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Member LoginHistory of the Bolex Camera
The good old reliable Bolex 16mm film camera has long been a favourite of independent film makers and specialist cinematographers, mainly because it has great features such as single frame and, in some models, auto fades in and out.
The story of Bolex starts with a Polish engineer and designer named Jacques Bogopolsky, based in Geneva, who developed a 35mm cine camera aimed at the growing amateur cine market. The design was patented in 1924 as the BOL-Cinegraphe. However as the popularity of sub standard film gauges took favour, Jacques produced a 16mm camera, the Auto Cine camera. This was the first product sold under the Bolex name.
In 1930 Jacques sold the business to Paillard, of Switzerland, which was founded in 1814 by Moises Paillard making musical box movements. At the end of the nineteenth century the Paillard family joined the Thorens family by marriage and started producing phonographs, gramophones, clockwork motors and typewriters.
Following the amalgamation of the Bol company with Paillard they moved to the St. Croix base of Paillard in Switzerland to form Bolex-Paillard, where the designs of Jacques continued to be produced and developed. Jacques later left to join the Pignons company in Switzerland and develop a series of high quality 35mm still cameras including the Bolsey Reflex and the Bolca 1, which became the Alpa camera. He died in 1962.
1935 saw the introduction of the H16 16mm cine camera by Bolex Paillard. This was loosely based on Jacque's Auto Cine camera, but vastly improved. In fact it was so successful that it is still being produced, with steady improvements, today.
1970 saw the company restructure and it was sold to Eumig of Vienna. The Bolex research and development department became integrated with Eumig but Bolex cameras were still available. 1981 saw Eumig file for bankruptcy ($140 million in debt) after extending their production capacity to accommodate the disastrous Polavision instant movie equipment which they felt would counter video.
The then managing director of Bolex International bought the 16mm business following the closure of Eumig and founded Bolex International S.A., which is still manufacturing today the Bolex SB, SBM & EL cameras.
The Bolex Sales & Service Agency for Australia is the "Bolex Service Centre" at 434 Clarendon Street South Melbourne, Victoria 3205, phone 03 9699 3499, fax 03 9696 2564. 16mm Cameras only are serviced by Cameraquip’s Service technicians. Contact Gerry Liedtke (Service Manager)
For Bolex owners, collectors and enthusiasts there is a Bolex Newsletter available called "Bolex Register of Australia".
Reprinted from Australlian Cinematographer