Australian film lab FilmNeverDie has announced a new motorized and reusable 35mm “simple” film camera called the Nana for $130.
The interesting new film camera features a motorized film advancing system with a metal body instead of the traditional plastic one for systems of this type. According to the company, the Nana is an upgrade to an earlier camera released by FilmNeverDie called the Niji which was released in 2020. The Nana update is inspired by the renowned Contax T2 camera and will feature improved optics and focusing systems with a 31mm f/9 fixed lens.
“Nana” is a name that signifies grace, ladyhood, spring, and even the number 7 in various languages,” says company founder Gary Wong. “In Thai, it also means a ‘Meeting Place’. This camera is not just a product; it’s the first step in an elegant rendezvous with innovation.”
The major updates over the Niji include a motorized film advance system to eliminate winding so users can focus on capturing the moment rather than winding the film, the “aesthetically pleasing” minimalist metal body designed in honor of the Contax T2, and a significantly improved dual-focus mode optical system that will provide users with noticeably sharper shots.
The company says the focusing mechanism for the Nana (which boasts nearly 100 moving parts at the front of the unit), was inspired by old-school cameras like the Ricoh YF20-E and Contax AX. Using the techniques found in these old cameras, the designers were able to shift the back of the camera to provide a better and sharper focusing system, which was a significant challenge.
In addition to the dual focus mode “plane-shifting” improvement, the 35mm Nana features a built-in flash (powered by AA batteries), a 31mm f/9 fixed lens, a metal front casing, and the motorized film wind on/wind off toggle.
Below are some sample shots captured using the FilmNeverDie Nana camera (prototype);
The FilmNeverDie Nana camera is available to preorder now at a special introductory price of $130 (regular MSRP of $194) from the official company website with shipping expected to start on the first of June 2024.
Image credits: Photographs by FilmNeverDie