Hey, where can I get one of ASTERIOID CITY Kiev cameras?

[Bobani]

A screen grab from the trailer for Wes Anderson's new movie, ASTEROID CITY. Some rangefinder-nerd prop master clearly had a good time with this.
View attachment 4822852

Excuse me, but...

1. Why, for what dramaturgical reasons, was this particular brand of photo camera chosen for Augie in the film "Asteroid City"?
Thank you for the answer.
p.s.2005 @ centrum.cz

2. Please, was Augie's photo camera assembled in Switzerland after WWII by the Russians?

 

[rfaspen]

Personally, I very much dislike using the older Contax's and Kievs. I just....cannot....do....the.....Contax Hold. Having a great RF base is of no use if you just can't hold the camera.
But, I would really like a Combat Lens! I would adapt it to use on my superior Leicas 😎

 

[Perkeo Vaskar]

I love that this question was asked! I'm a huge Wes Anderson fan, and when stills were released for Asteroid City I start obsessing about the camera depicted. I got a Kiev 4M off eBay and carried the camera with me to the downtown art house cinema showing that flick. Sadly, the camera has since jammed.

Ironically, I do have a replica of a true combat lens, in the form of a Light Lens Lab Elcan 50/2 in LTM. I have that mounted on a iiif.

 

[johnf04]

Excuse me, but...

1. Why, for what dramaturgical reasons, was this particular brand of photo camera chosen for Augie in the film "Asteroid City"?
Thank you for the answer.
p.s.2005 @ centrum.cz

2. Please, was Augie's photo camera assembled in Switzerland after WWII by the Russians?

1 Who knows?
2 Kiev cameras were manufactured at the Arsenal factory in Kiev. Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union at the time. The Soviet authorities took the design of the pre war Zeiss Ikon Contax rangefinder camera as a war prize.

 

[santino]

I‘ve noticed that the Zenit E/B is often used as pictogram or camera for fashion models in commercials. Nobody knows why… is it so iconic? Is it just an inexpensive brick that nobody shoots with but uses as roll model for graphics?

 

[JeffS7444]

Marlyse Schmid and Bernard Müller were the designers of the original Swatch wristwatches, but as far as a connection to Wes Anderson ..?