By GUIDO KONDRUSS
28 • Canadian Cinematographer - January 2016
found the mini is being used for TV series, commercials, features and other areas.” Two hundred ARRI ALEXA Minis have been sold since June in Canada and there is now a three-month waiting list. Francois Gauthier, director of marketing and product management, Sony Canada, says that along with the very attractive price, it’s the camera’s portability and compactness that’s creating the buzz swirling around their newly minted FS5. “It might not have all the features of the FS7, but I can put the FS5 into my briefcase and carry it easily through an airport without having to present it as a video camera,” Gauthier says. “I can keep it by me all the time, ready to go, like a consumer
“No,” came the response from Rich Rothbard, marketing manager for Elite Brands, the owners of Rokinon lenses. “It’s all metal with precision crafting.” ProFusion 2015 was the first showing for XEEN prime cine lenses in Canada. An offshoot of the popular Rokinon lenses, Rothbard says that their new XEEN line is a market disruptor. “They have basically the optical and physical attributes and countenances that are equal to the more well-known and established cine lenses,” Rothbard continued. ”Plus, they have super tight colour matching and proprietary XEEN multi-coating, all at a very low cost with a remarkable three-year warranty.” While not exactly budget lenses at just under $3,500 a pop, they’re not exactly
Credit: Carolyn Wong
C
anada’s top imaging tradeshow is often touted by attendees as a saner and more compact version of the colossal shows south of the border and in Europe. With over one hundred exhibitors and dozens of presentations throughout its twoday run, ProFusion 2015 served up a delicious array of new toys to touch and try out, some for the very first time in Canada. Of course the Canadian Society of Cinematographers was there with an exhibit, handing out hundreds of issues of Canadian Cinematographer magazine as calling cards, signing new CSC members and participants for its various workshops. The CSC also produced a demonstration highlighting the Slingshot camera rig which was designed by Ray Dumas csc and developed by Canadian company Walter Klassen FX. You can read about the amazing Slingshot story in the May 2015 issue of Canadian Cinematographer. The demo of incredibly clean Slingshot moves and mesmerizing sweeps was led by the formidable DP Jeremy Benning csc with camera operator and CSC associate member Justin Beattie. You might say that ProFusion 2015 was the year of the mini. Both Sony, with its new FS5, and ARRI with its ALEXA Mini and were front and centre, tapping into what’s become a hot market for small cameras. Sebastien Laffoux, technical sales manager, Eastern Regions for ARRI Canada, says their mini has touched a need in the film community that has surpassed their wildest expectations. “Our purpose with the mini is to comply with requirements for gimbals and drones,” Laffoux says. “But one thing that we’ve learned, we can’t tell people what to do with our cameras, they decide what to do with them. We
Jeremy Benning csc on left with camera-op Justin Beattie and the Slingshot
camera and never miss an unexpected shot by having to retrieve gear from the office or wherever.” When I picked up the XEEN 85 mm lens from the demo table, it almost flew over my shoulder into the next booth. I was expecting something much heavier. “Are these plastic?” I asked.
bank breaking either. This, together with mostly positive performance reviews for the XEEN line, Rokinon may well have a winner on its hands. Tucked in between its wildly popular Celeb LED lights at the Kino Flo booth was a Select 30 LED prototype. It’s a new lightweight fixture that features a unique
