Latin America. Used in countless productions by top-tier filmmakers for its reliability, the ARRI Alexa has set the standard by which all other cameras are measured. This year ARRI celebrates the tenth anniversary of alexa.
Launched in the northern hemisphere's summer of 2010, shortly after the start of the digital age, the Alexa conquered the hearts of filmmakers for its cinematic look and functionality. "It looked and felt like an ARRI film camera: solid, robust, ready to face the harsh life on location. It was easy to use. The menu and buttons were like old acquaintances, not unlike those of an ARRICAM. Most important of all: the images had a film roll-like look. The dynamic range and exposure range were similar. High beams and shadow areas could be exposed in familiar ways using a light meter instead of a waveform monitor, if one wanted. "It didn't look like a video," recalls Jon Fauer, director of commercial photography and editor of "Film and Digital Times."
With a highly upgradable architecture, Alexa has evolved through software updates and hardware enhancements to keep pace with the changing needs of the industry. Since the original launch of the camera and in close collaboration with the filmmakers ARRI has continued to release new models as well as many software updates in order to adapt, in the best possible way, to a wide variety of applications.
In 2015 appeared the compact Alexa Mini camera that immediately reached wide popularity and the Alexa 65 that has a sensor three times larger than the Super 35. The most recent additions to the Alexa family are the Alexa LF and Mini LF large-format cameras, both with sensors somewhat superior to VistaVision or 35mm full frame.
Robert Richardson ASC was the first cinematographer to use Alexa officially in 2010 in the feature film "Hugo." Ten years later he is still so enthusiastic about this camera system and chose the Alexa 65 and the Alexa Mini LF to capture his latest project, "Venom 2". Cinematographer Roger Deakins CBE, ASC, BSC shot the film "In Time" with Alexa in 2011. A decade later Deakins still relied on the Alexa camera system and chose the Alexa Mini LF for his work in "1917".
The ARRI Alexa has been awarded a Scientific and Technical Award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and an Emmy Award for Technology and Engineering by the Television Academy. Most importantly, he has helped countless filmmakers create works that were later awarded. Eight of the nine Oscars for Achievement in Photography awarded since the launch of the camera have been awarded to productions shot with Alexa.
The same goes for six of the nine Oscar winners for Best Visual Effects and six of the nine Best Picture winners (the other three were shot with ARRI film cameras). Notable Oscar-winning films captured with Alexa include "Hugo" in 2011, "Life of Pi" in 2012, "Gravity" in 2013, "Birdman" in 2014, "The Revenant" and "Spotlight" in 2015, "Moonlight" in 2016, "The Shape of Water" and "Blade Runner 2049" in 2017, "Green Book" and "Roma" in 2018, and "Parasite" and "1917" in 2019.
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