For Project Hail Mary, cinematographer Greig Fraser ACS, ASC approached ARRI Rental during the lead-up to the project for assistance in developing a specific visual style.
Fraser chose to use the ALEXA 65 as his main camera, and he approached ARRI to come up with a solution for shooting vertical-squeeze anamorphic in the 65mm format. He wanted to utilize the entire ALEXA 65 sensor to fill the taller IMAX image area by squeezing in to create additional height. The outcome of the collaboration was a completely new, custom set of anamorphic lenses that could be mounted sideways on the ALEXA 65, resulting in vertical flare, unique bokeh, and maximum image quality.
ARRI doesn’t state what these new lenses are based on or what the focal lengths are. Shooting vertically with anamorphic lenses is an interesting way of creating a different look, especially for certain IMAX formats.
