Austin entrepreneur Justin Jensen has been getting some great press lately for his new camera accessory company. Cinetics™ is launching a professional-grade yet lightweight camera slider, CineSkates™, which allows filmmakers to capture stable, high-resolution video footage without lugging heavy gear. CineSkates™ combines cutting-edge skateboard technology with the flexible GorillaPod Focus™ Tripod, allowing the amateur or seasoned filmmaker to achieve fluid camera movement in space-constrained environments where traditional camera sliders, dollies and cranes are too cumbersome.
As a filmmaker himself, Cinetics founder and Austinite Justin Jensen had trouble finding camera equipment to capture a steady motion shot without having to carry bulky gear or even require an assistant. “Today’s cameras allow you to take high-resolution video in a small form factor, but the result can be shaky and distracting if you don’t have stability. I wanted a camera slider that was lightweight and mobile for professional events or even spontaneous shots, which became the design principles for CineSkates.”
Developed in an MIT MediaLab class, CineSkates is a unique set of wheels that attach to a tripod and enable the user to put their video in motion. They are designed to work specifically with the GorillaPod Focus™ tripod, and a ballhead, like the BallHead X, also from JOBY®.
CineSkates adds captivating motion to product demo videos, wedding films, music videos and other high quality productions in a portable form factor. Filmmakers can produce shots that have previously been impossible or only achievable with bulky and expensive camera equipment, such as:
- Arcing video shots that rotate around objects
- Sliding video shots that push or pull the subject into focus
- Rolling video shots that glide over the subject
- Time-lapse video shots that move the camera slowly and smoothly
- Panning video shots that scan a wide area
- “Worm’s eye view” video shots that slide just above the floor
CineSkates are available to preorder through Kickstarter at cinetics.com/kickstarter for a limited time, reduced price of $150 and $275 for the complete CineSkates System that includes the GorillaPod Focus and Ballhead X.
