Sony 2012 Annual Report Download - page 23

Sony’s 4K Format Established in the
Professional Production Arena
With the spread of digital cinema and the number
of theaters able to screen movies in 4K increasing,
Sony responded to demand from professional users
with the F65 CineAlta camera, which combines
Sony’s cutting-edge image sensor, image signal
processing and optical processing technologies.
For the F65’s core component, Sony developed an
8K CMOS image sensor. This new image sensor
achieves an industry-leading resolution of 20
megapixels, as well as color reproduction and
exposure latitude that surpasses that of conventional
film. By utilizing a rotary shutter, the F65 also re-
solves the image sensor specific issue of object dis-
tortion, which sometimes aects shooting of fast-
moving scenes. The F65, whose name derives from
the superior 65mm film format, achieves image
quality commensurate with its namesake.
The F65 Confirms Its Reputation as the
Flagship Camera of the 4K Era
The F65 is on track to become the digital motion
picture camera of choice among professionals, and
has already been deployed filming the science fic-
tion thriller After Earth, scheduled for release by
Sony Pictures Entertainment in 2013. During pro-
duction, the director of photography commented
that they had no problems using the rotary shutter
even when it rained or was hot and humid, and
that they had even been able to shoot scenes of
people running through the forest without distor-
tion. He also praised the camera’s balance and
ease of use.
Sony Promotes 4K for Increasingly Diverse
Applications
Sony is vigorously promoting the overwhelming
expressiveness of 4K outside the motion picture
medium, in such areas as sports and documenta-
ries. Shooting in such genres is done at 60 frames
per second and demands natural expression at
high resolution and using wide-angle shots. In
2011, Sony teamed up with major Brazilian televi-
sion broadcaster TV Globo Internacional to shoot
and produce a documentary capturing the excite-
ment of this year’s Rio de Janeiro Carnival in full 4K
at 60 frames per second. The documentary was
also shown at the National Association of Broad-
casters (NAB) trade show, the world’s largest exhi-
bition of broadcasting equipment, where its vividly
realistic, high-quality images garnered consider-
able acclaim.
Sony’s Digital Cinema Projection System
Spreads Around the World
Theater operation for 4K digital cinema requires an
ultrahigh-resolution projector and a cinema server
to store and transfer at high speed a large volume of
movie data to the projector. Sony is the only company
to develop and manufacture in-house both types
of equipment, and also possesses extensive know-
how from managing a global entertainment
business. Hence, Sony’s Digital Cinema Solutions
Business offers theaters and cinema chains a full
product and service lineup, from projection system
proposals to theater operations and management
support. Sony’s system has already been adopted
by North America’s largest cinema chain, Regal
Entertainment Group, among others, and as of April
2012, the cumulative number of systems shipped
topped 12,500 units, greatly contributing to the
market penetration of 4K digital cinema.
Digital Cinema Projector Wins Okochi
Memorial Production Prize
Sony was the winner of the 58th Okochi Memorial
Production Prize from the Okochi Memorial Foun-
dation. The award citation praised Sony’s early rec-
ognition of the potential of the 4K format, its de-
velopment of the 4K SXRDTM high-resolution
After Earth director M. Night Shyamalan
© 2012 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. Photo by Frank Masi, SMPSP
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