Sony RIALTO 65 Announcement – ​​65mm Camera Extension for VENICE 2, Open Gate 9.6K, 16-bit X-OCN

Sony’s RIALTO 65 is now official and integrates a 65mm format sensor into a compact head that connects to an existing VENICE 2 body, on a cable or directly attached. It reads 9.6K Open Gate, records 16-bit X-OCN internally, and arrives in the first half of 2027. I’m at Sony’s event today at Pinewood Studios, where Sony is showing us the system.

When Sony announced the RIALTO 65 as a development project in June, we covered it with a long list of open questions about resolution, recording, and lens mounts. Today, Sony answers most of them. The RIALTO 65 (model CBK-6510XS) uses a 53.75 x 35.83 mm sensor with a 1.5:1 aspect ratio, approximately 2.2 times the area of ​​full-frame. According to Sony, this is one of the largest sensors of any commercially available cinema camera. The head weighs approximately 1.5 kg / 3.3 lb and offers dual base ISO 2500 and 10,000, with over 15 stops of latitude at ISO 2500.

This article is based on Sony press materials. I will be viewing the system at Pinewood today and we will post a video interview from the event in the coming days. So, for my own thoughts, stay tuned.

A larger 65mm sensor

For me, the most interesting thing is not the size but the shape. ARRI’s ALEXA 65 and the new ALEXA 265 have occupied the 65mm digital market almost single-handedly for years. Their sensor has a similar width, but a much wider aspect ratio, close to 2.1:1. Sony goes higher, to 1.5:1, which gives the proportions of a still photography frame.

This extra height is useful for anamorphic capture, for framing different deliverables, and for cropping in post-production. At launch, there are two playback modes: 9.6K 1.5:1 Open Gate, which uses the entire sensor, and 9.6K 2.20:1, with a diagonal of around 59mm, which is suitable for more lenses. Sony says more playback modes will be available with future VENICE 2 software updates. In my opinion, the 2.20:1 mode is the one many productions will use first. Many large format lenses announced this year, such as the ZEISS Panoptes 65 primes and Angénieux EZ 65 zooms, cover an image circle of around 60mm. This corresponds to 2.20:1 mode, but the full Open Gate needs glass rated for true 65mm coverage.

Why cable is important

The name RIALTO tells you how it works. As with the Rialto Extension System 2 and the VENICE 2 Extension System Mini, the head can move away from the body. In extension mode, a cable connects the two. It detaches at both ends and Sony includes a 4.5m/14.8ft cable, with an optional 12m/39.4ft cable. In Studio mode, the head attaches directly to the body as a single camera.

This is where I think Sony has a strong argument. Until now, 65mm digital meant a big camera. A 1.5kg head on a cable can be placed on a gimbal, in the interior of a car or on a portable rig, while the body, media and power remain elsewhere. The head also records tilt and roll as metadata for publishing.

Same pipeline VENICE 2

The body of the VENICE 2 performs the recording. So the RIALTO 65 writes to the same AXS cards, in the same 16-bit X-OCN, with S-Log3 and S-Gamut3 and the CineAlta color science that VENICE users are familiar with. For rental houses offering VENICE 2 packages, this is the real selling point: media, accessories and postal workflows remain the same. My feeling is that this is Sony’s main strategy. There is no need to sell a new camera body, just a new front panel for the bodies already available. That’s my assumption, of course.

What we don’t know yet is how the sensor works. Our VENICE 2 lab test gives a benchmark for the 8.6K full-frame version. Rolling shutter on a 9.6K sensor this size is the first thing I want to see in our lab (Sony, if you’re reading this, we’re ready when you are).

Lenses, anamorphic and ND

The RIALTO 65 does not have its own lens mount. Sony designed it for third-party lens mount adapters, so each production selects the mount for their lenses, including 65mm optics. With a lens and adapter that communicate with the camera, it records focal length, focus position and aperture as metadata for editing, visual effects and virtual production.

This is a change from the Extension System Mini, which came with an E-mount and ARRI PL adapter. This gives more freedom, but it also adds an additional cost and an additional decision for the film crew. Sony hasn’t named an adapter manufacturer yet, and I’m hoping to hear more from Pinewood (but we can see a Gecko Cam adapter in some of the press photos they’ve provided).

For anamorphic work, there’s a multi-ratio compression display and a Zoom to Fit function for checking framing. The head also accepts 11 drop-in ND filters with electronic contacts, so the VENICE 2 automatically reads the density of each filter. A replacement CBK-NDK6510 ND filter kit will be available, but Sony says you can’t purchase individual filters separately.

Pricing and availability

The RIALTO 65 (CBK-6510XS), CBK-NDK6510 ND filter kit, and CBK-12C6510 12m cable will all arrive in the first half of 2027. Sony hasn’t announced pricing, and B&H and CVP don’t yet list the system.

For context, the full-frame VENICE 2 Extension System Mini launched at $25,000 at B&H. Sony hasn’t said how much the RIALTO 65 will be priced compared to this one. For more information, please visit the Sony website.

Sony now offers a 65mm option that plugs into the VENICE 2 system and runs over a cable, and I’m curious to see it in person today. Would a 1.5:1 sensor change the way you frame, or would you mainly use the 2.20:1 mode? Let me know what you think in the comments below!