Monstro VV Demo Model In Store

[Harry Clark]

Hi there Red Team.
Not really a complaint, more of a request.
Can we get a Monstro VV camera into the New York store to demo? With such a dramatic shift in sensor size (and massive increase in price point) I think it's not too much to ask that your customers have the ability to see it, play with it, bring in various lenses to check out coverage. I emailed my Bomb Squad rep, who connected me with the NY store folks, who could not even tell me IF (let alone WHEN) they were going to have one to show.
I think it's great for Red to have a presence in New York, for emergency purchases, and drop off of repairs etc. But there is a showroom too, after all, so could we have the flagship product in that showroom?

Pretty Please?
Cheers,
Harry

 

[Phil Holland]

Hi there Red Team.
Not really a complaint, more of a request.
Can we get a Monstro VV camera into the New York store to demo? With such a dramatic shift in sensor size (and massive increase in price point) I think it's not too much to ask that your customers have the ability to see it, play with it, bring in various lenses to check out coverage. I emailed my Bomb Squad rep, who connected me with the NY store folks, who could not even tell me IF (let alone WHEN) they were going to have one to show.
I think it's great for Red to have a presence in New York, for emergency purchases, and drop off of repairs etc. But there is a showroom too, after all, so could we have the flagship product in that showroom?

Pretty Please?
Cheers,
Harry

There likely will be. The camera was literally just announced, but there's currently Weapons on the showfloor.

As for lens coverage. Just ask. I've literally tested everything. Much of which is on lensData, but I have a few things not up there I've tested.

 

[Matt Hall]

I didn't know all of this lens info was in one spot. Thanks, Phil!

 

[Phil Holland]

I didn't know all of this lens info was in one spot. Thanks, Phil!

I haven't exactly been picking my nose for the last couple years

Seriously though. I've felt a moderate level of responsibility since getting the Dragon 8K VV to do as much lens recon, testing, modding, and experiments for the now multitude of people stepping up to VV as a format.

Literally every shoot I had in that time frame was the wild west. Which was really exciting in terms of exploring all of this with large clients, producers, and studios.

These days, there's lots of glass options. The DXL is now commonplace on productions, and the format shouldn't "scare" anybody.

Outside of the creative intentions of the "Forged" shoot I wanted to dispell a lot of the subtle murmors that are essentially now myths about working in 8K and the VistaVision format, which is why we stayed at T1.5-2.8 throughout, pulled focus myself, etc... I had my lights actually dimmed most of the time to make that work.

If you're going to pave a road you need to tell people where it is to travel on it. In the case of VV, it's a road well worth travelling for a cinematographer like me. The view is astounding.

 

[Harry Clark]

Hi Phil,
Of course we all appreciate the work you have done. I enjoy reading your articles and tests. I am happy for you that you have forged a great "insider" relationship with Jarred & Co. and not squandered it. Thank you for your efforts.
But being a cinematographer is not reading articles and ticking boxes. And being an equipment owner is not walking into the Honda dealer and pointing at a car. I need to put the lenses on the camera myself, look on a big monitor, preferably at a person's face that I have lit. I need to do that for a bunch of lenses, and think carefully about what I'm looking at. I might want to point the camera at the overexposed window. To me, that's the point of having a "showroom" which has been traditionally an uncommon thing in the film business.
Nobody is scared of "new" formats or technology. I've worked in film-based Vistavision, as well as 5-perf 65mm. I jumped all over the Pro-35 when it first came out. I had Red One #344. I upgraded both Reds to Epics to Dragons to Helium. I jumped all over the Alexa and Amira.
But it's a big departure in format. I have to evaluate whether the $500K I have in lenses has a future as in investment.
For those reasons, and the fact that Red wants $70K plus from me for that camera, I expect to be able to do that in person.
Pretty please
Cheers,
Harry