SANTIAGO, CHILE, JUNE 18, 2012—For the last 12 years, film and digital cinema camera rental company Pixine has relied on power solutions from Anton/Bauer®, part of Vitec Videocom, a Vitec Group company, and a premier global provider of batteries, chargers, lighting and other mobile power systems for the professional broadcast, video and film industries. When the company saw an increasing number of clients shooting with the ARRI ALEXA, it turned to Anton/Bauer’s CINE VCLX battery to help match the camera’s power demands and hold up to the tough environmental situations its users face around the world.
Known for providing equipment and support for production companies, Pixine works with both national and foreign clientele filming television commercials, corporate videos and feature films. When Pixine needed a battery that could match the ALEXA’s power demands and support long hours of filming in such extreme climates as the deserts and rainforests of Chile, Anton/Bauer’s CINE VCLX provided the optimal solution. With its 560 watts of power, two 14.4V outputs and one 28V output, the CINE VCLX from Anton/Bauer offered maximum battery performance paired with superior reliability for Pixine’s clients.
“The CINE VCLX has been a pleasure to work with,” says Rodrigo Lizana, owner and head of technology at Pixine. “I don’t have to think about batteries anymore, which is a big help when filming in extreme weather conditions. We have been shooting by the sea, in the mountains and the driest desert in the world, here in Chile. This is a very tough job and our equipment has to deal with it on a regular basis. So, for me, the best technology is the one that goes unnoticed—it’s the technology that lets you work without worrying about it.”
Pixine recently collaborated with a client that was using the ALEXA on an eight-day project, with production lasting 15 hours each day. With the CINE VCLX, the client was able to power the camera for about five hours at a time, using only two batteries per day, as opposed to needing six when it was using 24V batteries previously. Known for providing extended run-times for some of the most popular film and digital cinema cameras, including ARRI, RED, Sony and Panavision, CINE VCLX batteries provide all the safety and high power-draw performance of Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) cell chemistry technology in a power package specifically designed for the integration of 24V film and 14V video equipment. The high-power 28V output is also capable of powering 200-w HMI lights, lighting panels and portable microwave units. The CINE VCLX batteries feature a RealTime® LCD that accurately displays remaining run-time and a visual LED warning indicator when 15 minutes of run-time remain.
Pixine also utilized Anton/Bauer’s HyTRON 140 when the crew needed to switch to a handheld camera, and powered the field monitors and the KI PRO recorder with DIONIC® HCs. The HyTRON 140 is a high-power NiMH battery system suited to the power demands of today's high-definition equipment and on-camera lighting systems. In lower-power applications, it can provide power for many hours without limits or travel restrictions. The HyTRON 140 also offers an excellent counterbalance to offset the weight of a lens.
DIONIC HC provides 91Wh and can operate a 40-watt HD camera for more than two hours. Transported as carry-on luggage without restrictions, the DIONIC HC is the perfect lightweight battery for shooting on location. Part of the company’s Logic Series® batteries, the DIONIC HC is suitable for powering high-current applications in a lightweight package. Working closely with cell manufacturers, the HC series incorporates high-capacity cells offering 10 amps. To continually ensure cell protection and performance integrity, a special honeycomb cell pack design protects the cells. An enhanced RealTime® display indicates up to nine hours of run-time (under low power-load conditions) using a seven-segment display enclosed by four circular arcs that indicate 15-minute time intervals, ensuring high confidence in those filming with the battery. The three-battery combination for one camera proved to be a smart solution for the project.
Another recent project found Pixine turning to the CINE VCLX once again. Pixine was working on a television spot for a mobile phone company in Europe. The company wanted to have two lighting units and one camera unit so that by the time the camera unit and the first lighting unit were filming at location A, the second lighting unit would be preparing the set for location B. This meant that the camera unit needed to work through 24 hours on the first and third days, a difficult task.
“This project would have been impossible without the three CINE VCLX batteries we used,” says Lizana. “The batteries lasted five hours and took only seven hours to be recharged and back to work. We never had to use a power supply, wait for batteries to charge or ask for more blocks. In this business you have to be perfect or as close to perfect as possible. Your clients put a lot of time and effort into one day of shooting. If the equipment is not up to the task at hand, people lose time and money and you lose credibility. There’s no point in having the best equipment if you won’t have the power at hand to turn it on.”
For more information, visit www.AntonBauer.com.
About Anton/Bauer
Anton/Bauer is recognized as the world’s innovator and a premier provider of batteries, chargers, lighting and other key mobile power systems for the professional broadcast, video and film industries. Based in the United States in Shelton, CT with offices in Europe and Asia, Anton/Bauer was established in 1970 and has expanded its product offerings to include many signature lines such as its leading Gold Mount® system, InterActive® chargers and Logic Series® batteries such as the HyTRON® 50, 100 and 140, and DIONIC® 90, 160, HC and HCX. Their products are compatible with every camera brand on the market today. Other Anton/Bauer high performance products include the Ultralight® 2, ElipZ®, CINE VCLX and the Tandem 150 Modular Charging System. Their superior-quality products have become an industry standard. For more information on Anton/Bauer, visit www.antonbauer.com.
About Vitec Videocom
Vitec Videocom brings together some of the most respected, most innovative and most sought-after brands in the industry: Anton/Bauer, Autoscript, Litepanels, OConnor, Petrol, Sachtler, Vinten and Vinten Radamec. It acts as an endorsing brand for these market-leading broadcast, film and pro video products, encouraging multi-brand system sales and simplifying the way that customers worldwide do business.
Vitec Videocom is an operating division within the Vitec Group, an international business serving customers in the broadcast, photographic and military aerospace and government markets. Vitec is based on strong, well known, premium brands on which its customers rely on worldwide.
Vitec Videocom - innovative products around the camera.