Panavision, a leading designer, manufacturer and rental provider of high-precision optics and camera systems, has announced the opening of an expanded New Orleans location. The new 30,500-square-foot space will also house Light Iron’s first brick-and-mortar facility in Louisiana. The state-of-the-art facility represents the first location occupied by the two companies since Panavision acquired Light Iron, a leader in digital workflow solutions, earlier this year.
The New Orleans location leverages the strengths of both companies to offer turnkey technology solutions from pre-production through delivery. “Panavision has been committed to serving filmmakers in Louisiana for more than a decade,” said Kim Snyder, CEO and president of Panavision. “During that time, the infrastructure and crew-base have built up significantly, and the number of projects being shot has grown such that we needed to expand our footprint to support the community’s needs. Incorporating Light Iron into the new facility brings an unprecedented level of service offerings under one roof to the local filmmaking community.”
Panavision’s new high-tech space houses a full range of filmmaking equipment, and access to the company’s technicians and optics specialists. The new location also features an expanded prep floor, a private prep room for larger projects, and a 40-by-40 foot room with an 18-foot ceiling, optimized for shooting test footage.
Michael Cioni, president of Light Iron, added, “At Light Iron, we’ve always believed in the marrying of camera and postproduction. Having Light Iron co-located with Panavision in a vibrant shooting destination like Louisiana is a case study of what the future will look like. Providing comprehensive services under one roof is exponentially more valuable when most everyone is on location. When a cinematographer or crew member has questions about workflow, we have the onsite resources available to answer them in real-time.”
The Light Iron space houses a DI theater, which can facilitate remote DI sessions with the company’s Los Angeles and New York facilities. The theater can also be used for reviewing camera tests, setting looks, and screening dailies. In addition, the new facility offers offline editorial suite rentals.
“We’ve worked on many great projects in Louisiana over the years with our popular OUTPOST division,” noted Cioni. “With the growing needs of customer demand there, as well as Panavision’s footprint in the state, we felt this was the right time to have a physical presence in New Orleans. The Light Iron team is very excited to be collaborating with the local film community.”
“Louisiana is an important production hub for the filmmaking community,” concluded Snyder. “We made this investment to support the filmmakers in the region and this move makes it possible for us to provide a full portfolio of innovative, creative solutions, as well as physical resources and experts more expediently.”
Paramount’s Jack Reacher: Never Go Back was the first project to utilize the capabilities of the new Panavision location in New Orleans, followed by an additional unit for Fox’s Scream Queens.
