Sony VENICE Extension System Mini

Sony has unveiled the new VENICE Extension System Mini. Its actual name is the CBK-3621XS, but no one is going to remember that!

What Sony has managed to do it to take the 8K sensor block from the VENICE 2 and somehow shoehorn it into a very small aluminum enclosure that is significantly smaller than previous Rialto systems.

Mini Me

With the standard E-mount, the VENICE Extension System Mini isn’t much larger than an apple. It is a whopping 70% smaller in size than the current Rialto 2 system.

It is 4″ / 10.16cm high and 2.5″ / 6.35cm wide, and it weighs 655g / 1.44 lb with E-mount, and 1190g / 2.62 lb with the PL mount adapter. To put that weight in perspective, the Sony FX3 weighs 640g / 1.4 lb (Body Only).

The VENICE Extension System Mini essentially looks like an action camera on steroids.

If you put on the PL adapter (that fits on top of the E-mount), it almost doubles the physical size of the VENICE Extension System Mini.

There are air inlets on the sides and an exhaust outlet on the top to keep the sensor block cool.

While a lot of DPs loved the Rialto and Rialto 2 systems, they craved for something smaller and lighter. Every gram and inch you can save is important, especially when you are trying to wedge a camera system into a vehicle or small space. Having something that is also a lot smaller adds to the possibilities of where it could be mounted.

Having the ability to use both E-mount, PL, and various other lenses through adapters (just like the original Rialto systems), gives the VENICE Extension System Mini a lot of versatility.

The PL adapter comes in the kit, and it features a 4-pin lens data port so you can use it with a DCS external lens data system and external encoders to output lens metadata.

The form factor of the VENICE Extension System Mini looks a little similar to that of the FR7 Cinema Line PTZ Camera if you took away its PTZ cradle and base.

There are two user buttons (3 and 5) located on the head, and you can assign them to various functions. There is also a 3-pin Fisher on the front for run/stop. Sony has also included a 24V power output.

Because of its small size, it will also be of interest to anyone who is designing arrays for VFX plates or wants to do 3D, as you can pack a lot of cameras very closely together given the form factor.

“I love the size of the VENICE Extension System Mini. I love that you can put it anywhere, like a Formula One race car when you’re racing. You have the full resolution of a real cinema camera. It’s nice to have that flexibility without compromising image quality.”

Claudio Miranda ASC

Detachable Cable Connector

On the previous Rialto systems, the connector was permanently attached, so it had to go where the cable went. With the new VENICE Extension System Mini, there is a detachable plate, so you can separate the cable for rigging purposes, etc., and then re-attach it.

There is also a new slimmer cable that comes in the kit that is 4.5m / 14.6′ long. This is longer than the 3m / 10′ / cable that came standard with the Rialto 2. Sony felt that the 10′ length just wasn’t quite long enough for certain shooting scenarios. There is also an optional 12m / 39.37′ cable available as well. The cable is also now angled straight down instead of sticking straight out of the back of the head.

Having the ability to now detach the cable allows the camera to be put in more places. You only need around a 2″ gap to be able to pass the cable through, which makes rigging a whole lot easier and more convenient. The new cable has a 7.6mm diameter (3.3mm thinner than the existing model’s 10.9mm cable).

On the bottom of the VENICE Extension System Mini, there are two 3/8′ and one 1/4-20″ threaded holes for mounting.

There are also three 3/8′ threaded holes on both the left and right-hand sides, as well as two 3/8″ holes on the top, and four on the front.

Bright Tangerine will have a mounting cage for it, and I am sure there will be other options coming as well.

Drop-In ND Filters

Because of the small size, Sony couldn’t utilize the rotary ND system that was in the Rialto and Rialto 2 because it wouldn’t physically fit. So what they have done is to come up with a drop-in ND filter system.

There is a little hatch that you open up on top of the VENICE Extension System Mini, and you can drop in ND filters ranging from 0.3 to 2.4. There is a total of 9 filters that come with the kit, including a Clear filter.

The filters are:

• Clear
• 0.3 ND
• 0.6 ND
• 0.9 ND
• 1.2 ND
• 1.5 ND
• 1.8 ND
• 2.1 ND
• 2.4 ND

The drop-in filters were designed to exactly match the internal ND filters in the VENICE 2. The filters also have an encoding chip on the back of them so that the VENICE 2 knows what ND filter is being used and that will subsequently be displayed on the information overlays and be recorded in the metadata.

Having physical drop-in filters certainly makes it less convenient when trying to make ND changes on the fly, especially when the camera isn’t easily accessible.

Could Sony have used an electronic variable ND system? Possibly, but that would have made the VENICE Extension System Mini a lot larger. Also, Sony doesn’t use electronic variable ND in any of the VENICE cameras.

How else does it differ from the Sony Rialto Camera Extension System 2 for Sony VENICE/VENICE 2?

First of all, you can’t use this with the original VENICE, this will only work with the VENICE 2, as it is the 8K sensor block that is inside the VENICE Extension System Mini.

Secondly, there is no SDI out, so unlike the original Rialto and Rialto 2, you would need to either run a separate SDI cable from the camera body or utilize a wireless video feed. By losing the SDI out, Sony was able to make the cable that runs from the camera to the VENICE Extension System Mini a lot smaller and thinner.

You may have seen the trailer or BTS for the upcoming F1 movie and assumed that it was the VENICE Extension System Mini that was being used for all the in-car shots, but that was not the case. The VENICE Extension System Mini system was only used for some shots in the Abu Dhabi section, as it wasn’t available when the production first started filming. A lot of the in-car shots in the F1 movie were done with a custom solution that Sony came up with while they were still working on the VENICE Extension System Mini.

“When I started this new movie, I needed a tiny camera that gave me the flexibility to move it and put it on a stabilizer and run through the woods on tools that don’t exist yet. Sony was gracious enough to give us the beta version of this new VENICE Extension System Mini, and we’ve used it every single day. It’s opened up the creativity and freedom to shoot anywhere at any time, and it fundamentally changed the way we made this movie. It’s truly been a game changer.”

Lawrence Sher ASC

The VENICE Extension System Mini system is currently being used on quite a few productions, including an upcoming Lawrence Sher ASC movie that is currently filming in Australia.

No new VENICE coming anytime soon

Sony isn’t going to release a VENICE 2 replacement anytime soon. They will be offering firmware updates running up until at least 2028/2029, which is good news for owners of the camera. If you are going to buy an expensive camera system, the last thing you want is for it to be superseded within a few years and for the resale price to fall through the floor.

This isn’t a replacement for the Sony Rialto Camera Extension System 2 for Sony VENICE/VENICE 2

The original Sony Rialto Camera Extension System for Sony VENICE and the follow-up Sony Rialto Camera Extension System 2 for Sony VENICE/VENICE 2 were popular products as they allowed you to separate the sensor block from the camera. This gave crews the ability to use the camera in tight spaces or to use it handheld and on smaller-sized stabilizers.

This is not a replacement for the Sony Rialto Camera Extension System 2 for Sony VENICE/VENICE 2, it is simply another version.

The Sony Rialto Camera Extension System 2 for Sony VENICE/VENICE 2 was announced back in September 2022. This was a follow-up to the original system, and while it was designed specifically for the VENICE 2, however, it would also work with the original VENICE.

The VENICE Rialto 2 Camera Extension System had an extended operating range and a few new features.

The original Sony Rialto Camera Extension System for Sony VENICE was announced back in 2018.

The Sony Rialto Camera Extension System enabled you to remove the sensor block and extend it up to 18′ / 5.48m away from the camera body with no loss of image quality.

With the Sony VENICE Rialto 2 Camera Extension System, the operating distance was increased to 39.37′ / 12m. Sony managed to do this by changing what is inside the cable they are using.

The system weighs 2.2kg in PL mount and 1.7kg in E-mount. With its small size and light weight, it gave users the ability to shoot in tight spaces, go handheld,d or mount the Extension System 2 on gimbals and cranes. 

The original VENICE Rialto System was used on Hollywood blockbusters such as Top Gun: Maverick, where the small form factor of three VENICE Extension systems, paired with three cameras, allowed Claudio Miranda ASC to place multiple VENICE cameras in the cockpit of an F-18 fighter jet to capture unique shots.

Along with the big increase in operating distance, the Rialto Camera Extension System 2 also features a spirit indicator and a gyro sensor. It records this information in the metadata and outputs the data through the camera’s SDI.

The Rialto Camera Extension System 2 also has four assignable buttons that you can use for various functions such as changing the ND, REC Start/Stop, etc. The old system only had two assignable buttons. It is important to note that if you use the Rialto Camera Extension System 2 on the VENICE you can only utilize two assignable buttons.

Sony VENICE 2

The Sony VENICE 2 was announced back in 2021.

The VENICE 2 comes in two different versions. The 8K version comes with a completely new 8.6K (8640 x 5760) full-frame CMOS sensor that was developed especially for this camera. It is a 3:2 aspect ratio sensor with approx. 50MP. This new sensor has essentially doubled the amount of MP that was found in the original VENICE.

If you drop down to S35 mode the camera is utilizing a 5.8K area of the sensor.

Sony claims that the VENICE 2 8K has 16 stops of dynamic range. Sony quoted 15+ stops with the original VENICE.

The latitude of the 8.6K sensor is based on 18% gray, with 6 stops above middle grey and 10 stops below. Essentially, the VENICE 2 8K has the same number of stops as the original VENICE when it comes to the highlights, but it gains a stop in the shadows.

The Dual Base ISO’s on the VENICE 2 8K are 800 and 3200 as opposed to the 500 and 2500 that were in the original VENICE. The VENICE 2 6K still maintains the 500 and 2500 Base Native ISO settings of the original.

The 6K version of the VENICE 2 uses the same exact 36.2 x 24.1 mm (43.5 mm Diagonal) 24.8MP (total) sensor that is found in the original VENICE. All of the exact same resolutions and framerates that are available on the original VENICE are available on the VENICE 2 6K.

Price & Availability

The Sony VENICE Extension System Mini will be available in August for $25,000 USD. As a comparison, the VENICE Rialto 2 Camera Extension System retails for $18,999.99 USD.

The Sony VENICE 2 starts at $58,000 USD.