor LED linear lighting fixture built for motion pictures, live entertainment and content creation.

Omnibar combines full-spectrum output, modular scalability and durable IP65 weather protection for reliable indoor and outdoor use, whether on set, on stage or in a small studio, ARRI said.

Omnibar is available as the two-foot Omnibar 2 and four-foot Omnibar 4, each with a black or blue-and-silver housing. Its modular design supports a wide range of users and applications—from an online content creator using the single bar in ARRI’s Creator Set, to a high-end gaffer using dozens of units on a feature film.

Daisy-chaining bars is easy, ARRI said, as the Omnibase hub provides a single power and data source, reducing setup time and simplifying cable needs. Up to 12 feet of Omnibar 4 and Omnibar 2 fixtures can be connected in a single daisy chain, with a total of up to 24 feet of bars supported across two or more daisy chains.

Omnibar delivers high-quality, full-spectrum daylight output (5600K) with a CRI of 98 and TLCI of 98, matching well with other ARRI LED fixtures. It can also provide dynamic in-camera effects and eye-catching design elements, ARRI said, rendered smoothly and in high resolution by 32 pixel zones in the Omnibar 4 and 16 in the Omnibar 2.

Magnetically fixed, easily interchangeable optics let users tailor Omnibar to the job. Options include a round diffuser for soft, tube-like ambient light; a flat diffuser for controlled, bar-like output suited to in-camera effects and live events; and an intensifier to boost brightness and focus for high-output applications. Omnibar can also be used open-faced for maximum brightness when bouncing light, integrating into set design or using a softbox.

Rigging the Omnibar is simple, ARRI said, with flexible mounting options saving time in all production environments. Built-in magnets enable instant attachment to metal surfaces in any orientation, and integrated connection points make it easy to strap the Omnibar to rails, bars or other anchor points using safety cables or zip ties. The Omnigrip accessory allows bars to be seamlessly connected end-to-end for continuous illumination.

Omnibars also can be combined with the Omnipin to facilitate rapid setup with traditional rigging solutions, such as lighting stands. Omniclip mounting brackets can be affixed to almost any surface at three different angles.

With its IP65 weatherproof rating and built-in battery, providing a minimum runtime of two hours at full brightness, Omnibar can be used untethered in outdoor conditions. It can be controlled via the onboard interface, a Bluetooth app, wired DMX or wirelessly via the integrated TimoTwo CRMX chip, making it suitable for permanent installs as well as location-based projects, ARRI said.

The ARRI Omnibar is available now and ready to ship as single sets or as multiunit transport sets that include essential accessories and tools, as well as a streamlined Creator Set with core accessories for individual creators and small crews.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has launched the new cforce MAX, a new high-performance lens motor that enhances the Hi‑5 lens control system with its exceptional speed and intelligent onboard control.

Compact and lightweight, the cforce MAX offers also offers versatile mounting, easy setup, and total reliability in the most demanding shooting environments, the company said.

The cforce MAX is twice as fast and just as strong as the cforce plus motor it replaces, yet 15% smaller and lighter.

Designed to complement the ultra-compact cforce mini and wireless cforce mini RF in ARRI’s lens motor lineup, the cforce MAX is ideal for larger cine primes, zoom lenses, vintage glass, and specialty optics that require strength and precision.

At the same time, its reduced form factor ensures versatility across handheld, gimbal, and studio configurations.

Combined with the new ARRI Motor Rod Clamp MRC-1, it provides a rock-solid connection to lens gears and easy adjustment on 19 mm / 15 mm rods in multiple positions.

The MRC-1 is also compatible with the cforce mini and cforce mini RF, and is a compelling upgrade for Hi‑5 system users, significantly improving stability and flexibility.

With an advanced brushless motor, the cforce MAX is quiet, durable, and easy to service. Motor response latency is so low that using the cforce MAX feels like a completely new experience for focus pullers. The high speed of up to 400 teeth per second and the market-leading latency additionally make it ideal for focus tracking systems, which cannot anticipate movement in front of the camera and must respond in real time.

Georg Lanz, an experienced focus puller and beta tester of the cforce MAX, commented on the new product by reporting that he had “tested the cforce MAX in the hottest place on Earth, in jungles, and out on the open sea. Beyond its reliability, the responsiveness and speed genuinely allow me to do a better job, especially in documentary or free-flowing environments where I am constantly reacting to unexpected movement.”

The cforce MAX features a physical button for control of core functions such as changing the motor axis—a control option already familiar to users of ARRI’s other cforce motors. In addition, its integrated display with touchscreen interface enables intuitive configuration and status monitoring directly on the motor, with expanded functionality possible in the future.

In common with ARRI’s entire Electronic Control System, the cforce MAX will benefit from ongoing software updates that enhance its feature set. Like the other cforce motors, it offers dual LBUS ports for seamless daisy-chaining and flexible system integration using standard cables, as well as full LBUS backwards-compatibility. It can be used with most existing ARRI mounting brackets, rods, and drive gears, allowing crews to integrate it effortlessly into established setups.

The cforce MAX lens motor is available now.

Learn more at www.arri.com/cforceMAX

WUPPERTAL & MUNICH, Germany—Thomas Riedel, founder and owner of Riedel Communications and the Riedel Group, has announced the acquisition of ARRI, a legendary Munich-based manufacturer of camera and lighting technology for motion pictures and live entertainment.

Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Rumors that the company might be up for sale have been circulating since last summer when Bloomberg reported a possible sale.

“My entrepreneurial path has been closely tied to ARRI for years,” said Thomas Riedel in a statement. “This acquisition represents the most significant personal milestone of my career so far. I have great respect for this exceptional brand, its outstanding products, and its strong team. At the same time, I see tremendous potential and am confident that, together, we can position ARRI for long-term stability and future success.”

Founded in 1917, ARRI has been family-owned ever since and has played a legendary role in the cinema production and professional film technology, having been recognized with 20 scientific and technical awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. “For more than a century, ARRI has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, and the highest quality. This success story will now continue and remain in German ownership,” said Dr. Walter Stahl, Managing Director of ARRI GmbH and member of the founding family.

Thomas Riedel’s bid for the company was chosen in a competitive international process, ARRI reported. It is the largest acquisition of Riedel's career to date.

The Riedel Group is a globally recognized specialist in advanced audio, video, and data technology, delivering infrastructure solutions for many of the world’s most demanding broadcast, live event, and sports productions.

Through the acquisition of ARRI, Thomas Riedel said he plans to establish a close strategic alignment between ARRI and the Riedel Group, expanding its expertise across the entire production chain — from camera optics to distribution. ARRI’s ecosystem of camera, lighting, and systems technology perfectly complements the Riedel Group’s existing portfolio and opens up new technological and strategic market opportunities for both companies.

In announcing the deal, the two companies said that they aim to unlock new areas of growth, especially in live entertainment and sports. By combining their respective technologies, the companies plan to develop integrated solutions that open new creative and technical possibilities for customers. As the first joint milestone of this collaboration, ARRI will debut its camera technology at the Eurovision Song Contest, where Riedel serves as the technology provider and NEP oversees production.

Under the new ownership of Thomas Riedel, ARRI’s existing management team will continue to lead the company. The company will retain independent operations and remain headquartered in Munich.

“Thomas Riedel has built a first-generation family business and stands for entrepreneurial continuity and long-term thinking,” said Chris Richter, managing director of ARRI. “We look forward to working with a successful entrepreneur and to the resulting market opportunities and access — both in existing and new markets.”

“The Riedel Group brings highly complementary technologies and extensive expertise in live production to this partnership,” added David Bermbach, managing director of ARRI. “This strengthens our strategic direction as a ‘Trusted Technology Leader for the Next Generation of Media & Entertainment.’”

Named after its founders August Arnold and Robert Richter, ARRI was established in Munich, Germany, where the headquarters is still located today. Other subsidiaries are in Europe, North and South America, Asia, and Australia.

The ARRI Group consists of the business units Camera Systems, Lighting, and Rental. More information is available at www.arri.com.

MUNICH—ARRI has introduced the Live Production Monitor LPM-1, a 10-inch onboard display and control interface for the cinematic ALEXA 35 Live - Multicam System. Offering flexible connectivity and controls, the LPM-1 perfectly complements ARRI’s ALEXA 35 Live camera and Live Production System LPS-1, seamlessly integrating into professional live production environments, according to the company.

The ALEXA 35 Live - Multicam System features a 4.6K Super 35 sensor that delivers unrivalled dynamic range for HDR, industry-leading color science, and exceptionally natural skin tones, ARRI said. Alongside the ALEXA 35 Live, LPS-1, and Skaarhoj RCP, the new LPM-1 monitor now becomes a core component of the ALEXA 35 Live - Multicam System, with benefits for operators, production teams, and even the talent in front of the camera.

The LPM-1 connects to the camera via an ARRI CoaXPress viewfinder cable, though an optional RS cable can provide additional power for maximum brightness. The 10-inch screen is an optimal size for live productions: big enough for accurate judging of focus, yet practical and unobtrusive on a tripod. Operators can be sure of a clear image at all times due to the high-bright display, wide viewing angle, accurate color rendition, and two sunhood options: a long sunhood for outdoor environments and a short, foldable sunhood for studios.

In addition to its touchscreen interface, the LPM-1 features tactile rotary knobs for easy adjustment of contrast, color, brightness, and peaking, allowing operators to tweak the monitor image to their needs without affecting the production image. Alongside the rotary knobs are four configurable user buttons that can be assigned to camera or monitor functions for personalized, on-the-fly control. Initial setup of camera and monitor settings can be achieved either with the touchscreen or with buttons on the monitor’s rear. Also on the rear are strong mechanical interfaces for battery plates, VESA mounts, and other accessories.

Further aiding the professional operator are three physical tally lights, positioned discreetly at the top of the monitor, which can supplement or replace the monitor overlay tally. A Tally IN connector facilitates external triggering, while a large camera number display enables easy identification of camera channels. For performers or presenters in front of the camera, the three-color talent tally is sufficiently bright to be clearly visible in all light conditions, even direct sunlight.

Complementing the LPM-1 and crucial to its real-world usage is the specially designed Monitor Yoke Support MYS-2, which provides sturdy support and flexible maneuverability. An integrated NATO rail allows operators to slide the monitor back and forth and adjust its position on multiple axes with just one hand.

The ARRI Live Production Monitor LPM-1 will be available to order in October 2025 with different accessory options.

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—TNDV Television has launched Aspiration 35, a new version of its 40-foot Aspiration truck reimagined for cinematic multicamera productions.

Developed in collaboration with dbV Rentals, Aspiration 35 is one of the first ARRI camera-equipped trucks and among the first to deliver a complete cinematic workflow natively from a TV truck, offering a blend of film-quality imaging and traditional live production infrastructure.

TNDV debuted Aspiration 35 on July 8 at a special block party in Nashville. The event featured hands-on demos of the truck’s cinematic workflow and brought together production professionals, vendors and industry groups. The party also featured new products from local vendors like Elite Script (debuting its new Jumbo Bright Teleprompter system) as well as interactive experiences from media outlets, such as the Cams Channel podcast.

“Our refreshed Aspiration 35 truck is more than just another upgrade,” TNDV founder Nic Dugger said. “It’s a leap into the future of what live production can look like when it embraces the art of cinema. The ARRI Alexa 35 has long been a top pick of DPs on many films. There are only one or two other trucks like this in the country, but Aspiration 35 is the first to have ARRI Alexa 35 Live systems.”

TNDV sees Aspiration 35 as the industry’s answer for filmmakers and high-end corporate clients who want the look of cinema in a scalable, broadcast-capable truck environment. While traditional broadcast trucks are engineered for 1080i and 60p sports or news content, Aspiration 35 is built to handle today’s demand for cinematic aesthetics across sectors that include entertainment, corporate and sports productions through technologies that bring together true 35-millimeter sensors, 4K and 24p acquisition and shallow depth of field, TNDV said.

“For years, producers have been rigging together handheld cinema-style cameras and running them into trucks that were never really designed for that type of workflow,” Dugger said. “There is now a native, professional solution where everything is built up clean and transmitted to the truck over traditional SMPTE cable without additional hardware or cabling. These cameras are powered from the truck, they’re tethered with full shading and tally and they give us that beautiful, film-like imagery without sacrificing any aspects of production control.”

Nashville-based video production rental house dbV Rentals provided the ARRI Alexa 35 Live cameras and worked closely with TNDV to develop the single-wire architecture to new base stations installed on Aspiration 35.

The truck’s camera packages are fully scalable, can support up to 12 Alexa 35 Live multicam systems with each deployment, and are also integrated with essential live production systems, including return video, tally, intercom and remote camera shading, TNDV said.

The partnership also gives TNDV and its clients access to a very large inventory of specialty cinematic lenses from ARRI, Canon and Fujinon.

“The industry has made significant advances in offering lenses that can provide both cinematic image quality and broadcast integration capabilities, especially with extremely long-range zoom lenses,” dbV Rentals owner Doug Bates said.

“They have quickly reached the level where they are familiar to the seasoned broadcast teams with their boots on the ground, while also providing DPs from the cinematic world with the images they’ve come to expect from years of extremely high-quality optical designs,” he added. “We have truly reached the point where cinematic multi-camera shoots can offer clients the very best of both worlds from top to bottom.”

More information is available on the TNDV and dbV Rentals websites.

MUNICH—ARRI has released the Network Interface Adapter NIA-1, which offers camera and lens control via Ethernet. The adapter is designed to bridge modern IP workflows and traditional LBUS-based camera and lens control systems, the company said.

By introducing Ethernet connectivity to the ARRI Electronic Control System (ECS), NIA-1 enables seamless integration, advanced remote control, and scalable multidevice configurations. ECS tools such as the Hi‑5 hand unit can now function with negligible latency over an IP network, expanding third-party camera compatibility and benefiting both cine and live productions, the company said.

Compact, powerful and robust, the NIA-1 features LBUS, Ethernet, and USB-C connectors. The status of each connector is displayed on the touchscreen, which provides an intuitive user interface.

Besides the touchscreen, the NIA-1 can also be controlled from any device in the same network via a web interface.

With the NIA-1, ARRI said that it is introducing the concept of network channels—a new and simple way to configure IP networks on a film set. Users just need to set the same network channel letter designation on each connecting device, for example the letter ‘A’ for the A-camera. Connection is fast and easy, with the NIA-1 automatically managing complex network settings, although manual IP configuration is also an option when incorporating the NIA-1 into advanced networks.

In addition, the NIA-1 improves and extends control of third-party cameras from within the ARRI ecosystem, which will be of particular interest to current and prospective Hi‑5 owners, ARRI said.

Instead of multiple specialist cables for different cameras, each with varying control limitations, the NIA-1 connects directly to the camera via a network, allowing much more comprehensive control of camera functions with ARRI ECS tools, the company said. Mounting the NIA-1 to any camera is made simple by the purpose-designed Rotary Release Adapter RRA-1, which has a quick-release dovetail interface and tough, all-metal construction, ARRI explained.

The NIA-1 will also offer compatibility with Blackmagic URSA Cine and Sony Burano cameras, activated through permanent licenses that can be purchased in the same way as other Hi‑5 licenses. The existing Sony Camera Control License for Hi‑5 will offer NIA-1 compatibility for the Venice camera with the release of the first NIA-1 software update, enabling significantly more advanced options for controlling the Venice with ARRI ECS devices, the company said.

The NIA-1 also offers notable possibilities for live broadcast productions, complementing ARRI’s ALEXA 35 Live—Multicam System, the company said. The system’s built-in secondary Ethernet tunnel allows for NIA-1 connectivity, seamless integration with the ARRI LPS-1 and precise, real-time camera and lens control over vast distances. ARRI CSS products such the 360 EVO stabilized remote head are NIA-1 compatible, so they can be used with ECS tools over a single Ethernet or fiber connection as part of a simple plug-and-play setup.

ARRI also reported that focus pullers and DITs may want to use the NIA-1 to remotely control lens or camera settings over IP networks. For simple setups, two NIA-1 units can be connected by an Ethernet cable up to 100 meters long, or by a fiber optic cable if longer distances need to be covered. One use case is underwater shots, where a submerged camera with a NIA-1 can be connected via Ethernet to another NIA-1 at the surface, as well as an ARRI RIA‑1 that permits the focus puller to operate a Hi‑5 untethered. For crane shots, an Ethernet cable can connect a NIA-1 on the camera to another at the crane base, reducing the radio signal distance for remote focus pulling. And for motion control or robot camera setups, the NIA-1 allows low latency control of ARRI lens motors from anywhere in an IP network.

Multi-camera applications are yet another area where the NIA-1 brings new advantages, the company explained. Whether it’s a 3D rig, a multi-camera array for VFX plate shots, or a beam-splitting rig for infrared capture, the NIA-1 enhances simultaneous control of lens motors and camera settings, including synchronized focus pulls even with different lens types and focal lengths.

ARRI also stressed that the wide-ranging possibilities of NIA-1 applications, which include control of ARRI lens motors or cameras from third-party devices via IP. To encourage those applications, ARRI is extending its partner program and encouraging third-party vendors to integrate ARRI ECS into their hardware and software products—from motion control robots to virtual production tools, and more besides.

The ARRI NIA-1 will be available in Q3 2025. To learn more, visit www.arri.com/nia-1.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its lighting subsidiary Claypaky to EK Inc., a major Chinese designer and manufacturer of lighting technologies.

ARRI said the sale was part of its decision to focus on its core business

Terms of the deal for EK to acquire the Claypaky and its theatrical brand ADB were not disclosed.

Claypaky lights are used in top productions in the theatre, television, live events, the fashion world, fairs and exhibitions, and are installed in the best clubs, bars, theme parks, shops, conference rooms and architectural environments.

“This decision is part of our strategic realignment as we focus more strongly on our core business,” explained Chris Richter, managing director of ARRI. “Clearly recognizing Claypaky’s potential, it was important to us to find a new owner who pursues next level growth based on a deep understanding of the market and a long-term strategic vision—for both Claypaky and its customers.”

The companies reported that while details of the integration between Claypaky and EK Inc. haven’t been defined, Claypaky will retain its headquarters and core operations in Italy. The transaction is expected to close in the coming months, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Raymond Chen, CEO of EK Inc. added that “The acquisition of Claypaky, along with its theatrical brand ADB, is a strategic investment that significantly enriches our portfolio. Claypaky, a nearly 50-year-old brand rooted in Italian design and globally recognized for its innovation, strengthens therefore our global presence, especially in the European market. This acquisition marks the next step in our evolution. With our combined manufacturing expertise, innovative spirit, and expanded industrial backbone, we are well-positioned to continue shaping the future of entertainment lighting worldwide."

“Our collaboration with ARRI has been a valuable and rewarding journey,” remarked Marcus Graser, CEO of Claypaky. “We part ways with sincere appreciation—especially for the insights gained from ARRI’s deep expertise in the motion picture industry, which will continue to influence our path forward. At the same time, we look forward to the opportunities new ownership brings. We are certain to benefit from EK’s strong development, manufacturing, and supply 2 chain capabilities which could open new doors in terms of new product development, scalability, and global market access.”

More than just a change in ownership, the acquisition highlights all three parties’ commitment to their primary markets—along with a renewed focus on innovation, operational excellence, adaptability, and long-term resilience.

For more information on EK Inc. please visit eklights.com. For more information about ARRI please visit arri.com. For more information about Claypaky visit claypaky.com.

MUNICH—ARRI has officially launched of its Camera Companion App for iPhone, iPad, and Mac with Apple Silicon, enabling users to configure their own personalized interface for remote control of one or multiple ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, ALEXA Mini, AMIRA, and ALEXA 265 cameras.

The launch follows a successful beta program during which valuable feedback from thousands of industry professionals helped shape the final feature set, ARRI’s Camera Companion is now available on the Apple App Store.

With a choice of two subscription options, Camera Companion’s flexible interface streamlines on-set workflows for camera crews and DITs. The Standard subscription provides comprehensive control of one or two ARRI cameras, while the Premium subscription adds features such as unlimited cameras and MIDI support, the company reported.

A free Demo version of the app offers basic, single-camera control, camera menu access, and free Standard and Premium trial periods that allow users to build familiarity with the control possibilities before deciding which subscription is right for them.

Every new project in the app includes a simulated camera, so users can start exploring even if they don’t have a camera to hand. Connection to a real ARRI camera can be implemented either via the camera’s own WiFi network or a wider on-set network, ARRI explained.

Personalized control is at the heart of the Camera Companion experience. Users can choose a predefined layout or drag and drop control tiles into a custom layout that suits their way of working, giving them fingertip control of the parameters they need. Unlimited app user buttons can be assigned to literally any camera function required and then dragged and dropped into the user’s personalized layout.

With a Premium subscription the interface can be organized into multiple tabs, so users can create separate tabs for different cameras or shooting situations, or assign a specific tab to functions like playback control.

ARRI reported that the Camera Companion provides flexible and portable access to all of the familiar camera controls and status displays of a professional set.

Among the features praised by beta testers are the ability to save builds by project; independent interfaces for DP and DIT; time savings achieved by the physical camera setup and the selection of camera settings being done simultaneously by different people; instant adjustments to camera settings while at a monitor station; quick matching of multiple cameras; and—most of all—the customizable interface.

For maximum professional versatility, the Premium subscription expands the app’s functionality with unlimited cameras and tabs, lens control via cforce lens motors, sensor sync shift, CDL control for live grading, and video parameter control (for ALEXA Mini and AMIRA cameras). It also provides MIDI support for tactile control via physical input devices, which opens almost unlimited opportunities to control ARRI cameras with MIDI-enabled devices of any kind, further expanding the scope for individually customized camera control setups, the company explained.

More information is available at www.arri.com/CCA.

LOS ANGELES—I founded Wide+Close with Ryley Fogg, my partner and Eastside Camera Rental owner, in 2019 after successfully integrating ARRI Cinema cameras with DTS fiber conversion systems into a traditional TV broadcast infrastructure. At the time, it was cutting-edge technology—risky but groundbreaking.

Ryley and I have collaborated on documentary, commercial and live music projects for over a decade. After numerous music documentaries and live performances, we decided to bring our approach for Live-to-Tape productions into the Live-Live space.

Thus, Wide+Close was born, with the philosophy that there is a better way to visualize live performances. We reimagined livestream production, moving beyond a coverage-based approach to an artistic, cinematic interpretation of music based on look and feel. Image quality, color, and composition are our guiding principles. We call this approach “Live Cinema.”

Live Cinema With ARRI
Live Cinema merges the talent, tools and techniques of the filmmaking world and integrates them into a streaming pipeline. We believe Live Cinema bridges the gap between being at a concert and watching from home. But it requires a complete shift in thinking.

We chose ARRI because it is the gold standard in film imaging. Coachella has been our testing ground, allowing us to refine our approach and fully harness ARRI camera, lens, and stabilization systems.

The biggest shift for us is that technology is no longer an obstacle but a facilitator. Each year, we have implemented new advancements: wireless technology, real-time live color grading, and IP-connected multicamera workflows. This evolution has allowed us to focus entirely on elevating the creative aspect rather than making the technology function.

What once felt like an uneasy handshake between cinema and broadcast has now become seamless. Traditional broadcast elements like graphics, transmission, and encoding have been integrated smoothly into our cinematic live workflow. Our custom-built truck is no longer just a broadcast vehicle—it’s a creative hub designed for live music and cinema.

Over the years, we have upgraded our live truck to keep up with the increasing scale and complexity of live productions. Initially, we started with two stacked 40x40 routers, then upgraded to two stacked 80x80, and now, we are running two stacked 120x120 routers, giving us 240 I/O capable of handling two stages and up to 40 cameras. This upgrade allows us to support large-scale productions with artists who demand up to 24 cameras per performance.

ALEXA 35 System
For 2025, we are integrating ARRI’s latest and greatest ALEXA 35 system into Coachella’s main stage. Using the ALEXA 35 system, ARRI TRINITY and ARRI Signature Zooms and Primes, we have made a significant leap in dynamic range and highlight retention, surpassing even the Sony Venice. The ALEXA 35 brings an unmatched cinematic feel, perfectly replicating the organic texture of film. We are also expanding our stabilized remote systems, including TRINITY and SRH-360 EVOs.

We’re particularly excited about the dynamic range improvements, especially in highlight retention. The ALEXA 35 doesn’t just avoid clipping; it retains detail in the brightest areas better than any camera we’ve ever used—ARRIs maintain a smoother highlight roll-off.

We can now craft bespoke images at the highest level, rivaling high-end feature films or even the likes of major half-time shows. The seamless integration of our workflow allows us to concentrate on what matters most: the art of the live show.

What excites me most about our 2025 setup is that we are no longer constrained by technology. The entire field is now connected via IP, allowing us to communicate with every single camera system and make real-time creative changes to the look of a show.

We are no longer just adjusting iris and exposure; we are live color grading and crafting images in real time, at a level that matches the biggest productions in cinema.

This hybrid model blends the best of broadcast and film, with a seamless workflow that allows directors and artists to focus solely on creativity.

MUNICH—ARRI today introduced a new entry model of the Alexa 35 and flexible licenses and will showcase the camera system at the 2025 NAB Show, April 5-9, at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The company will now call its existing camera and all of its software-based features the Alexa 35 Premium. The Alexa 35 Base model includes a core feature set that can be upgraded via a temporary or permanent license. The company is also holding down the cost of the system with its new Codex Compact Drive Express for ProRes recording, it said.

The Alexa 35 Base model is identical to the Alexa 35 Premium, other than a blue jog wheel that will help identify Base cameras at rental houses. Both models offer the same Super 35 sensor with 17 stops of dynamic range, REVEAL Color Science and ARRI image quality. The core features of the Alexa 35 Base model include ProRes recording up to 60 frames per second in 4K 16:9 and other formats, ARRI Look File (CDL and 3D LUT) support, Enhanced Sensitivity modes up to EI 6400 and three independent 10-bit monitoring outputs in SDR and HDR color spaces, ARRI said.

While the Alexa 35 Base model feature set meets the current shooting requirements of many users, ARRI’s new feature licensing concept makes the camera future-proof because users can unlock specialist and high-end features whenever they need them. Each of the licenses can be installed for seven days, 30 days, one year or permanently, so owner-operators can activate them for a short-form job, a longer-term project or a new career direction. The ALEXA 35 Base model will adapt and grow with users, giving them a more accessible route to ARRI image quality and also helping them to progress, it said.

The five individual licenses are: 120 fps for higher frame rates; ARRIRAW for uncompressed image quality; Open Gate/Anamorphic for the full 4.6K sensor area and anamorphic modes; Pre-record for up to 20 seconds of buffered pre-recording before the record button is pressed; and Look for in-camera ARRI Textures, the ARRI Look Library and Custom Color Management, it said.

With these five licenses installed, a Base model becomes as fully featured as the Premium model. There is also a temporary or permanent Premium License that combines all five individual licenses in a cost-effective bundle. If it is purchased permanently, without any other license having previously been installed, the user will spend no more than the price of a Premium model, it said.

Concurrent with the Alexa 35 Base model release, Codex is announcing its new Compact Drive Express 1TB, which has the same write speeds and fps range as the Compact Drive 1TB, but costs about 40% less.

The Alexa 35 Base and Premium model sets are available to order now.

More information is available on the company’s website.

See ARRI at NAB Show booth N1039.

MUNICH, Germany—ARRI today introduced the ARTEMIS 2 Live compact, lightweight camera stabilizer optimized for live productions like sports and events broadcasts.

Modular and upgradeable, ARTEMIS 2 Live combines operational flexibility with ergonomic, minimalist design. An exceptionally short post gives users more legroom and greater freedom to follow the fast, unpredictable action of live productions even in tight spaces, the company said.

Its new lightweight monitor brackets were specifically designed for live applications with the base mount and monitor jockeys accommodating 7-inch monitors from brands. including Transvideo, Smart Systems and SmallHD. A second bracket supports the 5-inch on-air monitor often used on live production rigs, the company said.

ARTEMIS 2 Live is available in a number of Ready-to-Shoot Sets that provide everything needed to integrate the stabilizer into live production environments. Among the sets is an option that allows ARTEMIS 2 Live to be combined with a Tiffen Volt gimbal. With its modular system structure, ARTEMIS 2 Live adapts to different power sources, making it simple to match whatever batteries are available at the shooting location and whatever camera is being used on the rig, it said.

ARRI makes no qualitative distinction between the live and cinema markets, so ARTEMIS 2 Live components are interchangeable with those of ARRI’s cine-style stabilizers and meet the same quality standards, the company said.

TALLY and LBUS, which allows hybrid lens control of ENG and cine zoom lenses, are included to support electronic field production, it said.

Users can upgrade ARTEMIS 2 Live to a fully featured ARTEMIS 2 for film and drama productions or to a TRINITY 2, incorporating electronic stabilization for high-end applications involving more complex camera moves, it said.

An ARTEMIS 2 Live conversion kit is available for ARTEMIS 2 and TRINITY 2 owners wishing to shrink-fit their rig to a live configuration.

ARTEMIS 2 Live is available now.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has unveiled the Alexa 265, its next-generation 65-milimeter camera, which combines a small form factor with a revised 65-mm sensor.

The Alexa 265, designed based on feedback from users of the Alexa 65, delivers improved image quality through 15 stops of dynamic range and enhanced low-light performance, ARRI said.

The camera features the same LogC4 workflow, REVEAL Color Science and accessories as the ARRI Alexa 35 and offers a new filter system. The Alexa 265 makes 65 mm as easy to use as any other format, the company said.

The Alexa 265 camera body is based on the compact Alexa 35. But even though it contains a sensor three times as large as the Alexa 35, the new camera is only 4 mm longer and 11 mm wider. Using this body design means Alexa 265 is less than one-third of the Alexa 65’s weight—7.27 pounds vs. 23.15 pounds (3.3 kilograms vs. 10.5 kilograms)—and employs ARRI’s latest cooling and power-management technologies. While the camera’s small size and weight allow it to be used in ways never imagined for 65 mm—from drones and stabilizers to the most space-constrained locations—its efficiencies make it faster to work with on set. Boot-up time and power draw have been improved and compatibility with the Alexa 35 accessory set enables more rigging options, ARRI said.

Feedback from Alexa 65 users revealed the desire for a reduced form factor and that filmmakers wanted to retain the 6.5K resolution and large pixel pitch, but were interested in higher dynamic range and better low-light performance. As a result, ARRI began a comprehensive revision of the 65-mm sensor, which resulted in increasing dynamic range from 14 to 15 stops and sensitivity from 3200 to 6400 EI (ISO/ASA) for crisper blacks, greater contrast and a lower noise floor, it said.

The camera supports a simple, efficient workflow using ARRI’s new-generation LogC4 workflow and 3D Lookup Tables (LUTs) introduced for ALEXA 35. It records ARRIRAW in-camera to the Codex Compact Drives used in all current ARRI cameras, it said.

Standard drive readers and docks can be used, as can Codex HDE (high-density encoding), reducing file sizes by up to 40% without diminishing image quality. On-set monitors can be set up in HD or ultra HD, displaying SDR (standard dynamic range), HDR or both. ARRI is updating its SDK to ensure that Alexa 265 images are compatible with all major third-party software tools, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

’Twas the month before Christmas, and all through the Mouse House—also known as the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida—there were a lot of creatures stirring. It was time to shoot portions of “Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade,” a special that will air on Dec. 25 on ABC and Disney+ (and Hulu the next day).

My family happened to be in the park on Nov. 9, so I skipped Space Mountain and went into reporter mode on Main Street. And while many park guests were enamored with what co-host Julianne Hough was wearing, I was talking to members of the crew about their gear.

According to the crew members who spoke with me briefly (they were in the middle of production, after all), it was a 10-camera shoot. The cameras were a mix of Sony VENICE and VENICE 2 digital cinema cameras equipped with Fujinon and Canon lenses. I was also seeing Sachtler tripods and some OConnor heads. The crew was also a blend of employees and freelancers.

One camera was mounted on a crane to provide a bird’s-eye view of the parade. Others were positioned on the route to provide coverage of the parade as well as Hough and co-host Alfonso Ribeiro, who were positioned below a large Christmas tree in the Town Square area of Main Street (a popular spot for photographs). While the duo was shot in the early afternoon, two large ARRI lots were positioned to provide more consistent lighting throughout their segments.

By the way, the parade itself included appearances by Mickey and Minnie Mouse, plus a variety of other well-known Disney animated and live-action characters. Yes, that included several Disney Princesses. The parade concluded with an appearance by Santa Claus and his wife. Check out a short segment of the hosts in action below.

This article originally appeared on TV Tech sister brand Systems Contractor News.

MUNICH, Germany—ARRI today introduced its Ensō Prime lens series designed for corporate and commercial content creators and owner-operators at earlier stages of their careers.

The small, portable and versatile lenses deliver exceptional images in almost any condition, ARRI said. The series delivers a smooth, balanced native look that can be tuned with Ensō Vintage Elements, which attach to the back of the lenses to achieve different looks with a single, cost-effective lens set, the company said.

Ensō lenses combine German precision engineering with Japanese optical excellence, ARRI said. The core set of Ensō Prime lenses includes 18 mm, 24 mm, 32 mm, 47 mm, 75 mm and 105 mm lenses and the Ensō Vintage Elements Kit.

Gear rings are in the same position on all 14 of the Ensō focal lengths, most of which are T2.1 with a 95-mm front diameter so they can be swapped onto the camera without disruption. While the focal lengths in the core set of six lenses will be used most frequently, the wide-angle 10.5 mm and 14 mm, as well as the telephoto 250 mm (350/500 mm with its included 1.4x/2x extenders) allow Ensō shooters to meet even the most extreme visual demands, the company said.

The guiding design principles were simplicity and purity of purpose, which inspired the name Ensō after the circular Zen calligraphy symbol, according to ARRI. Creating an Ensō with a single brushstroke is an expression of nowness that requires emptying one’s mind of distractions and fully committing to the creative flow, the company said.

Close focus is a standout feature of the lenses with a magnification ratio of 1:4 on most focal lengths, equivalent to a 10-inch close focus on the 32mm—only 3.7 inches from the front element. This facilitates beautiful closeup work. The lenses minimize breathing, which means focus racks have no discernible impact on framing. Stunning bokeh and falloff round out the lenses’ emotive focus characteristics, according to the company.

For projects requiring a different look, ARRI provides Ensō Vintage Elements, interchangeable optics that attach magnetically to the back of Ensō lenses. The elements offer quick, easy external lens tuning that incrementally shifts the look and feel of images, the company said.

Ensō Vintage Elements produces images that are sharper in the center and therefore easier to focus, but with a stronger detuned effect at the edges of the frame. The elements have encoded chips that convey metadata about shifts of focal length, T-stop and focus to the camera and from there to on-set monitors and postproduction, ARRI said.

Ensō Vintage Elements includes three positive elements of different strengths, producing smeary, soft-edged bokeh in the background and Petzval-like image swirl at the corners of frame. The three negative elements have the opposite effect: Out-of-focus background highlights have diffuse centers and bright outlines that overlap to create an edgier, more intrusive feel. The kit also includes an Ensō Creative Adapter to create custom looks and three retaining rings, the company said.

The core set of ARRI Ensō Prime lenses will begin shipping in November.

More information is available on the company’s website.

Missed any of our recent product news? Here is TV Tech's weekly wrap-up of new products, services and deployments we published in our newsletter between August 12 to August 16. The stories are listed from the newest on Friday August 16, day by day back to our stories from Monday August 12.

Prime Focus Technologies to Debut CLEAR AI Agents at IBC 2024

The CLEAR AI Agents are designed to assist & co-work with professionals to execute specific tasks across content management, post-production, and marketing.

Leader and Phabrix to Show T&M Solutions at IBC 2024

They will be showcasing test and measurement solutions for the complete manufacturing & broadcast production chain.

RTL Deutschland Expands FAST Channel Offering

The new FAST channels are powered by Harmonic; netorium integrated the news FAST channels into RTL’s operations.

MRMC To Unveil Studiobot LT, Cinebot At IBC 2024

Studiobot LT is well-suited for box cameras with a studio lens and supports a wide envelope of motion.

Florida Panthers Launch New DTC Streaming Service

For the new season, every locally-produced game will stream live on new apps and air on broadcast over-the-air.

Cineverse Partners with Wurl on FAST Channels

The agreement will bring new channels to viewers, while also enhancing Cineverse’s monetization and discovery capabilities.

EvertzAV Brings Cutting-Edge AVoIP Solutions to IBC 2024

These IP routable products and solutions deliver high quality and high reliability to AV professionals working across numerous disciplines.

Marshall Brings Auto Tracking To IBC 2024 with New CV612 PTZ Camera

The system automatically tracks, follows and frames presenters using AI facial learning for accurate and smooth self-adjusting maneuvers.

ESPN Inks Deal with Genius Sports to Expand Data Capabilities for Basketball Coverage

The deal will expand ESPN's data-driven storytelling in its coverage of NCAA basketball, NBA and WNBA.

Harmonic Launches New SaaS Version of Its Distribution Management System

Running on the public cloud, Harmonic's DMS X SaaS brings playout control capabilities to its XOS advanced media processor.

Horizon Media Taps Comscore as Preferred Contextual Intelligence Provider

Clients of the largest U.S. media agency will be able to use Proximic by Comscore's AI-powered contextual technology.

ATSC To Exhibit 3.0 Developments At Brazil’s SET Expo 2024

ATSC will exhibit at the SET Expo 2024 at the Distrito Anhembi Convention Center in San Paulo, Brazil, Aug. 19-22, on the heels of the SBTVD Forum recommending adoption of the ATSC 3.0 physical layer to the Brazilian government for its TV 3.0 next-generation terrestrial broadcast standard.

Veritone Makes AI M&E Solutions Available in AWS Marketplace

Among the AI software in the marketplace are Veritone Digital Media Hub, Discovery and Attribute.

CommScope Announces First Major Sale of Newly Acquired Casa vCCAP Solution

vCCAP will be used to support significant distributed access architecture deployment in Hungary.

BNS Partners with NPAW to Enhance Video Analytics Reporting in North America

The partnership will help NPAW expand its footprint in North America.

Elation Delivers Dynamic PULSE For First-Ever Live Broadcast from Sphere

Lighting designer Tom Kenny debuted PULSE PANEL FX for the NHL Draft in Las Vegas.

Signiant to Highlight Latest Innovations, Partnership at IBC 2024

Among the partnerships is the company’s new collaboration with TMT Insights.

DVEO to Introduce Brutus Cloud Video Distribution Platform at IBC 2024

Brutus Cloud provides high-performance, flexible transcoding and streaming for IPTV, OTT and FAST TV.

Globo Shows Off TV 2.5 Enhancements on Hisense TVs During Paris Olympics

The broadcaster demoed Advanced HDR by Technicolor and Fraunhofer’s MPEG-H Audio.

Historic Billy Joel Concert Captured On ARRI Cameras For Multi-Cam Production

To capture Billy Joel’s 100th consecutive performance of his residency at Madison Square Garden, show producers turned to ARRI’s ALEXA 35 and Mini LF cameras.

NEW YORK—To capture Billy Joel’s 100th consecutive performance of his residency at Madison Square Garden, show producers turned to ARRI’s ALEXA 35 and Mini LF cameras.

The event, aired in primetime March 28 on CBS broadcast, required the highest quality imaging technology. The live concert broadcast earned multiple Emmy nominations and impressed Billy Joel.

“I’m never comfortable how I look on camera, but this is the best our show has ever looked on film,” said Joel.

Producers realized the visual presentation needed to match the magnitude of the moment. “We knew this wasn’t just another show,” said Barry Ehrmann, executive producer at Enliven Entertainment. “Billy’s 100th concert at The Garden was a historic milestone. We needed cameras that could deliver an unparalleled visual experience to viewers at home, preserving the energy and intimacy of this landmark performance for posterity.”

The decision to use ARRI’s ALEXA 35 and Mini LF cameras proved pivotal in achieving the production’s vivid look. The robust cameras are known for their reliability in a live multi-cam workflow, ARRI said.

“ARRI cameras are always my first choice for multi-cam concert productions. The ALEXA 35 and Mini LF models are unsurpassed, standing far beyond any other offerings in the market,” said Ehrmann. “They made Billy and Madison Square Garden come alive for this production.”

Noting a history of using a range of ARRI cameras for concerts, show director Paul Dugdale praised them for their quality and performance in shooting concert movies.

“I love the look of ARRI cameras, and we have used the full range in our concert films, from ALEXAs, Minis, to multiple ALEXA 65s,” said Dugdale. “I particularly love the way that they handle shooting into light, which is obviously so frequent in concert movies. 2011 was the first time we integrated ARRI cameras into a large multi-camera shoot, and since then ARRI has been my go-to camera whenever the opportunity has presented itself.”

The cameras’ well-regarded performance in varied lighting conditions enabled the production team to capture both the intimacy of Joel’s performance and the grandeur of Madison Square Garden, resulting in a viewing experience that blurred the lines between live concert and emotional feature.

Steve Cohen, Billy Joel’s lighting designer, creative director, and executive producer was impressed with the cameras’ ability to capture his vision. “The incredible depth and clarity from these cameras made my lighting design so effective and realistic. It literally looked the same on film as it did to the naked eye—which is unheard of. ARRI’s technology allowed us to create a dramatic look that’s rarely seen in live concert broadcasts.”

The resulting CBS special aired on April 14. It drew an audience of more than 23 million viewers and garnered nominations in several Emmy categories, including: Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded), Outstanding Technical Direction and Camerawork for a Special, Outstanding Lighting Design/Direction for a Variety Special and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special.

Funicular Goats provided state-of-the-art equipment, workflow and technical management for the production. By providing comprehensive technical management and multicamera solutions, Funicular Goats enabled the creative team to focus on crafting an exceptional visual experience for Billy Joel’s worldwide fanbase, the company said.

More information is available at billyjoel.com

MUNICH—ARRI today unveiled its single-axis Hi-5 SX wireless camera and lens control hand unit, which can be upgraded with greater functionality via an optional software license.

Joining the company’s three-axis Hi-5 unit, Hi-5 SX It shares the same form factor, offering an ergonomic design that makes it comfortable to operate. The weatherproof, hard-wearing Hi-5 SX brings the company’s dependable control of most lenses on any camera and is priced affordably, ARRI said.

The Hi-5 SX’s large display is easy-to-read. Its intuitive touchscreen interface is based on the camera in use. ARRI offers swappable radio modules, enabling crews to select the right one for any shooting location or to conform to different regional RF regulations, it said.

The new control unit is compatible with all existing Hi-5 licenses, such as the Cinefade, RED camera control and Focusbug licenses, it said.

It can be upgraded with two new software licenses that give users the ability to access needed functions when required, it said.

The Hi-5 SX Plus License enables lens mapping, Custom Smart Ring creation, six additional user buttons and tail slate mode. The Hi5 SX All-Axis License enables simultaneous use of the knob, slider and force-pad for three-axis lens control, as well as complete display information, AUX axis and full virtual T-stop and focal length features, ARRI said.

Once both licenses are installed the Hi-5 SX becomes functionally indistinguishable from the Hi-5; the blue SX joystick toggle can even be swapped for black. Users of the Hi-5 SX with no additional licenses installed can choose between the knob, slider or force-pad to control a single lens axis, whether for focus, iris or zoom, it said.

With a rugged housing that is sealed, dustproof and weatherproof, the Hi-5 SX can be operated with complete reliability in harsh environmental conditions. ARRI-branded batteries based on the NP-L interface can be hot-swapped without powering the unit down. Their remaining capacity is indicated accurately on the display screen, it said.

The Hi-5 SX will be available to order beginning July 1. It will ship Oct. 1. The new wireless single-axis control device replaces the ARRI SXU-1 single-axis hand unit, which is being phased out, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced the new L-Series Plus, a new generation of LED Fresnels, that the company says is up to 90% brighter than the original L-Series.

The new L-Series Plus also offers direct network data input and the intuitive onboard control interface known from ARRI SkyPanel, while retaining appreciated features such as continuous focusability from spot to flood; a smooth, homogenous light field; and complete control over the color and intensity of light.

Originally introduced in 2011, ARRI L-Series LED luminaires were the first professional alternatives to popular tungsten Fresnels.  

The new ARRI L-Series Plus fixtures come in two sizes: the L5-C Plus features a five-inch, while the L7-C Plus features a seven-inch Fresnel lens. Despite being approximately the same size and weight as their predecessors, the L-Series Plus products provide up to 90% more light output, making them much more powerful and versatile as lighting tools (average output increase, depending on model, beam angle, and color temperature is 60%). Existing barndoors and all other L-Series accessories are fully compatible with the new Plus range, the company reported. 

ARRI said that the new series takes the renowned and proven benchmark of LED Fresnel fixtures to the next level. The L-Series Plus introduces enhanced connectivity by implementing network data input and lighting control via the ArtNet and Streaming ACN industry standards. Workflows are simplified by the familiar onboard control and user interface of the classic SkyPanel, while light output is specifically calibrated for optimal reproduction on broadcast and digital cinema cameras, ensuring pleasing skin tones and vividly rendered colors.

Designed to be robust and ergonomic, L-Series Plus fixtures live up to the quality and reliability standards for which ARRI is known. Their build quality and flexibility make them suitable for a wide range of use cases, from studio and location work on movies and television to live entertainment, photography, theater, and corporate productions. A combination of passively cooled housing and a discreet encapsulated fan guarantee the most silent operation even in the most critical environments, the company said. 

At the heart of the L-Series Plus concept remain the core benefits of tuneability, color fidelity, rugged durability, and ease of use, now upgraded to the latest connectivity standards. Three individual knobs permit the brightness, color temperature, and green/magenta point to be fine-tuned, while a focus knob on the side of each fixture allows for smooth adjustment of the beam spread, just like conventional sources, ARRI reported. 

L5-C Plus and L7-C Plus fixtures will be available from June 2024 in blue and silver or sleek all-black colorways, with either a manual or PO yoke. The existing L-Series (L5-C, L7-C, L10-C) will be discontinued upon the release of L-Series Plus.

To learn more about L-Series Plus, please visit: www.arri.com/l-series-plus 

MUNICH—ARRI has announced that Johan de Nysschen has been put in charge of the ARRI Americas team as president and CEO ARRI Americas Inc. 

In this position, he oversees the entire region in all the company’s functional areas, including ARRI Rental North America and Illumination Dynamics, the company said. 

In the new role, de Nysschen will report directly to Matthias Erb, chairman of the Executive Board at ARRI. 

Johan de Nysschen brings extensive experience as an Executive Board Member at several global companies. During his career, he successfully led several transformation processes together with international teams. In his role as a consultant for ARRI over the past several months, de Nysschen has already been able to spearhead the company’s first important transitional steps, ARRI reported. 

ARRI also reported that it is happy to retain the talents of Glenn Kennel who supervised the Americas team for many years. Kennel, who reports directly to Johan de Nysschen, now serves as executive vice president sales for ARRI Americas and shall bring his many years of experience to the new role, the company said.

In announcing the personnel changes, Matthias Erb, chairman of the ARRI Executive Board, said that “The Americas  has been a key region for ARRI for many decades and its future success and  development is vital for ARRI globally. We will continue to systematically expand our business into new market segments such as live entertainment, corporate, and studios which hold major potential across all business units. To take these  next steps, we are further developing our global organization including ARRI  Americas.” 

Johan de Nysschen, new President and CEO ARRI Americas Inc., added that “ARRI is an inspiring company. Its product portfolio has inspired creatives in Hollywood and around the world for decades and ARRI still has so much to offer, not only for motion pictures but also in live entertainment, virtual production, and beyond. I look forward to the challenge of facilitating a new era for ARRI in the Americas.” 

ARRI Americas Inc. was the company’s first subsidiary outside of Germany, set  up as The ARRIFLEX Corporation of America in 1958. Today, ARRI Americas  Inc. oversees a region which includes ARRI and ARRI Rental offices across the  United States, Canada, and Brazil. Illumination Dynamics, a wholly-owned  subsidiary of ARRI Rental, manages two locations in the United States: in Los  Angeles, California, and Charlotte, North Carolina. 

It’s been a while since the pixel count race was a big issue for broadcast production. As we head into the 2024 trade show season, then, thinking centers on what upcoming technology might make possible—on techniques, rather than specifications.

Take Blackmagic Design for example; the company’s foray into cloud contribution is talismanic of the changes which turned half of West Hall into a cloud computing village at last year’s show and demonstrated how the cloud and IP are impacting the camera’s role in new digital workflows.

“We introduced the [Blackmagic Camera] iPhone app a little while ago,” said Bob Caniglia, director of sales for the company in North America. “You can shoot with that phone, work with the cloud service, share proxies. The camera to Blackmagic cloud to Resolve workflow started with the camera app. The Ursa Broadcast G2 [camera] is now in beta for that software too. That's a good direction on where we're going.”

Bonded cellphone links are an established alternative to microwave or satellite links, although similar things with single 5G connections are more nascent. Still, regardless of the connection type, Caniglia points out that the benefits of cloud systems help with both cost and expediency. “People can directly link to a broadcaster's box. If someone's out in the field and they shot something, they can send it and get it on air faster than searching YouTube.”

Meanwhile, traditional broadcast configurations have become ever more accessible. “We have a lot in the education, house-of-worship and live event spaces,” Caniglia says. “One reason we've done so well is the cost-performance ratio and the nimbleness of the gear. It's not a rackful for a switcher. If you need a spare, buy a second one and that's the same price as an output card on some other thing. Broadcasters buy our stuff for smaller rooms or backups because they can.”

One caveat of skyrocketing capability is sheer operability, with feature sets bigger than any single human could operate. “There are tools that you can use to overcome a lot of that,” Caniglia reflects. “Even if you were doing it software-only, you could do switching on one, audio on another, moving graphics around on another and camera control on a fourth. With macros and other things you can do a lot more. We have an open API and people have been able to write all kinds of macro stuff.”

The Rise of PTZ
That sort of automation and remote control understandably boomed during the pandemic. Jim Jensen, Panasonic’s senior category owner for PTZ & remote systems, reports that, in terms of sales “we don't see record numbers like we did during Covid, but we do see steady growth. We sell a number of different features and price categories and we're finding demand for a good quality, flexible PTZ camera with flexible workflow, often replacing low end studio cameras.”

Here, flexibility often means vast connectivity. “We're seeing demand for SRT,” Jensen continues. “A couple of years ago there wasn't much. Some users use NDI [and] ST 2110 has become a big topic for some customers, with them using a higher-end PTZ in the studio, so we have an ST 2110 option in the AW-UE160. It’s one of the first in the industry to offer that because we listened to our customers.”

Demand for glossy images has pushed PTZ cameras to ever greater heights, but Jensen reflects that the push for pixels is about flexibility as much as quality. “On our one-inch sensors that are 4K, we're able to create three regions of interest which are 16:9 full HD images within that 4K,” he said. “Because it's a larger imager, it gives them the flexibility to output one of those plus the full raster 4K, so that particular PTZ now has two images coming out of it.”

Panasonic’s involvement in everything from acquisition to display is a boon, Jensen concludes. “[Customers] are looking for a manufacturer that can do glass to glass, capturing and moving that signal through, switching it, and being able to display that particular event or production in very different ways. We're finding more customers are asking about what we’re doing from a solution standpoint, and we've been able to provide something.”

HDR: An Antidote to the Pixel Race?
If there’s an overriding theme for imaging technology at the 2024 NAB Show though, it’s HDR, which is sufficiently so well established that clients often expect it with little tolerance for increased complexity. Klaus Weber, director of product marketing at Grass Valley, recalls when he supported the first ever live HDR production at an athletic championship in Europe in August 2014. “Since then I've been on maybe 50 HDR productions here and in the U.S.,” he said.

HDR, Weber muses, might be an antidote to the pixel count race.

“People have UHD sets at home in a size where UHD potentially makes sense—55- 65- or 75-inch displays,” he said. “But in typical viewing conditions, you hardly reach the point where you can see HD with the human eye. I have a 65-inch OLED at home and I was watching on-demand from the public broadcaster here in Germany. 

"For whatever reason the resolution was set to SD rather than to HD, but the up-conversion was so well done it took me a while to realize. I think at home, with typical screen sizes, more resolution is not required—but HDR makes a big difference, even on small screens.”

The perhaps-instinctive approach of shading in HDR, then downconverting for SDR is something Weber warns against. “The downconverter clips a large amount of the highlights which is not what you want,” he said. “If you shade in SDR and use all the highlights you can squeeze into the SDR signal, you will never clip anything on the HDR signal. So, as long as the SDR looks okay, HDR always looks better.”

Making that workflow practical demands innovation. “NBC has a workflow document which describes basically the same thing that we proposed around 2014,” Weber says, “but the look processing in the camera head is really new. It will be at NAB and we have developed that by request for certain parties including OBS for the Olympics.”

Even as common approaches emerge, complexities remain, says Robert Willox, director of production marketing for live solutions at Sony. “Everything that's coming into the truck you have to keep track of—even bumper tapes,” he said. "‘What LUT did you use?’ ‘Does it matter or is it OK that it looks different?’ You need to know the identity of every signal in the truck to avoid mixing from HDR to SDR.”

SDR broadcast is the moneymaker, according to Willox. “There's increasing outlets for 4K HDR but right now the sacrosanct image is the SDR. We've developed a Sony workflow where we shoot in HDR with one crew and one set of vision engineers but the SDR workflow takes care of the rest. I'm oversimplifying, but we've created a number of additions into CCUs and processing equipment… the crew can create the HDR broadcast with a perfect SDR broadcast side by side.”

“Some of the broadcasters come to us with [their shading approach] and say ‘this is what we need as a LUT in your cameras; we don't want to be using multiple layers of LUT boxes, we want something we can start with at the camera output.’” Willox adds. “They want a standard LUT in the CCU. In live entertainment, everyone wants to have their own look but from a broadcast standpoint I think there's going to be a lot of standardized LUTs… we're constantly developing new tools for this and at this NAB we’re going to introduce some new software for the HDR-C4000, our simulcast box.”

That Cinematic Look
Super-35mm cameras are discussed less than a few years ago, though perhaps because it is unremarkable rather than uncommon. Chase Hagen, ARRI’s technical sales representative and multicam expert, points out that the sensor is not the only crucial part of the chain.

“Our focus is on live productions that benefit from a sophisticated cinematic look,” Hagen said.

To that end, ARRI’s cameras include features more often seen in a CCU: “Our ALEXA 35 cameras deliver SDR and HDR simultaneously [and] the camera has a stock display reference transform that delivers images that are as similar as possible given the differences between the two formats,” he added. “With a recent firmware update, we now allow users to install their own display transforms for even more control.”

It’s tempting to assume lenses have infinite dynamic range, but Art Adams, product specialist for cinema lenses for ARRI, demurs. “Chromatic aberration and veiling glare can be extremely distracting in HDR,” he said. “It’s important to pair [the camera] with lenses that can deliver color and contrast information right up to the clipping point without compromising the rest of the image. ARRI Signature lenses were designed with that in mind… It’s a waste to make such a high-quality sensor if there’s no way to take advantage of it.”

All that picture information is useful for an industry which increasingly considers HDR the norm. Combined HDR-SDR workflows are, perhaps, the feature of the moment. For the future, long-distance IP networking, remote operation and 5G seem ascendant—but what’s clearest is that workflow innovations are increasingly limited mainly by the imagination of engineers. 

Register for the 2024 NAB Show, April 14-17 in Las Vegas at https://nabshow.com/2024/

MUNICH—ARRI has announced the Orbiter Beam. The launch further expands its accessory range for the LED spot light and is the first beam optic in the ARRI LED lighting portfolio. 

ARRI reported that the Orbiter Beam’s intensity level has a comparable output to the ARRI Daylight M-Series M18 within a tighter beam angle. For the first time, these high intensity values can be achieved with a high-quality full-color spectrum LED source making the Orbiter Beam the brightest full-color LED spot light on the market. This parallel beam light is perfectly suiting cinematic applications—either for long throw distances or indirectly bounced, the company said. 

This new Orbiter optic provides a defined and strong 4° parallel light beam with homogenous light. The Orbiter Beam optic is an ideal option for creating the illusion of distant natural lights. The unique and authentic look of this optic in combination with the versatile Orbiter fixture makes it a go-to choice for filmmakers when simulating the natural light of the sun or moon in film projects.

The Orbiter Beam features a large aperture in a compact (approx. 573 mm x 548 mm x 548 mm / 22.6 in x 21.6 in x 21.6 in) and lightweight (5,9 kg / 13 lbs.) housing. The reflector’s diameter of 530 mm (20.9 in) is similar in size to the M90 luminaire. The two elements of the optic, the reflector and snoot, can be easily separated and stacked for convenient storage and transport. The Orbiter Beam comprises a unique manual hot-spot adjustment allowing variation from hard to soft edge light. The beam is a great addition to the already existing Orbiter Open Face optics 15°, 30°, and 60°. No additional accessories for the Orbiter Beam optic such as barndoors or snoots are required as the light beam produced is already nicely focused.

Orbiter’s unique Quick Lighting Mount (QLM) system allows the Orbiter Beam to be mounted safely and quickly. Any Orbiter running the firmware LiOS2 or later is prepared to operate the Orbiter Beam.

The Orbiter Beam is available in black and can be preordered. More information is available at www.arri.com/orbiter/beam. 

PARK CITY, Utah—ARRI has announced that it has been named the Official Lighting Provider for the prestigious 40th edition of the Sundance Film Festival.

ARRI, together with wholly owned subsidiary Illumination Dynamics, is providing the Sundance Film Festival with ARRI’s state-of-the-art lighting solutions, including SkyPanel S30-C, SkyPanel S60-C, and ARRI Orbiter fixtures at premiere event venues, stages, and lounges. 

“As we mark our 40th Sundance Film Festival, we are excited to collaborate with ARRI and use their innovative lighting technologies to help us create dynamic festival environments and shine a light on all the creators who are taking part in press lines before introducing their films to audiences at the Festival,” says Tammie Rosen, chief communications officer, Sundance Institute.

Glenn Kennel, president and CEO of ARRI Americas, added that “ARRI has been an active participant of the Sundance Film Festival for many years and 2024 is no exception. Together with Carly Barber, CEO at Illumination Dynamics, we are proud to support this important venue for independent storytelling.”

The ARRI classic SkyPanel series delivers industry-celebrated color accuracy with fully tunable LED technology, achieving outstanding color mixing in a compact form factor ideal for live events. With high-quality color rendition and a wide gamut, ARRI SkyPanels produce naturalistic lighting across all skin tones, the company said. 

The ARRI Orbiter provides all the light shaping benefits of a point light source while offering the rich color qualities that convince filmmakers time and time again to choose ARRI lighting for their productions. Its exclusive LED design and interchangeable optics produce a highly versatile light with outstanding and accurate color. The Orbiter also enables lighting designers to craft distinctive looks for live events, the company said. 

The 2024 Sundance Film Festival takes place January 18 to 28 in Park City, Salt Lake City, and the Sundance Resort in Utah, USA. Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, the Sundance Film Festival has introduced global audiences to groundbreaking films and discovered new voices that have gone on to profoundly impact entertainment and culture.

Festival passes are available at https://festival.sundance.org/. For more information on ARRI’s lighting solutions, please visit www.arri.com. 

MUNICH—ARRI has announced the 360 EVO, its top-of-the-line stabilized remote head featuring 360-degree rotation on the roll and pan axes, a robust design and remote system integration.

Building on the success of the SRH-360, the remote head shares a new GUI and multiple accessories with TRINITY 2, creating an integrated lineup of hard and soft-mounted stabilizer options, the company said.

ARRI has scaled up the technology that enables 360-degree rotation on the roll axis that is part of TRINITY 2 for the ARRI 360 EVO three-axis stabilized remote head. Even more dynamic roll-axis shots can be achieved by mounting the head to a crane or a cable cam above a live broadcast event, it said.

Running on the same software platform as TRINITY 2, the new head also shares the cables, brackets and same plates for mounting different cameras. Both can be controlled by the same tools, such as ARRI’s Digital Remote Wheels DRW-1 and new Digital Encoder Head DEH-2, it said.

LBUS connectivity enables efficient digital and metadata workflows, while the new software and GUI are focused on long-term Unreal Engine integration to facilitate virtual production. Plug-and-play control of the 360 EVO over the internet will be possible in the future when using an authorized repeater cloud service, it said.

The 360 EVO offers:

• 360-degree roll-axis rotation
• Support for payloads up to 66 pounds
• Compact size
• Versatile connectivity
• High-capacity 12/24 V camera power supply
• Rock Steady stabilization—even at long focal lengths

Shipments and upgrades for the SRH-360 are expected in Q1.

More information is on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has launched TRINITY Live, an upgrade for its TRINITY Gen. 1 body-mounted camera stabilizer system.

TRINITY Live, one of the company’s specialist tools designed to bring a cinematic aesthetic to broadcast, consists of new hardware, wiring and connectivity. The upgrade kit optimizes TRINITY Live for live productions and improves functionality with the ARRI Multicam System as well as third-party broadcast camera applications, the company said.

The upgraded solution complements ARRI’s Camera Control Panel (CCP) Live and Tally System Gen. 2, both announced at the 2023 NAB Show. It provides a method to integrate stabilized ARRI cameras into live, multicamera broadcast environments, it said.

TRINITY Live allows mounting a wireless video link at the bottom of the system rather than attaching it to the camera. Attaching a transmitter at the bottom of the center post allows it to function as a counterweight when balancing the rig and reduces weight by 8.8 pounds (4 kilograms), ARRI said.

This transmitter positioning also enables the wireless signal to be more stable because the antenna rotates within a smaller radius and fluctuates less in height than when attached to the back of the camera, it said.

Enhanced connectivity is at the heart of the TRINITY Live upgrade. It offers four new 4G video lines and a 10-Gbit shielded Ethernet line facilitating the new wireless video link position. The connectors for these new video lines necessitate a completely new center post, post connection, top stage junction box and wiring loom, all of which are included in the upgrade kit, it said.

TRINITY Live offers a total of five 4G video lines. The four new lines feed the wireless video link with up to four quad-link signals (four 3G signals) or with two video lines when Dual SDI (two 6G signals) are needed, it said.

The fifth video line serves as a playback line for return video transmitted wirelessly from an OB van to the unit. This signal allows an operator to see the program image on a second monitor. The additional internal 10-Gbit Ethernet line provides the OB van with full camera control and communication, it said.

“At ARRI, we love to maximize our customer’s return on investment, so we’re pleased that the TRINITY Live upgrade extends the life and functionality of TRINITY Gen.1,” said Curt Schaller, ARRI product manager of camera stabilizer systems. 

“For operators who want to expand into broadcast applications with TRINITY Live but don’t already own a TRINITY Gen. 1, the best place to buy a used rig is the ARRI Certified Pre-Owned program. However, if one is found elsewhere, it can be taken to any local ARRI service center where all the checks will be made to make sure the equipment is in good working order for the upgrade before purchase.”

Two other upgrade options are also available: the ARRI Master Grip Trinity upgrade, offering simultaneous control of a zoom lens and the stabilizer’s tilt axis via a common LBUS controller; and the 24 V upgrade for TRINITY Live that provides dependable 24 V camera power when needed. TRINITY Gen. 1 rigs previously upgraded to 24 V must be fitted with this upgrade as part of the TRINITY Live conversion.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced that Dr. Raphael Kiesel will be taking over the management of ARRI’s Lighting division on December 1, 2023. 

In this new role as senior vice president business unit Lighting at ARRI, Dr. Kiesel reports directly to Dr. Matthias Erb, chairman of the Executive Board at ARRI, the company reported. 

“We are extremely pleased that we have been able to win Dr. Kiesel for this position,” Dr. Erb said. “As the new head of the division, he will continue to drive the development of ARRI Lighting. I wish Raphael the best of luck and success in this exciting and challenging task.”

“ARRI’s commitment to quality is already inspiring but I want to push the quality of our brand and its lighting portfolio even further,” explained Dr. Kiesel. “The sights are set on becoming a full-range provider in our core market while elevating activities in new segments. Producing the right products at the right time and in the best quality, that’s been the ARRI promise for over 100 years. I look forward to continuing this success story in intensive dialog with our customers and users.”

Dr. Kiesel had been responsible for global quality management at ARRI. In that role, he has systematically refined quality management at the company. 

Before joining ARRI, Dr. Kiesel acquired a deep technical understanding combined with entrepreneurial thinking and international experience, the company said. 

He also spent time abroad in the USA, France, and China. During his time as a research assistant and department head at the Fraunhofer Institute IPT and Machine Tool Laboratory (WZL) at RWTH Aachen University, he completed his doctorate in mechanical engineering. At the same time, he completed an MBA at the Collège des Ingénieurs in cooperation with Siemens.

LOS ANGELES—ARRI Rental North America today announced the appointment of Lisa Harp as vice president of business development and that Andrea Leonard will join the rental business as director of business development in its New York branch. 

"We're pleased to welcome Lisa Harp and Andrea Leonard to ARRI Rental as we look forward to advancing our presence in the entertainment industry,” said Andy Shipside, president of ARRI Rental. “Their wealth of experience and proven track records in business development make them valuable additions to our leadership team."

Harp, who will be based here, has more than 30 years of experience in the film and television industry. She has held leadership roles at cinema rental companies, including Panavision and PRG, ARRI said.

Leonard previously led successful business development initiatives in high-profile positions at Monster Remotes and Panavision. Over the last five years, she held a dual leadership role at Monster Remotes and Flying Monster, where she built the cinema drone division of Monster from start-up to a leader in their field, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—Michael Huelskemper has joined ARRI as vice president of product management in the company’s lighting business unit. 

Huelskemper is now responsible for continuing development, improving and broadening the product portfolio of the division and will focus on creating compelling, value-driven products and solutions, the company said.

“It is a great honor and pleasure for me to continue the story of this iconic brand with exceptional lighting products together with the ARRI team,” said Huelskemper. “In the field of innovative, connected and sustainable LED lighting, there is still a lot of development potential that we can leverage together with our customers.”

The new vice president ARRI with more than 15 years of experience in the development and product management of LED luminaires and luminaire components around the world. Holding a degree in electrical engineering, Huelskemper has spent years with OSRAM and Philips Lighting. Most recently, he was head of regional product management for EMEA at TE Connectivity. There, he was responsible for building a downstream product management team, it said.

“I am very pleased that Michael Huelskemper, a proven expert in the field of portfolio management for LED lighting products, has joined our ranks,” said Matthias Erb, chairman of the ARRI executive board. “With this important new addition to the team, we are driving forward the realignment of ARRI Lighting. I wish him a good start at ARRI and much success in his strategically important role.”

More information is available on the company’s website.

Broadcast lens makers have long worked to marching orders from large venue live sports and concert producers wanting longer and (still) longer focal length telephoto zoom lenses. This year the camera at the center field fence can frame a head and shoulders shot of the batter; next year it will inch in a bit to a head only shot.

But now those lens makers are hearing a second voice. It’s asking them for a more cinematic look, not to replace the mega-telephoto zooms, but for use on the sidelines and locker rooms.

There are a number of elements to that cinema look. The most easily identifiable is a shallow depth of field. At the risk of oversimplification, depth of field in still or motion picture photography is the distance between the nearest and the furthest objects that are in acceptably sharp focus in an image captured with a camera. The more shallow the depth of field, the less of the image is in focus, and the more is out of focus. 

This shallow depth of field has long been the province of photography and motion pictures, where it is said to be eye catching. But now it no longer is just restricted to pros—with average consumers using the “profile” feature on their smartphones, even the average joe understands its appeal.

How to Do It
There are three ways to reduce the lens’ depth of field:

• Increase the image sensor size
• Increase the iris setting, the f-stop
• Increase the lens focal length

Most live sports cameras and lenses utilize B4 mount lenses, with -inch three-chip prism sensors. Most cinema cameras and lenses utilize PL mounts, which have larger image sensors than the B4 mounts, and thus deliver a more shallow depth of field.

Opening the lens’ iris setting will also shallow the depth of field. In order to keep the light level even it may be necessary to deploy neutral density filters in the camera. Shutter speed can also be used to limit the light hitting the sensor, but can also yield unwanted effects.

To shallow the depth of field by increasing focal length, a prime lens can be switched out with a higher focal length lens, or zooming the lens can achieve the same result. For a production moving fast and furious, a zoom lens is preferred.

“Over the last series of years, be it sports or other live events, concerts, generally multicam, we’ve seen a desire to create that cinematic look,” said Stosh Durbacz, national sales manager, Optical Devices Division, Fujifilm North America Corporation. 

At the 2023 NAB Show, Fujifilm introduced its Fujinon Duvo HZK25-1000 box lens, which deploys a dual-format system that supports two single sensor sizes: a large format sensor size and a traditional super 35mm sensor.

“Our customers helped us identify a very clear need for a long and fast cinema lens that can produce cinematic results in a live production environment,” said Durbacz. Fujifilm’s newly developed 1.5x expander shifts the focal length of the telephoto side, enabling super-telephoto image capture of 1500mm (1000×1.5).

Bokeh is another lens attribute that yields a cinematic look. Bokeh is the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in out-of-focus parts of an image. 

There are several characteristics that impact bokeh, said Art Adams, product specialist, Cinema Lenses at ARRI. “But the most important is spherical aberration: do light rays from the edge of the lens focus at the same point as light rays from the center of the lens? ARRI lenses are very well corrected for spherical aberration and this produces backgrounds that are incredibly smooth. Subjects pop out of out-of-focus backgrounds as there are no residual hard edges to draw the eye away.”

Adams pointed to ARRI’s 65-300 Signature Zoom as the most useful for live sports. “It is exceptional because it doesn’t exposure-ramp at the end of the zoom range: when you start your zoom at T2.8 at 65mm, you’ll end your zoom at T2.8 at 300mm. That lens ships with a 1.7x extender at no extra charge, and that turns this lens into a very high quality 110mm-510mm T4.9.”

Ergonomic Hurdles
There are a lot of technical hurdles to developing lenses that provide the cinematic look. But there are ergonomics factors as well. 

In cinema production, there may be four or five different operators working around the cinema camera. On a broadcast crew, you have one operator for each camera. 

“This is largely because when they’re making a video, making a movie, they’re not beholden to the action head of them,” said Mark Weir, senior product manager, Alpha Cameras & Lenses, Sony Electronics. “They can have as many takes as they want because the actors and what’s happening are under the control of the production, they’re not taking images that are happening in front of them. They’re literally making them, they’re crafting them, they’re organizing them, they’re structuring them to fit their requirements.“

Weir notes that the technology for the cinematic look is in its infancy. “It doesn’t cover everything in the world of broadcast sports, for example,” he said. “You’ve got to deliver the kind of reach to cover action 100 yards away. Trying to then cover it in shallow depth of field is probably not what the production is looking for. It’s a balance of both.”

As the depth of field becomes more and more shallow, keeping the lens focused on the action becomes more difficult. 

“The challenge is knowing where to point that auto focus,” said Josh Stoner, senior specialist, Product Management Team, Broadcast and Cinema Lenses for Canon. ”The trick is how to make it react so you’re not catching someone out of frame, like somebody coming into the frame and then the focus jumping to that person.  That’s more of an operator function to learn how to do that. It’s less about learning where to point the autofocus, when to engage it and when not to engage it.”

Stoner said picking a lens for a cinematic look depends on which cameras utilized. “If they’re using a stubby camera and they have a whole rig built up around it, I’m going to suggest one of our CINE-SERVO, the 70 to 120, which is going to give you a kind of a wide angle look,” he said. “If they’re going to run around on a gimbal, with a C370, I’m going to go with one of our RF lenses to give you autofocus and lightweight capability so you can run around with it.”

With host broadcaster Olympic Broadcasting Service recently announcing that it will be using cinematic lenses for the first time at the 2024 Games in Paris, expect to see an overload of the cinematic look next summer. Which seems appropriate when you consider the French invented cinema.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced the launch of SkyPanel X, a new, all-weather LED luminaire that is the latest addition to the SkyPanel family. 

Introduced as a modular system and configurable into different sizes, SkyPanel X now offers native soft, native hard, and open-face lighting. This state-of-the-art LED light also sets new standards in terms of dimming, color rendition, output, and beam quality, making it the perfect lighting solution, ARRI reported. 

ARRI said that its SkyPanel X is designed to address the needs of studios, rental houses, and corporate clients and that it is tailored to meet the requirements and working dynamics of DPs, gaffers, console operators, lighting designers, and broadcast technicians, the company said. 

More specifically, SkyPanel X provides superior low-end dimming with flicker-free operation from 100 to zero percent for direct, close-distance key lighting. With a dynamic CCT range from 1,500 to 20,000 K, the luminaire can emulate the characteristics of sodium lamps or cloudy sunlight, ARRI reported. 

The RGBACL full-spectrum light engine features the best ARRI lighting color science to date, enhancing skin tones and achieving deep color reproduction. Eight pixel zones per LED panel meet the requirements of advanced console programming, visual effects, and virtual production environments, the company said. 

Engineered for maximum endurance and reliability, SkyPanel X is fully protected from rain, storms, or high-pressure jet cleaning, certified with IP66 rating for all weather conditions. This dramatically reduces the maintenance procedures and extends the lamphead’s lifecycle. SkyPanel X also offers wireless control, advanced networking possibilities, and integrated power supply. 

As a modular solution, SkyPanel X is configurable into different formats (landscape, square, vertical), capable of generating wide-aperture soft light, powerful hard light, or intense open-face light. Multiple units can be combined via the X Modular Yoke, featuring ARRI’s quick-lock system, the company reported. 

There are three front attachments available for SkyPanel X, which natively fit to one single unit: the X21 Dome for native soft light, the S60 Adapter for all existing SkyPanel accessories, and the HyPer Optic for native hard light. 

The X21 Dome—included with every lamphead—provides native soft light. It can be used close to talent, while at the same time giving perfect lighting from greater distances without losing a solid beam spread. The hot-swappable, rounded diffuser can be quickly mounted and dismounted from the lamphead’s front. The X21 Dome is fully compatible with third-party accessories and modifiers. 

Via the optional S60 Adapter, SkyPanel X users can apply the same techniques and choose accessories used on the classical SkyPanel line. Established SkyPanel workflows remain unchanged but are enhanced by the incorporation of the most recent lighting innovations, ARRI explained. 

The HyPer Optic—named after its high-performance lux output—is an optional, hot-swappable lens with eight individually controllable pixel zones that can be quickly mounted and dismounted from the X21 lamphead’s front. With the HyPer Optic, SkyPanel X becomes an excellent tool for medium and long throws and collimates multiple single lenses into one single beam. 

With SkyPanel X’s modular setup, users can choose between, easily swap, or combine the X21 Dome and the HyPer Optic, creating a soft, semi-soft, semi hard, or powerful native hard light.

SkyPanel X also offers a wide range of possibilities for control and connectivity, including built-in wireless control, two Ethernet ports, LumenRadio CRMX2, and Bluetooth 5.0. The IP66 rating also applies to the ALL-WEATHER Control Panel.  

SkyPanel X runs on the new LiOS3 software. The Lighting Operating System  (LiOS) combines and expands on the innovative features of ARRI LED lights.  Highlights of LiOS3 in SkyPanel X include DMX Mode Spec. 6.0, DMX User Presets, array setup for multi-unit control, and three ARRI ALEXA Modes,  supporting the color science of ALEXA 35 and previous ALEXA or AMIRA camera systems, ARRI reported. 

The new ARRI LiCo app will support direct remote communication via Bluetooth between SkyPanel X and mobile devices. The lighting settings can be directly adjusted via phone or tablet, just like the ALL-WEATHER Control Panel of the fixture. The app is free for iOS and Android devices and available soon at the App Store and Google Play Store.  

For precise virtual lighting simulations, SkyPanel X offers a digital twin. This ARRI-exclusive technology transforms cinematic lighting workflows from pre- to postproduction. Featuring 3D models, authentic characteristics, and intuitive interfaces, it boosts efficiency, consistency, and creativity in production environments.  

The use of SkyPanel X ranges from film and broadcast to fashion, beauty,  product shoots, and lifestyle scenarios. For larger applications requiring throw, like big spaces, night exteriors, or when simulating sunlight, etc., SkyPanel X  offers excellent, flexible lighting. Using the same fixture for multiple purposes will help users with color consistency and simplified control. As a result, SkyPanel X  offers to owners and users a higher return on investment, more technical freedom, improved quality standards, and a lower cost of ownership. 

SkyPanel X is available in blue-silver and can be pre-ordered as single products or predefined kits. Additional colors and accessories will follow soon.  

To learn more about the SkyPanel X series and its accessories, please visit:  https://www.arri.com/skypanelx. 

NEW YORK—ARRI has opened a compact, multipurpose studio facility focusing on advertising and commercial production that provides a cost-effective production infrastructure with access to ARRI’s high-quality, trusted camera and lighting systems. 

“ARRI has been at the forefront of virtual production innovation from its origins in high-end film and feature production,” explained Stephan Ukas-Bradley, vice president of solutions at ARRI Americas. “At ARRI Studio New York, clients benefit from ARRI’s comprehensive knowledge and brand excellence including high-quality camera and lighting technology, and workflow integration. This means they can fully concentrate on their production and maximize their time on set.”

The facility, which is located at ARRI’s premises in New York City, offers a turnkey studio configuration with space for live audience for corporate videos, interview-style setups, town-hall presentations, educational and training clips, fashion shoots, and music videos, the company reported. 

Built around a curved LED wall with image-based lighting design, ARRI Studio New York also offers an efficient, user-friendly introduction to virtual production with in-house creative and technical support that is designed to help advertising and commercial clients reduce costs and carbon footprint by avoiding crew travel to multiple locations, consistency in weather and daylight conditions, and real-time virtualization, the company said. 

The studio is operated by ARRI, with clients able to tap into the technical insights of in-house support staff including Creative Producer Luis Feliciano. Clients have access to the full inventory of ARRI Rental’s professional camera and lighting equipment.

“ARRI serves the best creatives in the world, who shoot award-wining productions with our equipment and services," Andy Shipsides, president North America ARRI Rental, added. "ARRI Studio New York not only offers leading production infrastructure and convenience. But agencies and corporate customers can also expect a supportive environment, ensuring all creative needs are met under one roof.”

For more information and booking, visit https://www.arri.com/arri-studio-new-york.

MUNICH—ARRI today unveiled a Software Update Package (SUP) 2.0 for its cforce mini and cforce plus lens motors, improving the time it takes the motors to respond to user input, making them twice as responsive.

All cforce mini and cforce plus lens motors in the market can benefit from the free software update. Increased performance is not affected by the choice of hand unit, the company said.

Any ARRI ECS configuration using the Hi-5, ZMU-4, SXU-1 or the legacy WCU-4 can take advantage of the motors’ halved latency and a pronounced enhancement of the first AC’s direct connection to the lens axis, it said.

Introduced in 2014, the small, lightweight cforce mini motor is widely used in many productions, except when exceptional torque or speed is required. However, the SUP 2.0 firmware upgrade re-invigorates the cforce mini motor, making it appropriate for additional use cases, the company said.

When working with a low-friction lens, the new motor firmware delivers particularly improved performance when coupled with the larger 50t CLM-4 gear (K2.72108.0). The combination delivers 25% faster speeds than when used with the default 40t but with a slight reduction in maximum torque, it said.

The cforce plus motor, used widely for high-torque applications, is now the fastest-accelerating motor in ARRI’s product lineup. In focus pulling situations where reaction time is critical, the cforce plus will help ensure marks are hit consistently, the company said.

The Software Update Package 2.0 also offers a new Encoder Mode for the cforce mini motor, which permits the lens axis held by a lens motor to be rotated manually while still allowing data from custom lens files to be recorded and displayed, it said.

Encoder Mode enables a cinematographer to adjust the iris value directly on any lens without removing the motor. The T-stop position can then be displayed in the status overlay on all monitors and hand units and streamed to virtual production systems. This mode is not available for the cforce plus motor due to its greater torque, which elevates internal resistance, it said.

SUP 2.0 for cforce mini and cforce plus is available on the ARRI website.

More information is available on the company’s website.

TORONTO—ARRI Rental North America has opened a new 8,200-square-foot facility in Toronto to provide comprehensive access to its rental services and equipment, such as the ALEXA 65 camera and DNA, Moviecam and HEROES lenses.

The new facility, which offers a 2,600 square-foot creative space to support filmmakers so they can experience ARRI products and technology, is a sign of the company’s commitment to the thriving Canadian film community, it said.

“Toronto has long been recognized as a leading production hub for both the Canadian and North American film industries, and we are excited to be part of this vibrant community,” said Andy Shipsides, president of ARRI Rental North America. “By having a presence in Toronto, we can provide local access to our top-of-the-line equipment and unparalleled technical expertise, ultimately helping our clients bring their creative visions to life. We look forward to working closely with the Toronto film community and contributing to its continued growth and success.”

The ARRI Creative Space is a fully outfitted studio. It includes the full line of ALEXA cameras, Signature lenses, lighting, Pro Camera Accessories and Camera Stabilizer Systems. ARRI specialists conduct product demos, facilitate camera and lens tests and provide customer support, the company said.

The new facility is the company’s third in Canada, joining offices in Vancouver and Calgary. It is located at 94 Advanced Road, Etobicoke Ontario M8Z 2T7.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced its Approved Certified Pre‑Owned (CPO) Program, which offers technically refurbished products with the same warranty as new models, is now being run by Arne Stadler, who has been named business manager Certified Pre‑Owned Program Camera Systems & Lighting. 

Stadler takes over from Christian Richter, who has successfully established and expanded the CPO business at ARRI over the past five years. Richter will now focus on his role as general manager sales & solutions EMEAI. Arne Stadler reports to Stephan Schenk, general manager global sales & solutions.

Before joining ARRI, Arne Stadler was responsible for the business development of film cameras and lenses at Canon for the DACH region. The film and media technology engineer has extensive sales and industry experience and started his career as a cinematographer and Steadicam operator.

Equipment for sale in the ARRI Approved CPO program is rigorously inspected and technically refurbished with the utmost care, the company said. During the inspection process, cameras, lenses, luminaires, and other products are tested, any mechanical defects are repaired, electronic components are updated, and worn parts are replaced if necessary. All products receive the latest software version and a final function test. All ARRI CPO products come directly from the manufacturer and with warranty.

More information on the ARRI Approved CPO program is available at www.arri.com/cpo. 

ROME—ARRI has opened a new office in Rome to advance and support the film and audiovisual industry of Italy.

More than 100 guests from the nation’s film industry, including cinematographers, producers, directors, business partners and post-production and rental professionals, gathered for the opening. Members of ARRI’s global management team also were present.

“It is with great pleasure that we celebrate the opening of the new Rome office,” said Christian Richter, general manager of sales and solutions for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and India (EMEAI) at ARRI. “The Italian film industry has an incredible heritage that needs no introduction. ARRI already has a long history in Italy. ARRI’s new presence in the Italian capital shows the will to be an integral part of this community to bring support to our loyal customers and users who have been working with our tools for a long time."

Located in the heart of Rome’s Prati district, close to numerous production and post-production houses, the new office covers an area of 1,292 square feet and consists of a meeting room, a creative space and show room and as well as a warehouse.

The office also features a dedicated space that can be used to host regular workshops and master classes to keep industry professionals up to date on ARRI technology.

“We… open our doors to the next generations of filmmakers and share knowledge by hosting demos, workshops and trainings in these new premises,” said Natasza Chroscicki, managing director of ARRI France and ARRI business development director of MED-Benelux-NA, who is responsible for ARRI Italy. “After the challenging times of these recent years and the necessity of remote work, this office will finally serve as a homebase to the young and vibrant team of ARRI Italy. Here, they will be able to physically connect with each other and with customers to grow our presence in this active market.”

More information is available on the company’s website. 

SINGAPORE—ARRI Asia-Pacific has relocated its Hong Kong office to a 3,600-square-foot facility in Singapore and held a grand opening ceremony April 25 with an open house to mark the occasion.

Top management from Germany, including Executive Board members Matthias Erb, chairman, Lars Weyer, CFO, and industry leaders from the moving image library in the Asia-Pacific region were on hand.

ARRI Asia Pte. Ltd., the official name of the new subsidiary in Singapore, is part of ARRI Asia-Pacific, which also includes ARRI Korea, ARRI Japan and ARRI Australia. Together, they provide sales and services to the entire Asia-Pacific region, the company said.

“The inauguration of the Singapore subsidiary in the heart of the Asia-Pacific market symbolizes a new phase in ARRI’s venture in the region,” said Erb. “It shows how vital the region, including its emerging markets, is for ARRI. Together with our customers, we plan to significantly increase our activities here.” 

Located in Marina Centre in Singapore, the new office is a multi-purpose creative space that can be converted for equipment demonstrations, ARRI Academy training and company events. The office also includes an open concept workspace, adaptable meeting rooms and a collaboration corner to enhance productivity and efficiency, it said.

The subsidiary also houses a fully equipped 3,000-square-foot service center for maintenance and repairs as well as warehouse space.

More information is available on the company’s website.

LOS ANGELES—I founded Wide+Close with partner and Eastside Camera Rental Owner, Ryley Fogg in 2019 after successfully integrating ARRI Cinema cameras with DTS fiber conversion systems into a traditional TV broadcast infrastructure. At the time, it was risky cutting-edge technology, but with ARRl’s support, it worked beautifully, and most importantly started us out on this journey.

I had been working with Ryley, who is also an extremely talented colorist/DIT on documentary, commercial, and live music projects over the past decade. After numerous music documentaries and live performances together, we decided to bring our methodology of filming for live-to-tape into the live-live space.

So, we launched Wide+Close and built the company on the philosophy that there is a better way to visualize live performances. We fundamentally reimagined all aspects of livestream production to move past a coverage-based approach and towards a more artistic visual interpretation of music based on look and feel. Image quality, color, and composition are our north stars.

We call this approach “live cinema.”

Streaming Pipeline
Live cinema harnesses the talent, tools, and techniques of the traditional filmmaking world and seamlessly integrates into any streaming pipeline. We believe that with live cinema, we’ve figured out how to bridge the gap between being there and watching at home—it just took a whole new way of thinking.

We are artists and filmmakers who speak and understand the language of cinema. Our goal is to conjure the same emotions you feel when listening to music while watching and capture the “lightning in a bottle” that is the live concert experience. Music is the only art form that is created live and in that moment, its visual representation should come close to recreating that feeling.

We employ a higher-level of talent at every position and that talent behind the camera is what separates us from the competition. As Ansel Adams once said, “The single most important component of a camera is the 12 inches behind it.”

ARRI Trinity Stabilization
We chose ARRI cameras, stabilization systems and lenses because they are the gold standard and imagery leader in the film world. I personally have been shooting on ARRI cameras dating back to the introduction of the first ALEXA digital cinema camera and especially when the AMIRA came on the scene.

For music documentaries, and particularly for filmed live performances, the AMIRA and ALEXA camera systems seemed to be tailor made for these genres. These cameras are built to withstand the elements and lend themselves to the rough and tumble environments that represent the venues, studios, and crazy locations we find ourselves shooting in. For the YouTube Coachella livestream, we are literally on a polo field in the middle of the desert—hostile to say the least.

At YouTube’s Coachella livestream, we honed our approach and capitalized on the use of the ARRI cameras, lenses, and stabilization systems—the best case of which is the ARRI ALEXA Mini LF mounted to an ARRI TRINITY (and an A-List TRINITY Operator Mark Goellnicht) wearing an ARRI Signature Zoom or Prime. 

This combination of equipment became the number tool in our box and completely changed the dynamic for producing in the live space. We are now seeing the live concert world embrace and adapt to TRINITY as the “go to setup” for stabilized camera work. And we’ll be using them again on multiple stages at this year’s festival. 

More information is available at www.arri.com/en.

MUNICH—ARRI has announced that it is elevating its ARRI Solutions division to become its own business unit focusing on virtual production and has appointed two new senior management positions to lead it. 

The company says it formed the new business unit because “the growing demand for high-quality virtual production, integration of systems, and development of efficient state-of-the-art workflows has left many creatives and corporations searching for a reliable, global partner.”

The business unit is led by Kevin Schwutke, who focuses on the strategic and commercial direction, and David Bermbach, who is responsible for the technological backbone. Under their leadership, ARRI Solutions will become the partner of choice for a wide range of studio owners, operators, producers, content creators, and corporate clients.

ARRI Solutions designs, engineers, builds, and operates pioneering virtual production environments of all sizes, along with delivering integrated systems and cutting-edge workflows for corporations, broadcasters, and studios. With experience of leading major studio projects from consultancy through to configuration and turnkey installation, the company says its ARRI Solutions unit “offers customers a full end-to-end service with the promise of ARRI brand quality.”

“We are seeing great demand from our customers for our expertise in developing and delivering advanced, highly integrated solutions that ensure production value at the highest level, said Dr. Matthias Erb, Chairman of the Executive Board at ARRI. “The appointment of Kevin Schwutke and David Bermbach to lead ARRI Solutions will position this business unit alongside Camera Systems, Lighting, and Rental as a fundamental pillar of ARRI’s long-term strategy.”

Kevin Schwutke, Senior Vice President & Head of Business Unit Solutions at ARRI, who recently joined the company, continues, “ARRI already has a showcase of pioneering virtual production and broadcast studio projects all over the world. Establishing ARRI Solutions as a business unit means we can expand our capabilities together with our partner network, ensuring we can not only meet, but exceed our customers’ expectations for efficient, effective, and state-of-the-art studio and production environments.”

David Bermbach, Vice President & Technical Head of Business Unit Solutions at ARRI, adds: “ARRI’s heritage for quality and delivering the most authentic images is unparalleled in the industry. This deep understanding and expertise provide the foundation for our development of cutting-edge software, tools, and workflows, specifically designed for virtual production and ultra-modern studios.”

Schwutke studied Mechanical Engineering & Computer Science and brings extensive consultancy experience to ARRI, with a specialization in the management of fast-growing companies. After positions at Bosch and as an Associate Partner at Porsche Consulting, he most recently served at Munich-based ClimatePartner as Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Customer Management.

Bermbach joined ARRI in 2006 and has held a number of senior technical positions, including Head of Center of Competence Project Management R&D Camera Systems and most recently Head of Global Technology for ARRI Rental. He has been fundamental in integrating ARRI’s cameras and lighting into virtual production environments which are already in use for film, episodic and commercial shoots.

MUNICH—ARRI is launching its new line of Impression Filters with eight Impression V Filters that give a vintage feel to Signature Prime and Zoom lenses. 

The four negative and four positive diopter filters incrementally shift the focus characteristics of the image, allowing a range of detuned looks to be created for Super 35 or large format with one set of Signature lenses.

The Impression V Filters are first in a new line of ARRI Impression Filters. Providing a cost-effective way to achieve multiple looks with a single lens set, they are designed to be a new creative option to selectively detune Signature Prime and Signature Zoom lenses. They are easy to exchange using the rear magnetic filter holder, with lens scales maintaining accuracy, the company said. 

Diopters are traditionally positioned in front of a lens to reduce its close focus distance, but ARRI’s new Impression V Filters are completely different, the company explained. 

Attaching to the back of Signature lenses via the built-in rear magnetic filter adapter, they alter the appearance of out-of-focus image elements. Known as bokeh, these elements play a significant role in the emotional impact of images. All bokeh is affected by the Impression V Filters, but it is particularly noticeable in background highlights, which get more of a “donut” effect (bright around the edges) with negative filters, and more of a “bauble” effect (brighter in the middle) with positive filters. In general, the positive filters have a nostalgic, glamorous feel, with swirly bokeh, glowing skin tones, and softer backgrounds; while negative filters have a grittier look, with inward-pulling bokeh and intense, vibrant backgrounds, the company reported. 

The four positive Impression V Filters are named IV 070P, IV 140P, IV 230P, and IV 330P, while the four negative filters are IV 050N, IV 100N, IV 200N, and IV 290N. 

In both cases, the increasing numbers signify a stronger diopter effect. Impression V Filters are designed to be used at T1.8, where the effect is strongest and lens scales remain accurate. Positive filters attach directly to the rear of each Signature lens, whereas the negative filters require a shim to be added to the back of the lens first. There is a 2 mm shim for shooting at T1.8, and a 1.85 mm shim to act as a base for the additional shimming required to shoot with Signature Zooms, or at higher stops with Signature Primes, the company explained. 

ARRI reported that Impression V Filters work with its latest cameras: the ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, ALEXA LF, and ALEXA 65. The filters are sold in a kit that contains all eight positive and negative diopters, as well as a shim set, an adjustable torque screwdriver for adding shims, and inscribable Velcro tabs for labeling filtered lenses on set, all packaged in a specially designed aluminum flight case. For customers who don’t need a full kit, or perhaps are replenishing one, each of the eight filter types can be purchased in a separate three-filter set that includes foam inlays, Velcro tabs and—in the case of the negative filters—a shim set. Velcro sets and shim sets can also be purchased separately.

While the Impression V Filters and shims can be mounted to lenses without requiring a qualified lens technician, ARRI recommends that decisions about which type of filter to use should be made prior to shooting whenever possible. At a stop of T1.8, productions that like the positive look can interchange all four positive filters quickly and easily, and productions that choose the negative look can attach shims in advance and swap between the four negative filters on set. It may also be possible to add or remove shims on set, depending on the crew, the location, and the specific conditions.

As with all ARRI products, Impression V Filters and shims are made to exacting tolerances and the highest standards of precision and quality. Once installed, the lenses will perform as reliably as if they had been built that way in the factory.

For more information, including educational videos, about the ARRI Impression V Filters, which are available to order now, visit here.  

ARRI and Rotolight have announced that they’ve settled their dispute over Rotolight patents and that both sides have withdrawn their legal challenges. 

"ARRI has agreed to a settlement with Rotolight, relating to Rotolight’s cinematic special effects “CineSFX" patent portfolio in the US, UK, and Europe,” ARRI and Rotolight said in a joint statement. “ARRI no longer contests the validity of Rotolight’s patents and has withdrawn its Inter Partes Review in the US accordingly. Simultaneously, Rotolight has withdrawn its US District patent court action against ARRI. All ARRI products will continue to be offered as always. ARRI and Rotolight respect intellectual property and value fair competition”. 

In a separate statement, Rod Aaron Gammons, CEO of Rotolight added that “Rotolight invests millions each year into research and development in order to bring its customers the latest in lighting technology and innovation. However, such investments can only be made with the knowledge that those investments and the intellectual property, which underpins them will be respected. We are therefore pleased to have reached a settlement with ARRI, and shall continue to take all steps necessary to protect our intellectual property from ongoing infringement. In so doing, this will allow us to continue to invest in bringing industry-first innovations to market. Any other infringing companies should now proactively approach Rotolight directly, to secure a licensing agreement on reasonable commercial terms. ”      

Rotolight designs innovative LED lighting products for the cine/broadcast and photographic industries that have been used by leading filmmakers, studios and broadcasters around the globe.   

Manufactured in the UK, Rotolight products have pioneered numerous industry-first, patented technologies, such as the first suite of user customizable cinematic lighting effects (CineSFX), and the world’s first electronic diffusion technology (SmartSoft), the company said.  

The company also noted that the Rotolight CineSFX and related Magic Eye patent family contains 18 granted patents relating to user-customisable special effects, which have been granted by patent offices in the US, UK, Germany and Europe, the company said. 

These patents were developed internally by Rotolight, working in conjunction with Emmy winning Visual FX Veteran Stefan Lange (IMDB), who is listed as a co-inventor of these patents. 

In addition to the settlement agreed with ARRI, Rotolight also successfully defended two IPR cases relating to the same patents (IPR2022-00262 and IPR2022-00261) in the USA brought against it by Vitec Production Solutions Inc. 

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board found in Rotolight's favor, denied the institution of their InterPartes patent review and re-confirmed the validity of the granted Rotolight CineSFX patents, Rotolight said. 

MUNICH—ARRI has announced that Dr. Raphael Kiesel has been named its new head of quality management. 

Based at the film technology company’s headquarters in Munich, he will work to convert customer requirements into products and services as part of a push by ARRI to place even more emphasis on the quality it delivers to customers.

“ARRI has stood for the highest quality in the film industry since 1917,” explained Dr. Matthias Erb, chairman of the Executive Board at ARRI. “These high-quality standards must be further advanced globally in all business and corporate areas. I wish Dr. Raphael Kiesel every success with this important task.”

Kiesel assumed the role of  head of quality management at ARRI in January 1, 2023.

“I am very much looking forward to this exciting position and am well aware of ARRI’s heritage and the responsibility that comes with it,” he said. “Our goal is to further improve upon the quality of ARRI’s products and services and to offer customers the very best that is possible.”

ARRI said that Dr. Raphael Kiesel is an entrepreneurial thinker who possesses technical know-how combined with international experience. He successfully studied industrial engineering with a specialization in mechanical engineering at RWTH Aachen University while also spending time abroad in the U.S., France, and China. 

Subsequently, he worked in Germany as a research assistant in the Production Quality department at the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT and for the past two years as head of the Quality Intelligence department at the Machine Tool Laboratory (WZL) of RWTH Aachen University. During this time, he also completed an MBA at the Collège des Ingénieurs in cooperation with Siemens.

MUNICH—ARRI has acquired Claypaky from OSRAM, bringing into its fold what is considered to be one of the top lighting makers in the entertainment and stage industry. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“With Claypaky as part of our corporate group, ARRI will become a leading solutions provider with top brands for both the motion picture and live entertainment markets,” said ARRI board chairman Matthias Erb. 

“The expertise, passion and dedication to lighting that distinguishes both companies also demonstrates that we are well-matched," he continued. "These similarities form a strong foundation for building a successful cooperation and the further development of our business areas.”

Saying the two companies are leaders in their respective fields, Marcus Graser, CEO of Claypaky attributed their reputations among customers to “deep market knowledge, innovation power and customer understanding.”

“We both share a rich heritage and an unconditional passion for technology and innovation in a professional industry that fascinates thousands of people around the world,” said Graser. “Together with ARRI, we will continue to work on our vision to create the best-in-class lighting equipment and services while offering world-class reference products to an even broader customer base.” 

Claypaky and ARRI will both will remain as their own organizations with their separate brands, setups and structures of staff and locations, ARRI said.

More information is available on the ARRI website.

SEATTLE—There’s a rule of thumb in video image capture that the finished picture will only be as good as the weakest part of the signal path. HDR (High Dynamic Range) is no exception.

“The great news is that the camera manufacturers have come a long ways in terms of how many stops of lights they can record,” said Stosh Durbacz, national sales manager at FUJIFILM Optical Device Division. “So we, the lens folks, have had to keep pace with that.”

Although HDR is a function of the processor inside the camera, the lens definitely plays a part, according to John Stoner, senior product specialist for Canon. “The light that passes through to the processer first passes through the lens, so if that light’s not clean, you’re never going to get a good HDR image,” he said.

Art Adams, cinema lens specialist at ARRI, said that HDR makes everything in a lens more pronounced. “That includes chromatic aberration, flare, softness at the edges, a lot of things that can be really distracting and can also impact the HDR image significantly.”

Secret Sauce
One critical component of a lens is the glass  optics within it. As light passes through each glass element, it creates reflections, which appear more pronounced in HDR. One way lensmakers deal with these reflections is with antireflective coatings.

“One of the biggest deciding factors is the antireflective coating that’s on the lenses,” said Snehal Patel, Head of Cinema Sales, Americas, Carl Zeiss SBE. “The higher quality antireflective coating, the higher performing antireflective coating you have on your lenses, the more exposure range you’re going to see in the lens, even when it’s wide open.”

FUJIFILM’s Durbacz noted: “Coatings are huge—they’re the secret sauce of any lens. They minimize the reflection of light. Every time light passes through a piece of glass, it comes in and then goes out, and there’s light that if reflected. So what we want to do is minimize that. These modern lenses can be 15-25-30 individual pieces of glass, all moving in unison.”

He also pointed out that in addition to reflections from the glass elements in a lens, there are other components that can create reflections. “The way the internal barrels are constructed, there’s baffling built in. It’s very small machining of those internal surfaces that will deaden any stray light that hits them.”

Another thing that’s improved is the black matte paint that’s used inside of the lens, according to ZEISS’ Patel. “Wherever you have glass elements inside the lens, you usually coat the edges with a matte black finish,” he said. “And any metal inside the lens that might be visible in the interior optics, you also coat that with matte black finish.“

“We have a design we call ‘flocking,’” said Canon’s Stoner, “which are mechanical ridges inside the barrel to eliminate that reflection of light before it gets to the camera sensor.”

Another lens error that becomes more pronounced when shooting in HDR is center to edge roll-off. FUJIFILM’s Durbacz pointed out: “Using the coatings and the grinding and polishing of the glass, we want to make sure that from the center of the lens—from the sweet spot out to the corners—that we’re providing flat illumination; we don’t have perceptible roll-off to the camera, from the center to the corner.”

ARRI makes both cameras and lenses for HDR. “Because we now have a camera that captures more dynamic range than anything else out there, the Alexa 35, we needed a set of lenses that would work with it,” said ARRI’s Adams. “We went back and redesigned our PL mount for this new camera. We realized that the previous design still had enough stray light issues that in HDR, with the new camera, you could start compromising your blacks, you could see them turn gray.”

To address HDR in broadcast production, Canon and Sony collaborated on ALAC (Automatic Chromatic Aberration Correction), a function that allows  automatic feedback between the lens and the camera, according to Stoner. “The lens tells the camera ‘I’m at this focal length and this iris position,’ and then the camera compensates for chromatic aberration, and removes them from the image before they get to the physical side.”

Difficult Compromise
Lensmakers pointed out that the degree of difficulty goes up when it comes to perfecting a zoom lens for HDR production.

“A zoom lens has a lot more glass in it,” said FUJIFILM’s Durbacz. “We’ve got moving groups, and we’ve got to maintain focus at all these different focal lengths. If you’re focused out to 25 feet, and you zoom the lens, there’s a lot going on. And there are additional groups of glass within the lens that the light has to transmit through.” 

ARRI’s Adams pointed to compromises that need to be taken. “Our zooms are more corrected for chromatic aberration, and we allow a little bit of distortion,” he said. “It’s a balancing act, they interact with each other. In a prime lens you can correct for both chromatic aberration and distortion because you’re only concentrating on one focal length. In a zoom, where you have a large range of focal lengths, you really have to go after one or the other or the lens gets very big and very, very expensive.

“So we opt to go toward correcting for chromatic aberration, because we think a little bit of distortion isn’t going to be as noticeable in HDR as chromatic aberration is. So our zoom lenses are very corrected for chromatic aberration, but there will be a little bit of distortion.”

While lensmakers go to great effort and expense to remove lens errors that have become noticeable in HDR, they’re aware that many cinematographers want the lenses to provide some character in addition to scientific perfection.

“What we’ve tried to do is to come up with a family of lenses, our Signature lenses, that work with HDR,” said Adams. “We try to maintain the most dynamic range possible, while eliminating the disturbing things that HDR doesn’t like, like chromatic aberration, and still make lenses that have character.”

ZEISS offers two different HDR- ready lens families: Supreme Prime and Supreme Prime Radiant. “The Supreme Primes are a cleaner set of lenses,” said Patel. “They have a wonderful cinematic look to them, they’re basically the successor to our Master Primes. They have both the 35 and full-frame coverage. And there’s a range of 14 focal lengths, from 15mm to 200mm. And then the Supreme Prime Radiant is a modified version of the Supreme Primes that add blue flare characteristics by manipulating anti-flare reflective coatings.”

“Now if we’re looking at real old lenses,” said Durbacz, “they still mount on these modern cameras, which is fantastic. But sometimes you start to see corner shading, or illumination roll-off to the corner. Those lenses were designed at a time when cameras didn’t see that kind of latitude, so you didn’t have to worry about a roll-off from the center out to the corner.”

Patel pointed out that “some of the things that they loved about the lenses, like maybe the flare, or the look of it, there are some qualities that maybe they didn’t notice before in some lenses that they notice now in HDR. That would be the only danger, that there might be something that they didn’t expect. They’re using a lens where they got a certain look before, but looking at it in HDR, they go ‘wow, the flares in there are very prominent, you can really see that.’

“Of course you can go back to color correction and maybe level out the blue tones and what not, to reduce the contrast level,” he added. “But it might just be baked into the image, and you won’t be able to change it as much as you want. That’s why I always say to test. You might like what you get; you might not. You certainly can get a more scientifically accurate image now, but it may not be the correct image for the production.”

Lensmakers also recommend monitoring in HDR during production itself, even if the first release will not be in HDR.

Adams warned: “Movies and TV shows especially, are going to have a long lifespan now, with streaming libraries, and I don’t think people are aware of what’s going to happen when those products are remastered for different levels of HDR, or just when they’re graded in HDR while the DP has been watching Rec 709 on the set. I think [HDR monitoring] is going to become desirable as people see the artifacts that creep in that they aren’t able to see. 

“It’s not exactly like shooting film, where you didn’t see what it was going to look like until the dailies were out, but there are probably 30-40% of the image that you’re not seeing when you shoot in Rec 709, and then graded in HDR.”  l

BURBANK, Calif.—The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) Awards Committee has announced the winners of the 2022 HPA Award for Engineering Excellence. The awards will be bestowed at this year’s HPA Awards gala on November 17 at the Hollywood Legion in Hollywood, Calif.

“The pace of innovation in our industry continues unchecked! This year, we received more submissions for Engineering Excellence consideration than ever before,” the HPA Awards Engineering Committee chair Joachim Zell said. “It’s gratifying to see this record number of submissions, driven by a deep understanding of the true needs and desires of our industry, laying the groundwork for future progress even as they launch us ahead in the moment. Congratulations to the winners, and our deep respect for all of the entrants, who have contributed to the continued evolution of our industry.”

The HPA Awards recognize creative artistry and innovation in the professional media content industry. A coveted and highly competitive honor, the Engineering Excellence Award rewards outstanding technical and creative ingenuity in media, content production, finishing, distribution, and archive. Submissions for the Engineering Excellence Award include a video presentation, followed by interviews with a distinguished panel of industry judges.

The winners of the 2022 HPA Award for Engineering Excellence are:

• Amazon Web Services: Color in the Cloud. Leveraging JPEG-XS, signals are compressed to be suitably transmitted over AWS Direct Connect, AWS VPN or the open internet while maintaining lossless or uncompromised image quality, resulting in a viable and scalable solution for high fidelity, visually lossless color from a cloud provider. 
• Arri: REVEAL Color Science. The ALEXA 35 REVEAL Color Science reveals improved dynamic range, color gamut, and superior rendering of skin tones and subtle colors. It separates looks from display transforms, to support dual monitoring of HDR and SDR on set, enabling more efficient grading for multiple deliverables in post production.
• LG Electronics: LG UltraFine Pro OLED Monitor. The UltraFine OLED Pro EP950 reference grade HDR monitor meets color critical needs for content creation in cost-effective small-formats (32in & 27in). The RGB additive OLED UHD panel delivers close to 100% AdobeRGB and P3 coverage with peak luminance of up to 700 nits at 25% APL (HDR mode) and 250 nits full-field white. In-monitor 1D LUTs, 3D LUTs and 3x3 matrices allow accurate user calibration with Calman or LG software.
• Mo-Sys Engineering: LED Key. LED Key makes VP filming affordable by allowing wide shot capture on small LED walls. Virtual Production LED wall based filming is great for mid and close up shots, but wide shots required set builders to build floor and wall extensions or huge LED walls, which increases cost and time. LED Key allows filming with much smaller walls or even projectors, enabling greater location flexibility for filmmakers.

Four technologies followed closely, earning honorable mention: Carl Zeiss SBE, LLC (ZEISS CinCraft Mapper), Frame.io (Camera to Cloud), Glassbox Technologies (DragonFly virtual camera) and LucidLink (Filespaces).

The Engineering Excellence Award will be presented at the HPA Awards gala on November 17th. 

Other special awards include the Judges Award for Creativity and Innovation, and The Jury Award for Restoration and Preservation. 

Kim Waugh, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Post Production Creative Services, will receive HPA’s Lifetime Achievement Award. 

Creative artistry will be recognized in fifteen categories, which includes new honors for nonfiction post production.

HPA Awards tickets are currently available to HPA members only at hpaonline.com. Tickets sales will open to the general public in the coming weeks.

More information about the HPA Awards and the Hollywood Professional Association can be found at www.hpaonline.com.

SHELTON, Conn.—Anton/Bauer has expanded its Dionic 26V series of cinema batteries by working with ARRI to develop a new range of B-Mount batteries, chargers and camera plates for cinematographers, rental houses, and content creators using such cameras as the recently launched ARRI Alexa 35. 

Just like Anton/Bauer’s existing 26V Gold-Mount Plus solution, the native 26V B-Mount Li-ion batteries offer up to 240 watt-hours of reliable, safe, and efficient power, the company said. 

The Dionic native 26V range now includes 98-watt-hour and 240-watt-hour batteries and quad chargers in B-Mount or Gold-Mount Plus options, plus a range of mounting plates for connecting to industry-leading cameras and LED lighting fixtures.

“The new B-Mount additions to our highly popular Dionic 26V range expand Anton/Bauer’s outstanding reputation for delivering reliable and versatile mobile power for demanding cinematic productions”. said Andrew Hutton, Anton/Bauer product manager. “Our rental partners can now provide a complete native 26V solution for customers to power their entire shoot, including power-intensive LED lights and high-end cine cameras. The Dionic 26V series is a perfect example of Anton/Bauer’s continued commitment to engineer and deliver effective solutions to meet the workflow requirements of cinematographers.”

The Dionic 26V B-Mount series has been designed to drive high-power cine cameras such as the ARRI Alexa 35. With their lighter weight and more compact form factor, the Dionic 26V batteries offer greater mobility for high power camera operators than tethered power sources such as AC or block-style batteries. Dionic 26V batteries can also be used as a hot-swappable backup power solution for gear running from large power sources, such as VCLX block-style batteries, eliminating the need to power down a camera to change the main power source, the company reported. 

The Dionic 26V B-Mount Charger offers rapid charging for B-Mount 26V batteries — charging the 98Wh battery in around 1.5 hours and the 240Wh battery in around 3.5 hours — a sharp contrast to competing dual-voltage or ‘regulated’ 26V batteries that take up to three times longer to charge.

Like the other batteries in the Anton/Bauer Dionic range, Dionic 26V B-Mount batteries feature an ultra-high-strength polycarbonate blend construction, the company said. 

This protects the premium battery cells to ensure peak performance even in the most demanding conditions — including extreme heat, humidity, and cold. 

“There are two methods to achieve 26 volts from a battery - ‘regulated’ and ‘native’. We chose native, and for a good reason.” Said David Pasko, engineering manager – Anton/Bauer. “The native 26V configuration balances cell usage and requires fewer circuit boards packed on top of the cells which significantly reduces heat. As a result, Anton/Bauer ‘native’ 26V batteries have many more charge cycles in their lifetime than ‘regulated’ or dual-voltage batteries for superior return on investment”.

 More information about Anton/Bauer is available at http://www.antonbauer.com/. 

MUNICH, Germany—ARRI has announced the addition of the Orbiter Fresnel lens to its selection of Orbiter optics, making its LED luminaire even more versatile. 

Combined with Orbiter’s ARRI Spectra light engine, the high-end optical system is perfectly suited for cinematic application, broadcast studios, as well as theaters or live productions. The Orbiter Fresnel lens is an addition to the already existing Orbiter Open Face optics of 15°, 30°, and 60°.

The new Orbiter Fresnel lens is designed to create a precise light spot with a soft single shadow and delivers true Fresnel output with a real Gaussian field of light. The light output of Orbiter with Fresnel lens is comparable to the ARRI L-Series L10 and True Blue ST2/3 with 2000 W Tungsten bulb, the company reported. 

Fresnel lighting character works best with a large aperture and a wide zoom range. Despite its large aperture, the Orbiter Fresnel lens housing is compact (approx. 340 mm x 380 mm x 370 mm / 13.4 in x 15 in x 14.6 in) and lightweight (~ 4.5 kg / 9.5 lbs.). 

Its lens diameter of 285 mm (11.2 in) equals that of the True Blue ST2/3 and T5. The large zoom range is of 15 to 65° fully motorized and can be precisely positioned while being controlled locally via Orbiter’s Control Panel or remotely by DMX/RDM or IP based (ArtNet or sACN).

Equipped with a display, status LED, and a high-resolution encoder, the Orbiter Fresnel lens offers information that is easily accessible. The display backlight can be adjusted, and status information and zoom angle are available via the metadata for maintenance and post production needs.

Orbiter’s unique Quick Lighting Mount (QLM) system allows the Orbiter Fresnel lens to be mounted safely and quickly. ARRI accessories like the 4 and 8-leaf barndoors can be added to the new Orbiter Fresnel lens to enable a perfect cut. Physical gels can also be used in addition to the more than 300 already pre-programmed gels available for Orbiter.

To learn more about the new Orbiter Fresnel lens, visit www.arri.com/orbiter-fresnel.

MUNICH, Germany—ARRI has announced the new Alexa 35 camera, a 4K Super 35 camera that offers native 4K and 120 fps and features ARRI’s first new sensor in 12 years.

The new sensor, which is capable of capturing 17 stops of dynamic range, offers a number of technical advances that deliver 2.5 stops more dynamic range, better low light performance, and richer colors. 

ARRI noted that Alexa 35 measures 17 stops of dynamic range (exposure latitude), far more than any other digital cinema camera. It has 1.5 stops more in the highlights and one stop more in the shadows than previous Alexa cameras, while retaining the naturalistic film-like highlight roll-off. 

Sophisticated stray-light suppression in the camera and lens mounts ensures that the full contrast range and character of each lens are captured by the sensor, the company also said. 

Together, the increased dynamic range and stray light control make it easier to handle any lighting conditions on set, increase flexibility in post, and provide the best source for HDR (High Dynamic Range) projects.

With low noise and sensitivity settings ranging from EI 160 to EI 6400, Alexa 35 is a “High ISO” camera, ARRI reported. 

An optional Enhanced Sensitivity Mode can be applied to settings between EI 2560 and EI 6400, producing an even cleaner image in low light. This exceptional sensitivity, combined with the wider dynamic range and stray-light suppression, allows Alexa 35 to capture the most delicate nuances of light and shadow in more situations than ever before, ARRI reported. 

Based on discussions with filmmakers and careful review of the image pipeline, the camera also features significant improvements in image quality and a faster, easier workflow. 

These improvements include Reveal Color Science, a suite of new image processing steps used by Alexa 35 internally and also available through leading third-party post-production tools for ARRIRAW processing. 

It includes an improved debayering algorithm for cleaner compositing, a new color engine for more accurate color reproduction, a new wide gamut color space for faster grading, new LogC4 encoding to contain the increased dynamic range, and new LogC4 LUTs (Look Up Tables) for improved color fidelity.

While bringing out the best of the Alexa 35’s new sensor, Reveal Color Science is also backwards compatible. ARRIRAW footage captured by Alexa LF and Mini LF cameras can be processed with REVEAL Color Science, gaining many of its advantages. This means that the Alexa 35 and ARRI’s large-format cameras can be combined on set and can also share LogC4 LUTs in post.

With its Super 35 4:3 native 4K sensor, Alexa 35 can be used with a vast global inventory of existing lenses—modern and vintage, anamorphic and spherical, Super 35 and large format. Filmmakers wanting to shoot with ARRI cameras while having to fulfill 4K mandates now have an immeasurably broader lens choice.

Another new feature is ARRI Textures, which allows cinematographers to fundamentally alter the way in which the camera records images, should they wish to, the company said. 

Up until now, Alexa cameras have been pre-programmed with a default texture that determines the amount and character of grain in the image, and the amount of contrast at different levels of detail, perceived by the viewer as sharpness. For the first time, Alexa 35 provides the option to choose from a menu of ARRI Textures, much like selecting a film stock.  

In addition, Alexa 35 is the smallest fully-featured ARRI production camera ever, packing the features and processing power of a “larger” Alexa into a Mini-sized body, the company said. 

The camera also features a simple menu structure; support for 1TB and 2TB Codex Compact Drives; and MVF-2 viewfinder, now with HDR. 

Fast and easy operation is assured through a new left-side display, Advanced Color Match, pre-recording capability, and a slew of usability improvements such as additional user buttons, the company said. 

A total of 19 recording formats, incorporating efficient in-camera down-sampling and anamorphic de-squeezing, allow productions to optimize data rate, resolution, and other parameters, based on their individual needs. Mixed reality and virtual productions will benefit from the camera’s ability to record lens metadata in all common standards and output real-time streaming metadata to ARRI’s Live Link Metadata Plug-in for Unreal Engine.

ARRI is also offering a new line of bespoke Alexa 35 accessories that expand the camera’s capabilities and ensure maximum speed and versatility on set. 

Closely integrated electronic accessories offer additional power outputs or extended audio features. A complete new set of mechanical support items provides flexible options for any shooting situation, scaling quickly and easily from a small and lightweight setup to a full-blown production configuration.

Alexa 35 is supported by ARRI’s full suite of online tools, as well as free-of-charge standalone apps like the iPhone/iPad Camera Companion App, ARRI Reference Tool, and ARRIRAW HDE Transcoder.

Temperature resistant, splash and dust-proof, and conceived with future hardware and software updates in mind, Alexa 35 delivers robust and reliable service on set, a long product cycle, and a safe return on investment, the company reported. 

To learn more about Alexa 35, visit www.arri.com/alexa35.