FilmDailies.com – A filmmaker’s blog

ARRI has finally debuted the ARRIFLEX D-20 camera. ARRI execs promise the camera will be available in November.


The new ARRI camera uses a single CMOS sensor the size of a 35mm negative frame. The 35mm frame means you can use the same lenses on the camera and get the same FOV and DOF as you would on a “regular” 35mm ARRI film camera.

In Video Mode, the data coming from the D-20 sensor is processed live in the camera. Color reconstruction is performed simultaneously as the 2880 x 1620 pixel grid is converted to 1920 x 1080 resolution. A sophisticated on-board color management system has been implemented to optimize the camera’s performance for different lighting situations including blue and green screen work. In Video Mode, the D-20 can supply a variety of standard HD video signals for different recording formats, including HDCAM SR, thus allowing the D-20 to integrate seamlessly into existing HD infrastructures.

This puts the new ARRI in same league as SONY’s CineAlta in terms of output (1920×108o HDCAM). In terms of renting this beast for your next video production, you’ll need to drive a hard bargain. The price tag is still unknown but if the CineAlta serves as base, the price will be in the $100,000+ range.