Matthews debuts Litemover and highlights Big F’ing Wheels 

Matthews Studio Equipment’s Litemover is the first off-the-shelf automated universal remote head made for adjusting light or reflector fixture positioning from the ground.

Matthews Studio Equipment is carrying on with its usual mission to take useful things designed by useful people and make them into products with the launch of the Litemover at NAB.

Designed by working gaffer Erno Das, Litemover is component-based to accommodate light fixtures and reflector boards weighing up to 220-lbs/100 kilos from popular brands  including ARRI, Cineo, Creamsource, Lightbridge, FilmGear, K5600, Matthews and more. With what it says is an easy and familiar interface and intuitive controls, Litemover is made to increase accessibility, save time, and add safety on set by eliminating the need to climb high ladders to aim a light.

It provides smooth remote pan, tilt and spot/flood focus control, can easily be operated via the manual hand control, and is fully compatible with DMX, RDM and/or wireless DMX with its built-in CRMX. Three precision motors quietly respond directly to the operator’s input even while the fixture is actively in use on a stand, crane, jib arm or other set hardware. To accommodate various working conditions, Litemover may be set up in standard or inverted underslung configuration, so it’s not only convenient when working on stands but also with a studio lighting grid, aerial lift or telehandler. Power is supplied by either a battery for wireless operation or may be cabled to suit the setup

The Litemover system comes complete in a hard rolling case to rig a light fixture or reflector board. Each component is housed in rugged safety-orange high impact moulded polycarbonate. Included are three quiet motor units, hand, pin, and clamp connectors, a 90-degree coupler, assorted support rods, and a manual push-button hand control. When it comes to power, the system features a V-Lock Battery unit and V-lock PSU to support most popular batteries. For regional input adaptability the kit features a 110/220 AC inverter to 14.4 Volts and all essential cables. The kit also includes three mounting adapters cover a vast array of today’s fixtures in standing or underslung modes. Additional adapters will be available.

Pre-orders are open now for a $100 deposit. No word yet on eventual pricing.

Big F’ing Wheels

Following a bit of name confusion with another company, Matthews has also relaunched its rather admired large and puncture free wheels as the appropriately named Big F’ing Wheel. It’s built on a foam semi-pneumatic tyre that won’t go flat, keeping movements smooth and easy. Just slip them onto a 1” square tube leg and secure using a spring steel retainer, ensuring a tight fit without damaging the leg sidewall. The Big F’ing Wheels brake also dual locks the direction and rotation more reliably than other wheels as the mechanism is placed on the top, designed to prevent dirt allocation from regular use and thus maintaining easy locking or loosening with a quick kick or push. All wheel treads wear down over time, which is why Matthews also  says its wheels come with an adjustable brake pad that lengthens the life of the wheel.

At over $800 for three they’re not cheap, but they are definitely big. And as we rather childishly like their new name, here’s a video.