News roundup: ASC Awards, Aputure, Cine Gear, Harman Switch Azure, Manfrotto ONE, Maxon, NANLUX, and Netflix

ASC Awards crowns One Battle After Another, Netflix quietly acquires Ben Affleck's AI startup, Manfrotto wins iF Design Award, and film stock gets wonderfully weird.

The 40th ASC Awards go to...

The American Society of Cinematographers held its 40th Annual Outstanding Achievement Awards at the Beverly Hilton on March 8 — yesterday. Michael Bauman took the marquee Theatrical Feature Film prize for One Battle After Another, beating out a strong field that included Autumn Durald Arkapaw (Sinners) and Darius Khondji (Marty Supreme) amongst other contenders. Is this an Oscars indication? We'll know in a few days.

Rodrigo Prieto won the music video category at his fifth nomination for shooting Taylor Swift's "The Fate of Ophelia." There was an unusual tie in the Episode of a One-Hour Regular Series category, with Christophe Nuyens (Andor) and Alex Disenhof (Task) both recognised. Mstyslav Chernov and Alex Babenko won the Documentary Award for 2000 Meters from Andriivka. 

Adam Newport-Berra won the Episode of a Half-Hour Series for The Studio ("The Oner"), and Pete Konczal won the limited series prize for Black Rabbit ("Isle of Joy"), rather notably beating the Adolescence single-take episode. 

Manfrotto ONE Hybrid tripod wins iF Design Award 2026

Selected by an international jury of 129 independent design experts, the Manfrotto ONE Hybrid is the only tripod to receive an iF DESIGN AWARD in 2026, reinforcing its popular position in a crowded market.

Launched as the first model within the new Manfrotto ONE platform, the ONE Hybrid tripod is built on a unified architectural foundation that looks to integrate dedicated photo and video functionality into a single, professional-grade system. The tripod introduces advanced features including the XTEND fast deployment mechanism, high torsional rigidity for stability, and seamless compatibility with Manfrotto’s XCHANGE quick release ecosystem. Prices start at $499.

Aputure drops price of STORM 1000c

Aputure has dropped the price of the Aputure STORM 1000c to $2990, matching the price of the STORM 1200x.

“Both of these STORM lights are excellent tools,” explains Mitch Gross, Aputure’s Global Director of Marketing. “The STORM 1000c has a huge range of saturated colors with precise tuning to get exactly what you need. The STORM 1200x offers great tunable white light with huge brightness, really great lumens per watt. Now it’s about choosing the tool that’s best for your needs, not buying based on price.”

NANLUX unveils Evoke 150C 2-light kit and 3-light kit

NANLUX has two new light kits centered around the versatile Evoke 150C full-color spot light. The new light kits pair high-output LED sources with thoughtfully curated accessories to deliver what the company says is punchy light, flexible control, and rapid setup in diverse environments.

The 2-light kit includes: Evoke 150C × 2; Yoke × 2; FE Mount Reflector 45°× 2; AC Power Cable 4.5m × 2; D-Tap Cable × 2; USB Flash Drive × 1; Magnetic Base × 2; 5/8" Baby Pin with Quick Release Plate × 2; FL-12 Fresnel Lens × 1 (Barndoor × 1); Rapid 60 Softbox × 1 (Standard Diffuser × 1, Medium Diffuser × 1, Eggcrate × 1); Light Stand × 2; User Manual × 1; Plastic Trolley Case × 1

The 3-light kit expands on this further with an additional Evoke 150C and all matching mounting and modifier gear.

The Evoke 150C 2-Light Kit costs $2450, and the 3-Light Kit costs $3690.

Harman Switch Azure turns blue objects orange

Harman Photo has released Switch Azure, a new colour negative 35 mm / ISO 125 film that reverses colour rendering so that blues render as orange, bright yellows shift to azure, and reds become purple-blue hues. The result is reportedly something close to Lomography's Lomochrome Turquoise, but with its own distinctive character. Turns out orange is the new blue, or something like that.

It's either delightful experimental weirdness, or comes across more like a manufacturing error that the company decided to market according to one commentator — the film equivalent of mushy peas. It's always interesting to see film attract so much attention, however.

Maxon and Tencent Cloud Partner to Integrate HY 3D into Cinema 4D

Maxon has announced a strategic partnership with Tencent Cloud to integrate Tencent HY 3D Global AI engine into Cinema 4D. The collaboration, unveiled at Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, introduces an AI-assisted workflow within Cinema 4D that enables artists to generate base 3D and UV models from text prompts or image references. These can then be further refined, sculpted, animated, and rendered using Maxon’s professional toolset.

The HY 3D engine, developed by Tencent Cloud and trained on Tencent’s vast library of games, helps artists jumpstart their work, serving as a starting point for creative exploration. Once generated, assets are fully customizable in Cinema 4D and compatible with Maxon’s broader ecosystem, including ZBrush, Redshift, and Red Giant tools.

Cine Gear Connect New York registration open

Registration is now open for Cine Gear Connect New York 2026, presented by Universal Production Services. Held at New York's Industry City, the all-inclusive experience promises a day of iconic visual creator presentations, technology previews, and ample opportunities for the "meaningful mingling" Cine Gear is famous for.

Attendance at the March 28 event will be capped at 500 guests, and the day’s programming features expert panels and presentations sponsored by industry favorites, including The American Society of Cinematographers, The International Cinematographers Guild, Universal Production Services and Inner Circle Distribution for Astera. More session details will be announced soon. In addition, tabletop sponsor displays will offer hands-on access to the latest tools and technology, and as always, networking is built-in throughout the day. Check cinegearexpo.com for the latest updates. Registration is $49.99.

Netflix swoops for Ben Affleck’s InterPositive AI startup

Having declined to spend $83 billion on acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix has quietly dropped slightly less cash on buying InterPositive, the stealth-mode AI startup founded by Ben Affleck. Terms of the acquisition are not being disclosed, but the entire 16-person InterPositive team of engineers, researchers and creatives will join Netflix and Affleck will serve as a senior adviser to provide ongoing guidance.

Netflix tends to build its own tools in-house rather than acquire them, so this is an interesting move. The company develops AI-powered tools for filmmakers, and Affleck insists that Netflix is not buying just another Sora or Veo clone. InterPositive is “not about text prompting or generating something from nothing,” he says. Rather the technology allows filmmakers to build their own AI models based on footage already shot, then use those models to remove wires on stunts, reframe shots, recover missed shots, shape lighting, and enhance backgrounds.