ARRI Reaffirms Commitment to Lighting and Camera Systems – Full Roadmap for 2026, Munich Consolidation Underway

Industry News

by Nino LeitnerDecember 16^th, 2025

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Following recent restructuring that saw 150 job cuts and facility closures, ARRI has issued a comprehensive statement reaffirming its commitment to both lighting and camera businesses. The Munich-based manufacturer outlined plans for new lighting technologies launching in 2026, centralized R&D operations, and continued ALEXA ecosystem expansion.

The statement – embedded from Instagram below – from managing directors David Bermbach, Wolfgang Börsig, and Chris Richter comes approximately three weeks after the company closed its Stephanskirchen and Brannenburg facilities in Germany, a move that eliminated 150 positions as we covered in our previous article. Approximately 50 of those affected employees received relocation offers to ARRI’s Munich headquarters, where the company is now consolidating its lighting development, product management, and service operations.

For cinematographers and lighting professionals who have followed the turbulent developments at ARRI throughout 2025, this statement provides the clearest indication yet of the company’s strategic direction following its restructuring partnership with AlixPartners and the May 2025 sale of entertainment lighting subsidiary Claypaky to EK Inc.

ARRI Lighting roadmap extends through 2026

ARRI emphasized that lighting remains a core business pillar despite the recent facility closures that specifically targeted lighting manufacturing infrastructure. The company stated it has a complete roadmap of lighting products scheduled for launch in 2026 and beyond, featuring new technologies designed for motion picture, live entertainment, and content creator markets.

The statement acknowledges this represents a strategic pivot following the Stephanskirchen lighting factory closure. New specialists have joined ARRI’s team specifically to strengthen lighting technology development, with research and development, product management, and service teams now centralized at the Munich headquarters. This consolidation aims to enable modern workspace collaboration and accelerate innovation cycles for lighting fixtures designed in Germany.

ARRI stated the company remains committed to maintaining the standards expected from ARRI Lighting while adapting to modern production requirements. This follows the April 2024 introduction of the L-Series Plus LED Fresnels, which delivered up to 90 percent more brightness than the original L-Series with direct network connectivity and SkyPanel Classic onboard control interfaces.

Service infrastructure consolidation and expansion

The company directly addressed recent service challenges, specifically apologizing for hiccups with lighting products. With lighting, camera, lens, and stabilizer system service now bundled at the Munich headquarters, ARRI stated its goal is to meet and exceed customer expectations, particularly once the lighting service transition to Munich is completed.

ARRI maintains service locations across multiple continents, including facilities in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and select markets in Latin America and the Middle East. The geographic consolidation of German facilities raises questions about service response times and repair capabilities for European customers previously served by the now-closed southern Germany locations.

Camera Systems business continues high-end focus

ARRI’s Camera Systems business unit will continue delivering features and reliability for high-end cinema and live entertainment markets, according to the statement. The company’s core focus remains theatrical production and premium television, the segments where ALEXA cameras have maintained dominant market share despite increasing competition from Blackmagic Design, RED (now owned by Nikon), and Sony.

The ALEXA brand received specific emphasis in the statement, with ARRI noting the system’s reputation for exceptional imagery and strong performance across multiple film festivals and award ceremonies throughout 2024. The family of ALEXA cameras and the wider ARRI camera equipment ecosystem will continue growing to meet changing industry needs.

This commitment follows several significant ALEXA-related developments in recent months. The ALEXA 265 large-format camera launched in December 2024 as a dramatically downsized successor to the ALEXA 65, offering 15 stops of dynamic range in a body only marginally larger than the Super 35 ALEXA 35. The ALEXA 35 itself saw strategic pricing adjustments, with the Premium Production Set dropping $18,500 to $67,770 at major retailers, alongside the introduction of a Base Model starting at approximately $50,000 with modular feature licensing.

Industry context and strategic positioning

ARRI’s statement arrives amid what company spokesman Kevin Schwutke described as a significant transformation addressing lasting shifts in market demand. The film and entertainment production downturn has affected equipment manufacturers, rental houses, and service providers throughout the supply chain. Hollywood’s production volumes remain depressed following the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes, with major studios implementing cost-cutting measures that have rippled through the entire ecosystem.

Bloomberg reported in mid-2025 that ARRI was exploring strategic options including a potential full or partial sale. The company engaged restructuring consultancy AlixPartners to streamline operations, raising industry speculation about acquisition possibilities. ARRI notably skipped exhibiting at IBC 2024, fueling further discussion about the company’s strategic direction.

Despite these challenges, ARRI has continued product development and market expansion. The company appointed David Bermbach and Chris Richter as managing directors in February 2025, expanding the management team to accelerate innovation and sales initiatives. Recent launches include the ARRI ALEXA 35 Xtreme which is essentially replacing the still-recent ALEXA 35, the Ensō Prime lens system targeting mid-budget productions, the Film Lab analog emulation plugin for post-production applications, and the Hi-5 SX single-axis wireless hand unit.

The managing directors concluded their statement by thanking customers for continued support, suggestions, and feedback. They acknowledged that ARRI’s strength derives from customer trust in the company’s philosophy and equipment, with meeting customer expectations serving as the driving force behind future plans.

Continued commitment to education through ARRI Academy

ARRI’s dedication to training and education remains strong through the ARRI Academy program. We at CineD are particularly grateful for ARRI’s ongoing partnership with our sister platform MZed, which serves as the exclusive online outlet for ARRI Academy certified courses. This collaboration, which began in 2019, has democratized access to ARRI’s world-class training by bringing certified courses on camera systems, lighting, lenses, and workflows to filmmakers globally.

Through MZed, students can earn official ARRI certification, covering everything from ALEXA camera systems and large-format workflows to lighting control and color science. The partnership has proven invaluable for assistant cameras, rental house technicians, owner-operators, and cinematographers seeking authoritative knowledge about ARRI’s ecosystem. We deeply value this cooperation and ARRI’s commitment to filmmaker education, which complements the company’s hardware innovations and reinforces its role as a complete solutions provider for the industry.

What’s your perspective on ARRI’s strategic direction following these restructuring moves? Do the commitments to both lighting and camera development align with your production needs, or would you prefer to see more focused investment in specific product categories? Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments below!