Arri
Encyclopedia
History
Arri was founded in Munich, Germany as Arnold & Richter Cine Technik in 1917, named after founders August ArnoldAugust Arnold
August Arnold was a film producer, inventor and co-founder, along with partner Robert Richter, of the Arnold & Richter Cine Technik , Arri Group. In 1937 along with his chief engineer, Erich Kästner, he developed the first reflex 35mm motion picture camera, the Arriflex 35....
and Robert Richter. They produce professional motion picture equipment, digital and film cameras (16, 35, and 65/70 mm) and cinematic lighting equipment. Hermann Simon
Hermann Simon
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Hermann Simon is a German author and business leader. He is chairman of Simon-Kucher & Partners, Strategy & Marketing Consultants. Simon is an expert in strategy, marketing and pricing. An ongoing online survey vote him the most influential management thinker after the late...
mentioned this company in his book Hidden Champions of the 21st Century as an example of a "Hidden Champion
Hidden Champions
Smaller but highly successful companies, concealed behind a curtain of inconspicuousness, invisibility and sometimes secrecy are called Hidden Champions. The name Hidden Champion was coined by Theodore Levitt, who used it first in a discussion with Hermann Simon. Simon later on was the first to use...
".
In 1924 Arnold and Richter developed their first film camera, the small and portable Kinarri 35. In 1937 Arri introduced the world's first reflex mirror shutter in the Arriflex 35
Arriflex 35
Arriflex 35 was the first reflex 35mm motion picture camera. Built around the spinning mirror reflex shutter designed by Erich Kästner, Chief Engineer for Arnold & Richter Cine Technik , Arri Group. It allows the operator to have a viewfinder image equal to the recorded picture...
camera, an invention of their longtime engineer Erich Kästner
Erich Kästner (camera designer)
Erich Kurt Kästner was an Academy Award-winning German movie camera designer. He was born in Jena.During his work for ARRI he invented the spinning mirror reflex shutter for movie cameras, which was first used in the Arriflex 35 in 1937. It allows the operator to have a viewfinder image equal to...
. This technology employs a rotating mirror that allows a continuous motor to operate the camera while providing parallax
Parallax
Parallax is a displacement or difference in the apparent position of an object viewed along two different lines of sight, and is measured by the angle or semi-angle of inclination between those two lines. The term is derived from the Greek παράλλαξις , meaning "alteration"...
-free reflex viewing to the operator, and the ability to focus the image by eye through the viewfinder, much like an SLR
Single-lens reflex camera
A single-lens reflex camera is a camera that typically uses a semi-automatic moving mirror system that permits the photographer to see exactly what will be captured by the film or digital imaging system, as opposed to pre-SLR cameras where the view through the viewfinder could be significantly...
camera for still photography. This technology is still employed today in almost every motion picture camera.. The first Hollywood film to employ an Arriflex was in 1947 for Dark Passage
Dark Passage
Dark Passage is a novel by David Goodis which was the basis for the 1947 film noir Dark Passage.-Plot:Vincent Parry, convicted of murdering his wife, escapes from prison and is taken in by Irene Jansen, an artist with an interest in his case...
, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Over the years, more than 17,000 Arriflex 35s were built.
At the same time, the company manufactured light-weight and portable cameras for both news and war photography
War photography
War photography captures photographs of armed conflict and life in war-torn areas.Although photographs can provide a more direct representation than paintings or drawings, they are sometimes manipulated, creating an image that is not objectively journalistic.-History:Photography, presented to the...
, as well as feature film production in the 1960s which saw an increase in shooting on location rather than in a studio. The introduction of the Arriflex-16ST camera revolutionized the 16 mm format as a cheaper news-gathering and television medium, and the Arriflex-35BL provided a lightweight, quiet alternative to the rather heavy and cumbersome blimped cameras of the time. The headquarters in Munich also expanded to include sound stages, audio dubbing studios, production offices and a lab. Developments in lighting also continued. In 1972, Arri pioneered the development of daylight luminaires with the Arrisonne 2000w.
While Arri manufactures and designs its own motion picture cameras, lenses are supplied by the Carl Zeiss group and Fujinon, unlike its rival Panavision
Panavision
Panavision is an American motion picture equipment company specializing in cameras and lenses, based in Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk as a small partnership to create anamorphic projection lenses during the widescreen boom in the 1950s, Panavision expanded its product...
which manufactures both its own cameras and lenses for exclusive use with each other. Arri's relationship with Panavision is somewhat unique, as Panavision is both Arri's largest rival (as an equipment manufacturer) and largest customer (as a camera rental house).
With their Arrilaser
Arrilaser
The Arrilaser is a digital film recorder made by Arri which writes digital movie files onto film after compositing and audio mastering on the computer. Files are sent to the device via a fast gigabit Ethernet connection. The Arrilaser uses three solid-state lasers as a light source, and...
, they expanded into post-production equipment and in 2000 purchased Moviecam
Moviecam
Moviecam is a motion picture equipment company specializing in movie camera systems for 35 mm film. Originally started in Vienna as an in-house project of Fritz Gabriel Bauer and Walter Kindler's Moviegroup film production company in the late 1960s, the amount of research and development needed to...
to refine their new camera platform Arricam. Arri developed the Arriflex D-21
Arriflex D-21
The Arriflex D-21 is a film-style digital motion picture camera introduced by Arri in 2008 to replace their earlier generation Arriflex D-20.- Overview :...
high definition camera. The camera uses a 35 mm CMOS
CMOS
Complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor is a technology for constructing integrated circuits. CMOS technology is used in microprocessors, microcontrollers, static RAM, and other digital logic circuits...
sensor (instead of CCD
Charge-coupled device
A charge-coupled device is a device for the movement of electrical charge, usually from within the device to an area where the charge can be manipulated, for example conversion into a digital value. This is achieved by "shifting" the signals between stages within the device one at a time...
) to allow cinematographers to utilize standard 35 mm lenses. This technology was further developed and improved for the Arri Alexa camera. Other recent products of note include the Arriflex 235, a compact 35 mm camera; the Master Prime lens series; the Ultra 8R, an 8 mm rectilinear lens
Rectilinear lens
In photography, a rectilinear lens is a photographic lens that yields images where straight features, such as the walls of buildings, appear with straight lines, as opposed to being curved. In other words, it is a lens with little or no barrel or pincushion distortion...
; L-Series LED lights; the Arrimax, an HMI light which can use 18 kW or 12 kW bulbs; and the Arriflex 416, a 16 mm camera optimized for high-end production.
Awards
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter KG "for the design and development of the ARRIFLEX 35mm portable motion picture reflex camera." (1966)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Joachim Gerband Erich Kaestner of the Arnold & Richter Company "for the development and engineering of the ARRIFLEX 35BL motion picture camera." (1973)
- Academy Award of Merit (Oscar Statue)to August Arnold and Erich Kaestner of Arnold & Richter, GmbH "for the concept and engineering of the first operational 35mm handheld, spinning-mirror reflex motion picture camera." (1982)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to the Carl Zeiss Company and Arnold & Richter "for the design and development of the Zeiss high-speed 35mm motion picture camera lenses." (1987)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter engineering staff Otto Blaschek and Arriflex Corporation "for the concept and engineering of the ARRIFLEX 35 III motion picture camera." (1988)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to the Engineering Department of Arnold & Richter "for the continued design improvements of the ARRIFLEX BL camera system, culminating in the 35BL-4s model." (1990)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter, Otto Blaschek and the Engineering Department of ARRI, Austria "for the design and development of the ARRIFLEX 765 camera system for motion picture photography." (1992)
- Erich Kaestner, Chief Design Engineer at Arnold & Richter from 1932 to 1982, receives the Gordon E. Sawyer Award (Oscar Statue) "for technical contributions to the industry." (1992)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter Cine Technik "for the development of the 535 series of cameras for motion picture cinematography." (1995)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter Cine Technik and ARRI USA, Inc. "for the concept and engineering of the ARRIFLEX 435 camera system." (1998)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter Cine Technik and Carl Zeiss Company "for the concept and optical design of the Carl Zeiss / Arriflex Variable Prime Lenses." (1998)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Franz Kraus, Johannes Steurer and Wolfgang Riedel "for the design and development of the Arrilaser Film Recorder." (2001)
- Emmy Award (Television Academy of Arts and Sciences) "for over 50 years of outstanding achievement in engineering development." (2002)
- Academy Award of Merit (Oscar Statue) (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Arnold & Richter Cine Technik and Panavision "for the continuing development and innovation in the design and manufacturing of advanced camera systems specifically designed for the motion picture entertainment industry." (2002)
- Technical Achievement Award to Klemens Kehrer, Josef Handler, Thomas Smidek and Marc Shipman-Mueller "for the design and development of the Arriflex 235 Camera System". (2006)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Erwin Melzner "for the overall concept including the optical and cooling systems. Volker Schumacher for the optical design, and Timo Mueller for the mechanical design of the Arrimax 18/12 lighting fixture for motion picture lighting." (2008)
- Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) to Michael Cieslinski, Dr. Reimar Lenz and Bernd Brauner "for the development of the ARRISCAN film scanner, enabling high-resolution, high-dynamic range, pin-registered film scanning for use in the digital intermediate process." (2009)
Camera lines
- Kinarri 35 (1924)
- Kinarri 16 (1928)
- Arriflex 35Arriflex 35Arriflex 35 was the first reflex 35mm motion picture camera. Built around the spinning mirror reflex shutter designed by Erich Kästner, Chief Engineer for Arnold & Richter Cine Technik , Arri Group. It allows the operator to have a viewfinder image equal to the recorded picture...
(1937) - Arriflex II (1946)
- Arriflex 16ST (1952)
- Arriflex 16M (1962)
- Arriflex 16BL (1965)
- Arritechno 35 (1971)
- Arriflex 35BL (1972)
- Arriflex 16SRArriflex 16SRArriflex 16SR is a movie camera product line created by Arri, introduced in 1975. This 16SR camera series is designed for 16 mm filmmaking in Standard 16 format...
(1975) - Arriflex III (1979)
- Arriflex 765 (1989)
- Arriflex 535Arriflex 535The Arriflex 535 is a movie camera product line created by Arri in 1990 to replace the Arriflex BL line. As such, its potential applications are widespread, and thus it is regularly used on music videos, commercials, second unit work on features, special effects work, and motion control, among...
(1990) - Arriflex 435Arriflex 435The Arriflex 435 is a movie camera product line created by Arri in 1995 to replace the Arriflex 35III line. The number reflects its position as a successor camera to the Arri III and the fact that it is designed for 35 mm film. The 435 cameras are specifically designed as MOS cameras, which means...
(1995) - ArricamArricamArricam is a 35 mm movie camera line manufactured by Arri. It is Arri's flagship sync-sound camera line, replacing the Arriflex 535 line. The design was developed by Fritz Gabriel Bauer and Walter Trauninger, and is heavily derivative of the cameras Bauer created for his Moviecam company, which was...
(2000) - Arriflex 235 (2004)
- Arriflex D-20/21Arriflex D-20The Arriflex D-20 is a film-style digital motion picture camera made by Arri first introduced in November 2005. The camera's attributes are its optical viewfinder, modularity, and 35mm-width CMOS sensor. The camera was discontinued in 2008 and the Arriflex D-21 was introduced.- Overview :The D-20...
(2005) - Arriflex 416Arriflex 416Arriflex 416 is a movie camera product line created by Arri in 2006. This 416 camera series is designed for 16mm filmmaking in the Super16 format. The 416 series has some features that are derived from Arri's other 35mm cameras...
(2006) - Arri Alexa (2010)
Film recorder
Arrilaser film recorderFilm recorder
A Film Recorder is a graphical output device for transferring digital images to photographic film.All film recorders typically work in the same manner. The image is fed from a host computer as a raster stream over a digital interface...
is used for film-out
Film-out
Film-out is the process in the computer graphics, video production and filmmaking disciplines of transferring images or animation from videotape or digital files to a traditional film print...
.
See also
- Arri bayonetArri bayonetArri bayonet is a lens mount developed by Arri for use with both 16 mm and 35 mm movie camera lenses. Lenses of this type are distinguished by "outer wings" which both control aperture and bayonet alignment, and are placed in the mount while two pressure tabs are simultaneously depressed at the...
- Arri PLArri PLArri PL is a lens mount developed by Arri for use with both 16 mm and 35 mm movie cameras. The PL stands for "positive lock". It is the successor mount to the Arri bayonet; however, unlike the bayonet mount, it is incompatible with older Arri-mount lenses, due to the larger diameter...
- Arri standardArri standardArri standard is a lens mount developed by Arri for use with both 16 mm and 35 mm movie cameras. Lenses are distinguished by a tab inside an outer ring. Because of the weak seating strength and ability of the aluminum mount to gradually become poorly seated, the stainless steel Arri bayonet mount...
- Carl ZeissCarl ZeissCarl Zeiss was a German maker of optical instruments commonly known for the company he founded, Carl Zeiss Jena . Zeiss made contributions to lens manufacturing that have aided the modern production of lenses...
- PanavisionPanavisionPanavision is an American motion picture equipment company specializing in cameras and lenses, based in Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk as a small partnership to create anamorphic projection lenses during the widescreen boom in the 1950s, Panavision expanded its product...
- comparison of movie camerasComparison of movie camerasThe following tables make a comparison of movie cameras that are in common professional usage in recent years. This list is strictly limited to film-based cameras, in order to allow direct and equivalent comparisons of specifications...