Supporting Creatives For Every Production

Otto Nemenz’s lens department, led by Dan Lopez and interim department manager Mike McClelland alongside a core team of specialized technicians, holds new equipment to a standard most rental houses don’t attempt: roughly 30% of brand-new, factory-fresh lenses are rejected on arrival and sent back for correction.

Every lens in inventory is verified using a Trioptics testing machine, which measures absolute optical resolution and generates a technical performance report. Direct access to ONI’s in-house Machine Shop means any needed repair or adjustment happens on-site, not on a waitlist. Clients are walked through each lens choice so they leave confident in the gear on their build.

Otto Nemenz maintains something few competitors still do: a fully staffed, on-site machine shop, led by Head of R&D Nick Viebahn.

While other rental houses have moved machining off-site, creating delays for even minor modifications, ONI’s Machine Shop designs custom accessories, cages, and tooling in-house and can turn client requests around immediately. Camera and lens departments regularly bring custom needs directly to the shop floor, and clients can request highly specific modifications to their own equipment that other houses would decline or lack the tools to execute.

Otto Nemenz’s camera department is led by Brandon Aquino, VP of Film and Digital Cinema, who has overseen equipment standards at ONI since 1989.

Every camera is fully serviced and staged on the prep floor before a client ever arrives, a standard maintained by a core team with 15 to 20 years of experience each. When technical issues arise, resolution runs through direct, personal communication rather than layers of support tickets. As ONI approaches 50 years in business, that same philosophy, “Simply the Best,” continues to define how equipment is maintained and how clients are treated.