An ad from the March 1948 edition of American Cinematographer…
How can you not love the Arriflex IIC…?
Imagine walking around your entire life with your eyes closed, then someone teaches you how to open them. You’d jump at the chance and never go back to your old way of doing things, right?
Well, that’s not quite how it went when future ASC members Conrad Hall and Richard Moore tried to sell the Arriflex IIC (two-C) to the major studios in the early 1950’s. Up to that time, all motion picture cameras utilized an offset
viewing system, through which the operator was unable to witness what was
happening directly through the lens. The IIC was revolutionary. As the first of its kind, its reflex viewing capability allowed cinematographers to see precisely what the lens saw. When Hall and Moore secured the rights to market this German-built innovation west of the Mississippi, they thought they’d hit the jackpot. Studio heads disagreed. Rather than embrace a lighter, streamlined camera that allowed for precise framing and judgement of focus, they stuck to their cumbersome, half-blind Mitchell BNC’s. Hall and Moore soon lost the rights to what had been invented as a newsreel device prior to WW II, and they returned to square one. That they were dismissed so curtly by Hollywood is not an unfamiliar story to anyone who was around for the transition from film to digital.
But ignorance could not stop progress then, either. The Arri IIC eventually caught on and by the end of the decade, it was a staple on every set in the world.
Even today, subsequent iterations (of which there have been many) continue to see frequent service. Having used it on innumerable occasions with and without its sound-dampening blimp, I can attest to its durability and versatility. I always found it valuable for second unit work and in fast, plug-and-play environments. I’d compare it in some ways to the role the Red Komodo has so brilliantly assumed in the digital world. Though it’s not suited to be an ‘A’ camera, it can quickly respond to most demands with high-quality results.
Hall and Moore may have struck out with their initial plans for the IIC, but the studio’s loss was a gain for movie lovers. Both went on to huge careers as cinematographers, with an enormous amount of their footage subsequently
captured by the very same camera!
Great history, I hadn’t known about Conrad Hall, and Richard Moore’s ASC involvement with the Arri 2C.
Indeed the workhorse of second unit and handheld back in the day.
I have one fitted with a Panavision mount that occasionally sees action.
Thank you, Richard.
The USAF mopic unit in San Bernadino (AAVS) had several of them in the mid-70’s when I was there . Definitely a handy tool on the Tyler mount.