Robycam presentation on one of the CJSC “Russian World Studios” stages

On February 10th, “Robotized Studio Complex” presented the Robycam, a free spatial motion cable system, unique to Russia, on one of the CJSC “Russian World Studios” stages.

The presentation was delivered by cinematographer Sergei Astakhov, one of the Robycam creators and winner of the State Prize of Russia in the field of cinematography for “The Border. Taiga Romance” (“Granitsa. Tayozhny roman”) and “Thither” (“V toi storone”). Attendees had the opportunity to ask about the Robycam’s functions, technical capabilities and characteristic features. A few had a chance to operate the system.

“Garrett Brown, who created the Steadicam, invented the Robycam 25 years ago,” Sergei Astakhov explained. “The system has been used in Hollywood for many years. Not long ago I learned from him that the patents are no longer valid, so we could build the system here, in Russia. The Robycam has complicated software, so we needed highly qualified experts. Therefore, I turned to “Muvicom,” a company that has experience working with similar robotic systems.”

Robycam is a four-hoist mechanism including Kevlar cables and a gyro-stabilized pan head. Using the operator’s manual command or based on an automated plan of action input beforehand, the system pulls and lets out the cables in a high-precision manner that enables smooth and precise spatial camera motion at a speed of up to 10 m/sec. The Robycam allows for free motion of the gyro-stabilized head, making it possible to use long focal-length lenses and resulting in a very smooth shot. The special head suspension can endure hard braking and high acceleration and will dampen vibration generated by movement. Of note, the Robycam is a completely noiseless system. The head enables usage of high-end TV broadcast cameras and HD recording.

According to Sergei Astakhov, the Robycam is designed mainly (by 90%) for broadcasting sport events and show programs and currently can be used in film production only by 10%. The system allows for seamless changes in frame size, and at its widest can frame an area of up to 4 ha (40 km2). During the presentation the renowned cinematographer expressed his hope that the Robycam would be used in upcoming productions because, among its many other features, it is the ideal system for use when neither tracks nor other technical devices should be seen.  

At the end of his presentation Sergei Astakhov thanked “Russian World Studios” and Yuri Sapronov, Andrei Smirnov and Yuri Pustovoi personally for providing the RWS stages in Moscow and Saint Petersburg where they had an opportunity to fully present the advantages of Robycam.

PR Division, CJSC “Russian World Studios”
Sergei Korshunov (89197848947)
rws.seri@mail.ru; korshunov@rwstudio.com
www.rwstudios.ru