Fujifilm Image Processing System IS-mini enables high-precision color management on movie, TV and CM sets

FUJIFILM Corporation (President: Shigehiro Nakajima) will launch “Image Processing System IS-mini” (hereinafter “IS-mini”), a new device of color management system for digital film production that enables high-precision color management on movie, TV and CM sets. New product will be introduced in the US and Japan, in early June 2013.

In motion picture production, a greater variety of visual expression is now available with the proliferation of digital editing that heavily uses digital cinema camera filming, computer graphics and VFX* processing. However, it remains very difficult to manage color in a uniform manner with the various equipment and software used in the digital editing process. “Color” is an important element that could alter the quality of the created work in motion picture production. The challenge was to effectively reproduce in high precision the color produced on the shooting set by the director of photography (DOP), who is wholly in charge of image quality, in post-production where the image is edited and finished up.
In order to respond to such needs, Fujifilm released in April 2012 “Image Processing System IS-100 (hereinafter “IS-100″)” **, a color management system for digital motion picture production that complies with ACES standards***. The system is well reputed as an innovative product that offers high-precision color management on shooting sets by operating with the iPad*4 controller, in which the main body, camera and monitor are all connected together with a cable.

On the other hand, on large scale shooting sets, not only the director but also technical staff uses multiple monitors to check the shot image. However, since there were differences in color reproduction due to different characteristics of each monitor, it was difficult for all the staff checking the image on the monitor to observe the correct color reproduction of the film on the set.

The new IS-mini is a digital image processing device that converts in real time the input image signal according to the color conversion table (LUT)*5 recorded inside IS-mini, and outputs the optimum color on the monitor. IS-mini enables the same color management as the main camera and main monitor for the connected shooting camera and image checking monitor. This can be realized by 1) having IS-mini interlock with IS-100 connected to the main camera and main monitor; 2) having the equipment information of the shooting camera and image checking monitor to be connected with IS-100, registered in IS-100; and 3) having the color conversion table automatically sent from IS-100 to IS-mini. With this system, images finished with correct color management can be checked on more than 2 shooting cameras and 2 image checking monitors in large scale shooting sets. Color can also be adjusted separately for each camera. Even if there is no interlock with IS-100, monitor calibration*6 is possible by 1) the figure measured with the spectrophotometer*7 for the monitor is entered into the computer; and 2) IS-mini recorded with the color conversion table created on the computer is connected with the image output equipment and monitor. Using IS-mini offers correct color reproduction according to the color conversion table recorded in IS-mini, even for monitors on film sets, at production companies and in post-production.

Fujifilm will continue to contribute in the development of the motion picture industry by providing products and services adapted to the digital production workflow, such as IS-100 and IS-mini as well as FUJINON lenses for digital cinema cameras / digital screening equipment and Recording film for Digital Separation ETERNA-RDS.