ARRI Camera Companion App officially launched

After a lengthy beta period, the new ARRI Camera Companion App for iPhone, iPad, and Mac with Apple Silicon is now available.

It's been a while since ARRI first announced it was developing the ARRI Camera Companion App, coming up to three years in fact. But now it's here, ARRI users can configure their own personalized interface for remote control of one or multiple ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, ALEXA Mini, AMIRA, and ALEXA 265 cameras.

The app is all about giving users personalized control. Users can choose a predefined layout or drag and drop control tiles into a custom layout that suits their way of working, giving them fingertip control of precisely the parameters they need. Unlimited app user buttons can be assigned to literally any camera function required and then dragged and dropped into the user’s personalized layout. With a Premium subscription the interface's usability expands even more and it can be organized into multiple tabs, so users can create separate tabs for different cameras or shooting situations, or assign a specific tab to functions like playback control.

That long beta testing period by what ARRI says are thousands of users has helped shape the app and provided some very useful feedback. Among the features the company says were praised by beta testers are, "the ability to save builds by project; independent interfaces for DP and DIT; time savings achieved by the physical camera setup and the selection of camera settings being done simultaneously by different people; instant adjustments to camera settings while at a monitor station; quick matching of multiple cameras; and—most of all—the customizable interface"

Pricing and availability

The ARRI Camera Companion App is available to download from the App Store now and a free Demo version of the app offers basic, single-camera control, camera menu access, and free Standard and Premium trial periods that allow users to build familiarity with the control possibilities before deciding which subscription is right for them. further pre-purchase testing is also possible thanks to the fact that every new project in the app includes a simulated camera, so users can start exploring even if they don’t have a camera to hand. Connection to a real ARRI camera can be implemented either via the camera’s own WiFi network or a wider on-set network.

The Standard subscription is €4.99 a month or €49 a year, and provides comprehensive control of one or two ARRI cameras. The Premium subscription bumps the price up impressively to €39 a month and €399 a year, but adds features such as unlimited cameras, lens control via cforce lens motors, sensor sync shift, CDL control for live grading, and MIDI support while it does so. That last is interesting as it opens up support for tactile control via pretty much any MIDI-enabled physical input device. Looking forward to seeing what people do with that...