At Cine Gear 2026 in Los Angeles, we caught up with Atlas Lens Co. to talk about their Kaizen 1.5x Anamorphic lenses, which are now shipping.
They were also showing the custom spherical IMAX lenses that were made for Dune: Part 3.
Above, you can see my interview with Atlas Lens Co. at the InterBee show in Japan last year, where they showed prototypes of the lenses.
Key features
- LPL Mount
- 1.5x Anamorphic squeeze factor
- Sensor coverage: 44 x 33mm
- 4:3 Sensor w/ 1.5x de-squeeze = 2:1 final delivery
- Flexible deliverable ratios w/ minimal cropping (2.40:1, 1.85:1, 1.78:1, etc.)
- Standardized gears and diameters with 104mm front diameter
- Good minimum focus distance, smooth fall-off from in-focus to out-of-focus areas
The Kaizen 1.5x anamorphic lenses will cover larger sensors like the Fujifilm GFX Eterna 55, Blackmagic Design URSA Cine 17K 65, and ARRI 265 (when shooting scope). They were actually developed in conjunction with Fujifilm, who gave them early access to an ETERNA 55.
Atlas Lens Co. has 35mm T2.5, 40mm T2.5, 50mm T2.5, 75mm T2.5, and 100mm T2.5 focal lengths in the Kaizen series, but they are looking for feedback as to what other focal lengths users would like to see.
The lenses come in LPL mount, and they were designed to have a look that arguably falls between the Orion and Mercury series. The Kaizen lenses have distinctive golden flares.
I had a chance to try out the 40mm T2.5 on the Fujifilm GFX Eterna 55 last year, and it had interesting flares and good close-focus ability.
Above, you can see a BTS from Julien Jarry that takes you behind the scenes of the short film “The Source,” one of the first tests of FUJIFILM GFX ETERNA 55 and the Atlas Lens Co. Kaizen 65 anamorphic lenses.
Pricing & Availability
The Kaizen 5 Lens Set retails for $89,000 USD; however, there is a pre-order discount that has been extended to the end of June, where you can get the set for $80,000 USD after putting down a deposit.
Atlas Lens Co. Spherical IMAX lenses
Atlas Lens Co. developed special spherical IMAX lenses for Dune: Part Three that had to meet the very specific requirements for capturing film on the IMAX 70mm format. Atlas Lens Co. made four focal lengths: 55mm T3.5, 80mm, 105mm, and 150mm. They are also working on some more focal lengths.
Image Credit: Atlas Lens Co. Instagram 
Image Credit: Linus Sandgren Instagram
Linus Sandgren went to see Atlas Lens Co. because there’s a very limited selection of glass available that will cover the IMAX format, and a lot of that is rehoused Mamiya and Hasselblad glass. It isn’t uncommon for cinematographers to get custom ptics made for projects. Panavision made two custom 50mm and 80mm T2 lenses for Christopher Nolan, and both of those lenses were used on Sinners and Oppenheimer.
“The ingenious support from the film industry engineers, it’s one of the most magical things about film making. I had this idea to design a uniquely expressive set of lenses for Dune part three. Denis loved the idea. And together, We turned to our friends at Atlas Lens co for help. With a desire for a golden single coating, a full 15perf non vignetting coverage, and a short close focus, we were hoping for a miracle. Not only did Forrest Schultz and Dan Kanes design and hand build 4 focal lengths for the IMAX 15-perf cameras, but also 4 color matching focal lengths for our Panavision System65 5-perf cameras, all from the ground up. They made something very special for Dune part Three but also for the future of large format cinema.”
Linus Sandgren
The IMAX lenses are somewhat of a departure from what Atlas Lens Co. is known for, as they are spherical rather than anamorphic. What makes the lenses special is that they were designed specifically to eliminate the vignetting issues that are very common in current IMAX lens inventories when stopped down. They also needed to provide a specific visual quality that existing lenses that cover IMAX 70mm could not. Atlas Lens Co. custom-designed the lenses to produce a unique spherical look with specific flare and coating characteristics.
Some of the Atlas Lens Co. IMAX lenses’ focal lengths will cover a 100mm x 100mm image circle, which far exceeds traditional IMAX 70mm film standards.
Because of their large image circle, Atlas Lens Co. also needed to create a custom projector to be able to test them, as outside of IMAX, at least to my knowledge, they don’t exist.
The 80mm was the most used of the three focal lengths on Dune: Part Three, and it was designed specifically to offer a unique character in the corners
