Sony teases new Venice cinema camera as it invites as all to Burano launch

Sebastian Oakley
·3 min read
Sony Burano
Sony Burano

For all the professional filmmakers out there or those who dream of being an award-winning cinematographer, Sony has an important announcement for you.

It seems that the time has come to update the CineAlta range, which is Sony's professional range of cinema cameras that feature cinema cameras such as the flagship Sony Venice and of course the Sony FX-series.

This new camera, however, is shrouded in mystery. As you can see below the teaser video does now show much, and a lot is left to the imagination, but what we do know is the name, Burano.

Burano is a small island in the Northern Venetian Lagoon, seven miles northeast of  Venice, and is famous for its colorful houses - now this could be a double clue to what we can expect from the Sony Burano? A sibling or successor to the Sony Venice? And one that does something special with color?

Above: Sony teaser video for the upcoming Burano camera

What we want to see

While official specs have not been released and we won't know what this camera can really do until the announcement on September 12, 2023 that leaves us to imagine what we would love to see of the next generation of Sony CinaAlta cameras, more specifically the Burano.

1. Size

While this might be a long shot, because Burano, the Island,  is small it might suggest that this new cinema camera could be a smaller box-style camera to join in the rivalry between the like of Red, Arri, and Panasonic - this could be a little far-reaching but the Sony CineAlta cameras are named this way for a reason, and Sony is yet to make a box-style camera - could the Burano be the first?

2. Color science

Sticking with the Burano Island theme, which is renowned for its vivid and colorful houses, I would like to see 16-bit color introduced onto this camera - while the Venice 2 also has this, I see the Burano sitting between the Sony FX9 and Venice 2 range, so introducing 16-bit would be a big push for FX9 users to upgrade.

3. Interchangeable lens mounts

While the Sony Venice 2 line of professional cinema cameras does offer camera bodies in either PL-mount or Sony E-Mount, these are fixed into the body and once you choose a mounting system you are locked into the ecosystem forever.

I would like the new Sony Burano to feature interchangeable mounting options for both PL and E-mount lenses which will then give filmmakers creative freedom when choosing lenses on a project-by-project basis, perfect for commercial cinematographers, or smaller production houses.

Above: Sony YouTube page for the new camera launch

While these are specs that we would like to see on the new Sony Burano, we won't have long to wait to know what the official specs are as Sony will be giving a full announcement of the new cinema camera on September, 12th at 10:00 EDT, 15:00 BST, 22:00 CST, 23:00 JST via the Sony camera YouTube channel link above.