Filmotechnic USA has announced the arrival of the new Russian Camera Arm 6 to its stable of camera car system offerings. The announcement was made by Filmotechnic USA manager John Urso. The Arm will be officially unveiled in the U.S. at the upcoming April NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) Convention in Las Vegas.
“The Russian Arm 6 (aka AUTOROBOT Camera Crane 6) is the latest addition to our Academy Award winning fleet of stabilized camera crane systems, said Urso. “It’s a high end, versatile filmmaking technology that allows our clients unprecedented performance in speed, image stabilization, flexibility and control. This new technology is based on feedback on film sets worldwide from our customers, partners and camera technicians. The new Arm fits on all our camera cars, currently the Ford Raptor, Porsche Cayenne, Mercedes ML63 AMG, the Hummer H1 and the Ferrari 360.”
The “Six” is a gyro-stabilized camera crane system capable of mounting on a roof of a camera car or any other specialized vehicles. It enables 360 degrees of camera movement while tilting up and down. The Russian Arm 6 was engineered and developed to allow filmmakers to shoot from just about any angle with complete stability and accuracy. Remotely operated and fully controllable, the Arm is capable of amazing on-the-fly tracking shots, allowing filmmakers to capture sequences as dynamic as their imagination. The Arm features:
· Presets for various camera package payloads.
· Individual presets for camera arm operators
· Programmable limits
· A variety of arm length extensions
· Linear vibration isolator capable of absorbing vibration
· High torque and speed.
· Smooth and precise camera movement and response.
· Quiet arm movements
The Russian Arm 6 was five years in development. The result is important improvements in size, weight, speed and length. Camera technician Russell Prior was the first to give the New Arm a hands-on audition. “The arm is amazing, I have used every generation of Russian Arm, along with most every camera rig you can think of,” said Prior. “This Arm is one of the most useful tools I have ever used. You can swing around 360 degrees in 4.5 seconds, that’s pretty amazing for an arm that’s 26.5 feet long. “It’s super strong, super long and super stable. Somehow the developers were able to accomplish all this and make it lighter too.”
Not more than 48 hours after clearing customs, the Russian Arm 6 was put into service on a multi-day, Tim Damon-directed shoot for Infiniti. Damon said one shot in particular needed a tool as versatile as the Russian Arm 6. “We wanted to do a shot that stretched a bird’s eye view of the hero Infiniti to include other cars, keeping away from everything while still looking straight down,” said Damon. “It worked out great; we wouldn’t have been able to pull off the desired shot without the Six.”
