Jim Jannard, chairman, founder and majority owner of Foothill Ranch-based sunglasses maker Oakley Inc., is creating a buzz with a passion turned side project.
Jannard has started a company that makes a high-resolution digital camera for shooting movies and other productions.
The company: Lake Forest-based Red Digital Cinema Corp., otherwise known as Red.
The venture is separate from Jannard’s work at Oakley, known for its “mad scientist” research into sunglasses and other products.
Red stems from Jannard’s longtime love of photography. The multimillionaire, who owns about 65% of Oakley, is bankrolling the venture.
The startup has created a stir at camera shows with early talk of its Red One camera.
Ted Schilowitz, who heads Red, said the response has been overwhelming.
“The orders keep streaming in,” Schilowitz said. “This is in advance of people seeing any images from our sensor.”
The first images from Red One are set to debut at a September tradeshow in Amsterdam, Schilowitz said.
The camera, which is set to sell for $17,500, could be produced by the end of the year. The first models are set to ship in spring, according to Schilowitz.
The company’s Web site describes the camera as having the “quality of 35 mm film and convenience of a camcorder.”
At a recent Los Angeles tradeshow, hundreds of interested buyers paid a $1,000 deposit to reserve a place in line for some of the first cameras.
Red still is ironing out the specifications for the camera, according to Schilowitz.
“Things are changing all the time,” he said. “We’re still very much in development.”
The camera was Jannard’s idea.
He’s a big film and photography buff, often shooting Oakley’s advertising and product shots himself with still and motion cameras, Schilowitz said.
Jannard, who rarely grants interviews, wasn’t available for comment.
It could be good timing for Red.
The movie industry is at a crossroads. Filmmakers are getting more interested in digital cameras. They can cut production costs by eliminating the need to buy and develop film.
And, unlike film, movies shot digitally don’t require scanning for editing and computer special effects.
Hollywood is coming around. Several recent films were shot digitally, including “Miami Vice” and “Super-man Returns.”
But not everyone’s sold. Some directors, including Steven Spielberg, say they plan to stick with film.
Red’s challenge is to bridge the quality gap with film cameras.
“We set out to make a better tool,” Schilowitz said.
The Red project started about eight months ago. Schilowitz, a former product manager for AJA Video Systems in Northern California’s Grass Valley, heads the development team with routine input from Jannard.
“We feel very strongly that we’re on the track of something really big,” Schilowitz said.
The company is called Red to capture “the spirit of a rebellious company” that’s getting ready to change the industry, Schilowitz said.
