Spending all that money on body and rigging, then having to use a Tokina or Sigma lens is kind of ridiculous.
Sigma and Tokina make world class glass these days. No longer is Sigma the "budget option", but a genuine alternative to the first-line lens manufactures.
You're a brand snob.
The choice of glass like Arri or Zeiss is often made to achieve a certain aesthetic which is desirable in creative film-making.
In this case, the only thing that matters is a specific subset of technical requirements, particularly due to their stitching workflow. I can only guess at their decision-making process but it clearly wasn't "hey let's get the cheap stuff". I suspect they considered properties like:
— Corner sharpness
— Distortions
— Fringing
— Spherical, lateral and axial aberrations
— Chromatic aberrations
— Flare
— Coma
— Haze / local contrast
— Vignetting
— Aperture blade configuration
— Diffraction
— Mechanical stability
— Focus rigidity in the face of extreme g-forces
— Copy-to-copy consistency
That said, I suppose it's possible that the people who actually pulled off this incredible feat, and produced the objectively stunning output shown in the article, know less about what they're doing than l33tbro on Hacker News.
(By the way, did you know that for astrophotography, some of the best glass is made by Samyang, Tokina and Sigma? These brands make exceptional glass, even if their marketing department isn't as well staffed as Zeiss.)
Well, I guess it makes sense that you'd be interested in lenses, as you obviously project onto people a lot in your life.
IE, not once did I say the lens choice was incorrect. I simply lamented the fact that to shoot in 8k Full Frame you're limited to handful of what are widely considered to be sub-optimal cinema (no, not astrophotography) lens manufacturers.
There are currently only 2 lenses made specifically for this sensor - the Tokina and the Schneider Xenon.
Master primes aren't right for every job, but they're the closest we have to an optically flawless lens in filmmaking.
I actually own lenses by both of these manufacturers. I have Sigma's GL optics cine glass. I have some vintage Tokina glass that Angenieux made, which is considered their best lens (though it's not modern).
They're fine lenses, but only a goofball would think about comparing them to a $20k lens.