Arriflex has released an innovative new video assist which is being touted as completely unobtrusive and the most technologically advanced system of its kind.

With the new Integrated Video-Assist System (ivs), Arriflex has seamlessly merged its color video assist with the bodies of its 535B and 16SR3 cameras. The ivs also offers a highly sensitive ccd chip, better image quality, dual monitor connections and several integrated on-screen features such as a mask inserter, time-code inserter, plus the ability to integrate text.

Video assists, in their most basic form, are adapters for film cameras which provide video feeds to external monitors and to videotape recorders, allowing the director to see what is happening on-camera.

Lem Ristsoo, a first camera assistant who has used the previously released ivs for 435 cameras, says video assists are typically cumbersome add-ons. The new ivs, meanwhile, ‘is so compact you don’t even notice it’s there,’ he says.

‘It’s a very nice piece of equipment in the sense of how integrated it is with the camera.’

Ristsoo used the ivs on several commercial shoots recently and for a taping of the National Ballet of Canada’s performance of The Four Seasons, which will air on cbc next season.

The advantages of the ivs became most clear, he says, when he went back and used an older version of video assist on a shoot. ‘It’s like driving an old car after you’ve driven a new car. You really notice what you have only after you don’t have it anymore,’ he says.

Michael Sardella of The 16mm Shop, which rents 16mm cameras and equipment, says that beyond making life easier for camera crews, many new features on the ivs could benefit the entire production process.

The ivs sports a number of features never before found in a video assist. Many of these can be programmed through the on-screen menu, making the process quick and easy, Sardella says.

One such feature is the package’s unique ability to ‘jam synch’ time codes, Sardella says. ‘You can record your video assist feed with the time code already available on it. So it speeds up the whole post process.’

Dual monitor outputs allow the camera assistant to hook up a 12-volt lcd mini-monitor on-camera which draws power from the camera battery, plus an external monitor for the director and crew.

The ivs also provides a frame outline which acts to mask a scene and eliminates the necessity of taping off the frame on the external monitor. Everything not in-frame can then be shaded out electronically.

The external monitor will also display additional text, such as take numbers, or the name of the production, which can be added to the video image through a laptop keyboard. Also on display for the crew is a counter tracking the amount of footage being shot.

Another new feature is a more sensitive ccd chip which corresponds to 4000 asa. This makes it possible to capture clear images on the monitor in low-light conditions such as when the film stock is to be pushed.

To further enhance the clarity of the image, the ivs was designed for an 80:20 beam splitter, meaning that ‘the video assist is so sensitive to light that it only needs 20% of that light,’ Sardella says. ‘Before it was a 50-50 split.’ The remaining 80% goes to the eyepiece, assuring a bright and clear image for the dop.

One advanced feature which camera assistants may also find useful is the image compare function. This allows the user to store an image for later comparison. Such a feature could be useful for stop effect shots and can aid in establishing continuity between takes, Sardella says.

Further functions include automatic and manual brightness controls, indoor and outdoor color balance, and a flicker-free video image.