It all started last year–2010–at NAB in LasVegas. Living Arts College grads are many places doing great things. We believe breaking in is all about being involved … exercising a passion for all things that blend digital workflow with applied imagination.

Faculty, staff and students head to NAB because it is the single, biggest tent show celebration of digital gear and digital pros. We connect with the leaders who are the great suppliers like Panasonic and Sony and Arri … and the equally great people who are on the floor at NAB. Many of them are firmly planted in the business of production.

We had heard about ALEXA–the new camera design coming frfom Arri that seemed to have it all.

The first cut for us was–go no further until you see the images. My early, early days was working 8 hours a day printing black and white prints in a studio lab before moving on to start my own color print processing shop. Yes, I was one of the first purcahsers of Kodak’s Type C paper and chemicals. In a matter of a couple of months I have engineered and built a C Print procssing line of tanks, barn rail hoist and print basket–one of the world’s first man-u-matic color print lines.

So, I’ve spent hours and hours with cc filters, varying light sources and getting real close to a vector scope all in search of mastering color and image control.

The Arri images shown in the private NAB screening room unchained me to take the next, will it make the cut step–it had to be a personal camera that could also serve a traditional crew.

The Arri is small and it doesn’t require a DIT assist. It’s hefty when outfitted with matte box and focus gear. But, it’s a personal kind of precission instrument. It’s simple but elegant. That was my first up-close reaction on arrival at the Arri booth. Just 15 minutes later I pulled my business associate aside and said, “find the top guy and let’s get pricing and move on this–it’s going to be the new camera of choice for so many reasons. And, our students need this as a the serious tool for serious filmmakers.”

Several months later, and some 700 orders coming out around NAB 2010, we have our ALEXA. It’s being tested, outfitted with all kinds of neat (and essential) of add-on gear. We’re even working on an ALEXA Certification Program.

But, I had better explain why this camera has confirmed to all that this is film program different in so many positive ways. The next post will begin to explain why the ALEXA large sensor leads to larger ideas about filmmaking training that is … “a higher digital education”.

The Living Arts College FILMMAKING PROGRAM is used to firsts. The tradition continues as Arri, the great German cinema camera maker notified us today that LAC is the first film school to order their ALEXA. LAC pioneered the first advanced DIGITAL ANIMATION PROGRAM in 1973. It was the first with HD production … and first again recently by providing every FILMMAKING STUDENT ACCESS TO A CANON DSLR.

“The firsts continue with the ARRI ALEXA.” reports College Director Debra Hooper.

If you’ve read the news from the film production world, you know all about the ALEXA. More than one worthy director has called it the digital camera that will be a “film killer”.

LIVING ARTS COLLEGE FIRST TO GET AN ALEXA–UNBOXING

Why? Because the ALEXA has a imaging recording range of 13.5 stops … about that of the human eye. This caculation is based on an “ideal” film speed of 800. The net effect is not only a wide dynmaic range, but see-into-the-shadows low light sensitivity.