chapter 06 . ARRI ALEXA EV

New digital camera at work

First Alexa Shoot in France

The Alexa was used for an Armani perfume commercial in Paris

(click image for high def view)	photo: Jimmy Mettier

From right to left: actress Shannan Click looks into lens, DP David Nissen shines a mag light into the matte box to add some flare, director Paul Mignot operates with key grip Mat Ungaro to his left (photo courtesy of Geoffroy Guillaumaud, Onirim)

For more photos and some tech details from the Alexa Armani shoot in Paris go to our

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Scorsese shoots 3D with Alexas

Director Martin Scorsese has started shooting The Invention of Hugo Cabret in 3D at Shepperton studios using Alexas with cinematographer Robert Richardson. The film is an adaptation of a graphic novel by Brian Selznick which features pioneer filmmaker George Méliès, played by Ben Kingsley.

Cameron collaborator Vince Pace configured the 3D rigs, using his proprietary technology.

First Alexa feature film has wrapped

Director Roland Emmerich and his cinematographer Anna Foerster have finished shooting the feature Anonymous at Babelsberg studios in Berlin using Alexa cameras. The film is a period drama set in Shakespeare's time.

Emmerich did an earlier comparison test of the Alexa and the Red with a Mysterium X sensor, as reported by Mark Weigert.

Latest: Alexa manuals & menus version 3 with ProRes playback

An interview with, Brian Selznick, the author of the graphic novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret who combined fiction with the tragic, true story of pioneer filmmaker George Méliès, who ended his days selling toys in a train station.

Chris Fawcett's Steadivision web site has images of 3D rigs configured by Vince Pace with pairs of Arri Alexas for Hugo Cabret, along with a link to an article in HDMagazine

Video of Set Visit to Anonymous which was shot with Alexas at Babelsburg studios

Arri's digital strategy

Interview of Stephan Schenk by Benjamin B

Schenk is General Manager of Arri's Camera & DI Systems Business Unit.

A free-ranging interview at the AFC Micro Salon in Paris in February 2010. Schenk addresses, among other things, Arri's Alexa strategy, and the thinking behind the Alexa range, the electronic viewfinder, the choice of 2K output, "competitor A", Arri versus Red, Arrilaser, digital projection, 3D... At the time of the interview, Schenk could only hint at the SxS card recording, but the strategy discussion remains quite timely.

this is also on youtube

Arri's strategy is based on 2K output

New Breeds of Movie Cameras

thefilmbook column on the ASC web site
compares 3 new cameras, including the Alexa


	Introduction to Arri Alexa Cinematographer Frank van Vught gives a great tour of the Alexa camera prototype that is still a good introduction to its main design features. (shot & edited by Benjamin B at the AFC Micro Salon in Paris in February 2010)

	this is also on youtube


Alexa's with dual Sony SxS cards

Camera demos emphasize the simplicity of the design

click on image for higer res

Video demo of Alexa menu by Gary Adcock,

who also has an interesting blog on creativecow

Alexa NAB video demo by Michael Bravin, Arri Inc. Market Development VP includes discussion of SxS onboard recorder



ALEXA WORKFLOW ProRes recording in-camera The left side of the camera features 2 slots for Sony SxS ("S by S") cards which record the footage in Apple's compressed ProRes format, thus enabling immediate editing using Final Cut Pro. (Higher quality uncompressed signals can be also recorded off-camera using HD-SDI or Arri T-Link). The mixture of Arri, Sony and Apple technology is a potent sign of the times. ProRes formats The onboard SxS records 5 formats of Apple's Quicktime ProRes at a current maximum frame rate of 30 fps. 422 Proxy (45 Mps) - YCbCr 422 LT (102 Mbps) - YCbCr 422 (147 Mbs) - YCbCr 422 HQ (220 Mbps) - YCbCr 4444 HD (330 Mbps) - RGB The files include embedded audio and metadata. ProRes 4444 is usually refered to as "444" (the fourth 4 is for an alpha channel that is not available with the Alexa) ProRes in-camera: immediate dailies Recording ProRes on-board is a brilliant idea and a real time-saver as the SxS cards can be inserted into a Mac for immediate editing, along with the associated metadata. If you are shooting Raw with Alexa, these ProRes files can be used as proxies, immediate dailies, with a conform of uncompressed HD or ArriRaw later on. ProRes 444 in-camera: master? Some filmmakers may also elect to use the ProRes 4444 as their "master", deeming it good enough quality for TV, HD and perhaps even film distribution. In this scenario the Alexa is a self-contained camera with no need for an external recorder to capture ArriRaw or uncompressed HD. It will be interesting to see the finished quality of the ProRes 444 image, especially after editing and color timing. If the ProRes 444 is proved to be a good enough image master, many filmmakers may well forego uncompressed formats.

	©thefilmbook.com 2011

direct to edit feature video demo by Adrian Widera from Arri: shoot, put S by S card in mac, edit.
Very cool.

Arri's workflow article indicates that the ProRes 4444 compression may be a "finishing codec" :

"The recently introduced ProRes 4444 addresses high quality production demands, emerging as a state-of-the-art finishing codec. It works without the need for chroma subsampling, thus treating colour information as equally important as luminance. In addition, it addresses even higher quality demands by supporting 4:4:4 RGB colour at bit depths of up to 12 bit. This is especially beneficial for cinema releases, VFX, keying and image content with detailed, fine colour transitions."

Arri's workflow article (PDF)



ALEXA VERSION 3

	Arri Alexa User Manual version 3.0 138-page Alexa manual PDF (control-click to download)

	Alexa 3.0 Software Upgrade release notes PDF (control-click to download)



ALEXA Version 3.0: Key changes The 3.0 software enables several of the buttons and plugs that did not work previously. The new features for the camera include: PLAYBACK of recorded ProRes files (up to now the camera could record but not playback - a source of many Alexa jokes). This is done using the PLAY button. AUDIO RECORDING via the line-level XLR input. Audio output is also enabled. 3200 ASA. The previous maximum was 1600 4 GAMMA OPTIONS LOG C LOG C with Matrix REC 709 DCI P3 (similar to 709 but with wider color space) As pictured on the side, you can now have different options for SxS and REC OUT which is essential for recording proxy and higher quality simultaneously. SMOOTHER VIEWFINDER IMAGE. Image strobing when panning is reduced by doubling the refresh rate SINGLE FRAME GRAB ON SD CARD using the GRAB button. A useful logging tool. 3G SINGLE LINK HD-SDI. Allows you to send signals that normally require 2 BNCs over a single cable. For example 60 fps 422. FALSE COLOR EXPOSURE INDICATION Allows you view 6 exposure settings on your viewfinder with colors.


		©thefilmbook.com 2011

The promise of the Alexa:

Onboard recording of

ProRes files

for use as

either editing proxies

or original masters

Alexa gamma options for REC OUT and SxS

Arri-Alexa-specifications

ALEXA VERSION 2

Arri Alexa User Guide version 2.0
106-page Alexa manual
2.9 MB PDF
(control-click to download)
-- also available at Camalot or TSF

Alexa Menu Structure version 2.0
Tree structure of menu items
in Alexa camera - 32 kB PDF
(control-click to download)

Alexa Buttons version 1.0
Detail of Alexa's 8 Hard Buttons
& two dozen Soft Button possibilites - 45 kB PDF
(control-click to download)

ALEXA SPECIFICATIONS

Alexa EV and OV

The Arri Alexa EV (Electronic Viewfinder) is the current model available as of June 2010. The Alexa OV (Optical Viewfinder) will be available some time in 2011. While the Alexa EV only offers a 16 by 9 portion of the sensor, the OV will also enable anamorphic using the full surface of the 4 by 3 sensor.

Alexa EV+: on-board recording

The Alexa EV was shown with intriguing options of attached Codex and S-Two recorders at IBC 2010.

Dual gain

The Alexa sensor is a single CMOS with a Bayer mask and a 3.5 K pixel count. As van Vught evokes in the video, the camera electronics apply dual gain pathways, with separate amplification for the highlights and lowlights, a strategy probably designed to stretch the latitude and minimize noise. A similar approach is available in the Arriscan system.

Designed for 2K output

In a given image area, fewer, bigger pixels will yield more sensitivity and latitude than more numerous, smaller pixels. Van Vught states that 35mm prints made with traditional photochemical workflow (negative-IP-IN-print) has a resolution of about 1.5K.

Schenk explains that Arri designed the Alexa with 2K projection in mind, and chose a 3.5K pixel count to get the maximum sensitivity and latitude, while still insuring image quality for finished projects in 2K.

16:9

The Alexa EV model shown here outputs a 16 by 9 image, a portion of the full 4 by 3 sensor which will be utilized in future models for anamorphic imaging.

The Arri brochure gives the following pixel counts:

HD and ARRIRAW outputs	2880 x 1620 pixels

Monitoring with surround area	3168 x 1782 pixels

LED VF

The electronic viewfinder, which was not shown in Paris, is based on LED technology.

50k €

The entry-level Alexa EV model was delivered starting in June, and cost about 50k Euros.

More info at:

ALEXA web page

ARRI digital web site

ARRI News 09-09 (PDF download)

Alexa's technical specifications (brochure)

Alexa in PL, PV & other lens mounts

An Arri press release quoted by Mark Wilson of gizmodo.com.au states that Alexa's "exchangeable Lens Mount (ELM) system allows the use of PL as well as Panavision, Canon or Nikon lenses."