Labs & gearBy FilmFocus
Filmomat: A Small German Maker of Film Development Equipment
This is an AI translation of an article originally published in Japanese. If anything reads oddly, the Japanese original is the authoritative version.
Filmomat is a German company that develops hardware and software for film photography. Alongside hardware such as the Filmomat Classic automatic film processor and the Filmomat Light automatic agitator, it also makes SmartConvert, software that inverts digitized negatives. As of 2024 it is run as Lukas Fritz's personal project, but it already has distributors in the United States and the United Kingdom, so it will be worth watching where it goes from here.
Filmomat Classic
Development of the flagship Filmomat Classic began in 2015, and the first production units shipped in 2016. Lukas, then a university student, reportedly designed it around the idea of "a minilab small enough to fit comfortably in my own apartment." In appearance, it looks a little like a 3D printer.
Filmomat Classic (from the official website)
The machine consists of tanks that hold the chemicals and a tank that holds the film. Filling the tanks with chemicals and loading the film still has to be done by hand, but everything after that, including temperature control and agitation, is handled automatically.
The film tank is designed to accommodate a range of formats. According to the official website, in addition to 35mm (135), it can develop 120, 4x5”, and 5x7” film. Another notable feature is that, by choosing the appropriate chemicals and a programmable development sequence, it can handle a wide range of processes, including C-41, black-and-white, E6, and ECN-2.
Run by Lucas Fritz
The project is currently run by Lucas Fritz alone, and every Filmomat Classic is built by him personally. He earned a PhD in organic chemistry from the Technical University of Munich in 2022, and the project is now reportedly his main source of income.
Summary
We've introduced Filmomat from Germany. It apparently ships to Japan as well, and we're looking forward to seeing what products it develops next.