Shenzhen, China-based lens manufacturer DZOFILM has showcased the DZO LingLung 20-70mm T2.9 and 10-24mm T2.9 micro four thirds mount cinema style zoom lenses at BIRTV. DZOFILM has exhibited at NAB and CineGEAR, but BIRTV was the first time they exhibited a commercial product, and it attracted a lot of attention.

I had a chance to talk to Mr. Kay Hong, the marketing manager of the new LingLung product, and here is what he had to say.

Our predecessor is a company called Dongzheng Optics, which does R&D and production of industrial lenses. Taking the initials of the company, "D" for Dong, "Z" for Zong, and "O" for Optics, when we launched the cine lens brand, we named it DZOFILM.

The original company, Dongzheng Optics, or DZOptics was involved in high resolution line scan industrial lenses such as 8K and 16K, which are completely different from cinema lenses. However, the technology used by the company can also be applied to make lenses for photography. Therefore, since China has many camera enthusiasts, the commercialization of cinema lenses became a reality.

The name of this brand, LingLung, means "compact" in Chinese. The camera itself is small, whether it's Blackmagic Design's Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera or Panasonic's Lumix. So we developed the entire system to make it as compact as possible.

Also, there are not many cine lenses for Micro Four Thirds. And the price is 9,980 yuan for the 20-70mm and 11,980 yuan for the 10-24mm. I believe that the affordable price also attracts attention.

In terms of the functionality, we have achieved specifications that can completely meet the needs of professional use in movies and other fields. We are particular about the ticking of the memory and the texture of the gears. DZO Linglung lens is equipped with scales on both sides for easy identification, a 270° focus ring stroke and a +/-0.3mm back focus adjustment mechanism. A front support rod is provided to hold the lens in place and provide stability between the lens and the camera.

If there is a market need or something like that, we will consider it. The company itself has only been up and running for half a year. This product has yet to be launched, and it was just announced at BIRTV. Right now, we are in the process of marketing the product in the Micro Four Thirds format.

We don't have a distributor in Japan yet. As for orders, DZOFILM is not planning to sell to individuals. We are planning to set up dealers and distributors in each country and region, and ask people to purchase from them.