ZEISS builds eXtended Data on Cooke's /i Technology

The stage

ZEISS eXtended Data is a lens-metadata system ZEISS states is 'based on the Cooke /i Technology,' according to its own Know-How Hub page, retrieved 16 September 2026. ZEISS describes it as unifying two data sets: key lens data, covering focal length, calibrated focusing distance, calibrated T-stop, real-time depth-of-field and hyperfocal distance, horizontal field of view and entrance pupil position, plus ZEISS-specific data on lens distortion and shading characteristics tied to focal point and T-stop. The page states this saves time and cost in VFX, virtual production and green-screen work, and lists plugins for Nuke and Adobe After Effects for post-production use.

What the documents establish

ZEISS names specific recording paths rather than a universal one: the data records directly to camera over a 4-pin PL or LPL interface, which ZEISS states is currently supported by RED DSMC2 bodies, with Sony Venice and Venice 2 support stated as forthcoming from a future firmware version, or via third-party tools such as a Transvideo Starlite HD-m or Ambient MasterLockit Plus connected to the lens's on-barrel port. A second ZEISS page, for its Supreme Prime lenses, states that Supreme, Supreme Radiance and CP.3 XD lenses carry eXtended Data, and that a firmware update lets those lenses send lens-scale and depth-of-field data to ARRI Hi-5 and WCU-4 hand units over the ARRI Lens Control System, removing a manual calibration step for the camera assistant. Neither page names a specific real-time render engine as a supported integration; the stated integrations are a post-production plugin pair and an on-set lens-control accessory, not a game-engine plugin.

The department view

ZEISS's page states the camera assistant benefits directly, monitoring lens settings in real time and, with the firmware update, skipping manual depth-of-field calibration against the Hi-5 or WCU-4 unit. The DIT and post-production compositor are the stated beneficiaries downstream, since ZEISS says distortion and shading data recorded on set replace the need for shooting grids and grey cards in post, work the page frames as more efficient and precise for compositing.

What to check before you build

This is an editorial checklist. Confirm the exact lens model, since ZEISS names Supreme, Supreme Radiance and CP.3 XD specifically rather than every ZEISS cinema lens. Verify the camera body's actual firmware supports eXtended Data recording today, since ZEISS's own page lists Sony Venice support as forthcoming rather than shipped as retrieved. If real-time engine integration is required rather than post-production compositing, confirm separately, since ZEISS names Nuke and After Effects plugins and an ARRI hand-unit link, not a named render-engine plugin.

• Does this specific lens variant, Supreme, Supreme Radiance or CP.3 XD, actually carry eXtended Data?
• Is the camera body's firmware version one ZEISS confirms supports eXtended Data recording, or one still listed as forthcoming?
• Is the production relying on a post-production plugin, an ARRI hand-unit link, or a render-engine integration ZEISS does not name?

ZEISS's own documentation places eXtended Data squarely in the /i Technology family, with stated post-production and on-set-accessory integrations, and stops short of naming any specific virtual-production render engine as a supported endpoint.