Roll Cam: How to Insult Every Camera Operator on Earth with One Tripod Having a Midlife Crisis on Kickstarter

Dear fellow filmmakers, camera operators, and anyone with functioning eyeballs, we need to talk about the “Roll Cam Camera Man” – the self-proclaimed “World’s First Robotic Camera Man” that’s currently terrorizing Kickstarter with the audacity of a thousand influencers. Because apparently, slapping the word “robotic” on a tripod with wheels makes it the cinematic equivalent of C-3PO wielding an Alexa Mini.

Let’s cut through the marketing nonsense faster than a poorly executed whip pan. The Roll Cam is essentially a motorized tripod base on wheels. That’s it. That’s the revolutionary technology that’s supposedly going to replace actual human camera operators. It’s like calling a shopping cart a “personal transportation robot” – technically mobile, sure, but let’s not get carried away.

What it actually is: a tripod having an identity crisis

The device uses basic computer vision to track a subject and follow them around at a whopping 8 km/h or 5 mph (because nothing says “cinematic” like the speed of a leisurely mall walker). It’s got LiDAR for distance tracking, which is admittedly more sophisticated than your average furniture dolly, but calling this contraption a “camera man” is like calling a golf cart a Formula 1 race car.

The marketing masterclass in delusion

The marketing copy reads like it was written by someone who learned about filmmaking from TikTok tutorials. “You don’t need to hire a camera man anymore!” they proclaim, apparently unaware that camera operators do slightly more than just… exist in the same general vicinity as the talent.

Real camera operators:

• Frame shots with artistic intent
• Anticipate action and movement
• Adjust focus pulls in real-time
• Collaborate on shot composition
• Understand lighting and exposure
• Actually know what they’re doing

The Roll Cam:

• Follows you around like a lost puppy
• Maintains a fixed distance (revolutionary!)
• Shoots only low angle shots from hip level (how flattering!)
• Occasionally bumps into things (probably)

It’s like comparing a player piano to Rachmaninoff. Sure, they both make music, but one has soul and the other just mechanically reproduces notes.

The promotional materials are a masterpiece of accidental comedy. Watching this wheeled tripod trundle across a parking lot while the creators breathlessly explain its “AI-powered tracking capabilities” is like watching someone try to sell you a “smart” rock because it stays exactly where you put it.

The demo footage shows the Roll Cam following subjects with all the grace and fluidity of a shopping cart with a broken wheel. The “smooth, dynamic shots” they promise look about as cinematic as security camera footage from a convenience store. If this is the future of cinematography, then I’m investing heavily in steadicam operators.

Who actually needs this?

To be fair, there might be legitimate use cases for a mobile tripod platform. Real estate agents doing property walkthroughs, fitness instructors recording workout videos, or YouTubers who’ve run out of friends willing to hold their phones. But let’s call it what it is: a convenience tool for content creators, not a replacement for professional camera work.

The Roll Cam is perfect if you want your videos to look like they were shot by a robot. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what they’ll look like – mechanical, predictable, and devoid of the human touch that makes cinematography an art form.

Real professional camera operators aren’t tripods on wheels

Here’s the thing that the Roll Cam creators don’t seem to understand: professional camera operators aren’t just mobile tripods with opposable thumbs. They’re storytellers, artists, and technical experts who bring decades of experience to every frame. They understand composition, pacing, and the subtle art of visual narrative.

A robotic tripod can follow you around, sure. But can it anticipate the perfect moment to push in for an emotional close-up? Can it instinctively know when to break the 180-degree rule for dramatic effect? Can it collaborate with directors to realize their vision? Can it grab a beer with the crew after wrap?

The answer to all of these is a resounding “no,” unless they’ve also invented robotic beer-drinking capabilities (which, frankly, would be more impressive than their current offering).

The “NASA experience”

On the Kickstarter page, Roll Cam says their engineers have experience from many companies, including “developing software for NASA Artemis moon base program”.

Ah yes, NASA experience. That certainly explains why we haven’t had anyone back on the moon since 1972 – they’ve been too busy working on revolutionary wheel technology. One can only imagine the NASA briefings: “Forget Mars rovers, what we really need is a tripod that can follow influencers around parking lots.” It’s reassuring to know that decades of aerospace engineering expertise have culminated in… this. Houston, we have a problem, and it’s rolling around at 5 mph asking to be called a “camera man.”

The verdict

The Roll Cam isn’t the “World’s First Robotic Camera Man” – it’s the world’s first motorized tripod with delusions of grandeur. It’s a tool that might have its place in the content creator ecosystem, but it’s about as likely to replace professional camera operators as a calculator is to replace mathematicians.

For the price they’re asking ($279 on Kickstarter), you could rent a real camera operator for half a day and get footage that doesn’t look like it was shot by a confused Roomba. Or better yet, invest that money in actually learning cinematography – you know, the art form that involves more than just “point camera at thing and follow it around.”

So here’s to the Roll Cam: the little tripod that could… follow you around a parking lot at walking speed while you pretend it’s revolutionizing cinema. May your wheels stay round and your tracking algorithm slightly less confused than your marketing department.

The author is a working camera operator and DP who has successfully avoided being replaced by household appliances since 2007.

What’s your take on “Roll Cam”? Sound off in the comments below. I encourage you to be brutally honest.