Sony Electronics developed a custom camera especially for the filming of the upcoming F1 movie which effectively untethers the body of the camera from the sensor.
Known as the Rialto system, it allows filmmakers to get top-performing cameras into small spaces — such as the cockpit of a Formula 1 car. The system was used for the Oscar-winning movie The Zone of Interest which was filmed like a reality TV show with the camera crew hidden.
Cinematographer Claudio Miranda who is working alongside director Joseph Kosinski reveals to Variety that the Rialto system is necessary to capture the feeling of being inside an F1 car.
“On Top Gun: Maverick, the actors didn’t fly the aircraft [except Tom Cruise],” explains Miranda. “On Formula One, the actors were driving the cars, so we needed to have a small enough camera system where we could make sure that [Pitt] could drive and see while we get the shots we want.”
PetaPixel previously reported that the cars in the movie are special prototypes built to recreate the speed and thrilling nature of F1 cars. Made by Mercedes Benz, they can reach speeds of 200 miles per hour and there is space for four Sony cameras operating the Rialto system per car with remote control over pan and focus.
“We spent a lot of time getting the cars ready,” Miranda tells Variety “Sony really listens to us.”
The magazine was speaking to Miranda at Sony’s Kando Trip at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara in Santa Barbara, an annual get-together where Sony will listen to the needs of Hollywood moviemakers and use it for future product research and development.
“[Some] products that have come to market [have been] directly impacted from the meetings that happen here,” Sony North America president Neal Manowitz tells Variety. “It’s this idea of co-creating the future, literally together. Claudio has been deeply involved in lots of the development of our products.”
A Strange Way to Make a Movie
A teaser has already been dropped for the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt and Damson Idris. The movie is being filmed alongside actual Grands Prix with director Joseph Kosinski comparing the intense filming to a pitstop.
“The logistics of it are unlike anything I’ve done before. We’re shooting at the actual Grands Prix, there are certain aspects of this film where we’re working in very, very tight windows, shooting on the track, between practice and qualifying sessions, in front of hundreds of thousands of people,” Kosinski said.
Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton is a producer on the movie who has been constantly advising Kosinski on the script and technical details.
“The most important thing is you tell a great story and an emotional story, that’s always the priority, but going back to the first conversations with Lewis, he said that there has yet to be a film that really captures what it’s like to be in a Formula 1 car, so that’s been a goal, to put the audience in one of these incredible machines.”
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