These films and commercials were shot using iPhone …
The Apple iPhone isn’t the only device getting in on the video-making fun. Many other devices in the Apple family — notably the iPad and Mac computer — have recently served as the primary recording equipment for various projects, allowing amateurs and professionals alike to get the most of of their devices and budget.
We all know the iPhone single-handedly changed the way people shoot photos, but surprisingly, it’s also beginning to impact the world of professional filmmaking.
Tangerine, directed by Sean Baker and now set for eventual distribution, quickly earned the backing of Magnolia Pictures. Although it lacks the heavy-hitting qualities of most blockbuster films — it features a small, unknown crew and a plot revolving around two transgender women running around Los Angeles’ underbelly — it still touts one big hook from a tech angle; the crew shot its entirety with an Apple iPhone 5s.
As with all filmmaking cameras, using just the iPhone by itself wasn’t quite enough to create a complete film. Rather, the crew relied on extra equipment to beef up the film quality, including a prototype anamorphic lens adapter from Moondog Labs, the FiLMiC Pro video app, and a Steadicam. The film crew also received a healthy dose of help on the audio front, utilizing an SD 664 production mixer, boom mics, and even a lavalier during the filmmaking process.
English automaker Bentley recently joined in on the iPhone video craze with a three-minute advertisement shot strictly with an iPhone 5s. However, the ad’s high-quality demeanor makes it difficult to believe the filmmakers used just a BeastGrip lens adapter, a Neewer Fisheye lens, MoVI M5 gimbal stabilizers, and a Schneider iPro lens. The “fast and dirty” edits were made using iMovie, while FiLMiC Pro allowed the crew to handle more intricate edits.
Filmmaker Aaron Mento’s dark comedy Standards of Living owns the impressive distinction of being the first feature-length movie shot entirely with an iPad 2. Mento said his decision to film exclusively with the popular tablet wasn’t a response to a lack of professional equipment, but rather, a concept he created with the iPad 2 in mind. Coming in at just under an hour and a half in length, Standards of Living depicts a struggling comedian who looks to improve upon his awful comedy routine with the help of an experimental teleportation project. The film’s low-budget texture gives it a unique aesthetic, which works perfectly with the direction of the story.
With each new iteration of Apple’s iPhone, the device’s camera gets better and better, so it’s no wonder than amateur and professional film-makers alike have begun turning to the device that many of us carry around in our pockets every day to make their movies. Some people in the cinema world consider using such lowbrow technology the equivalent of blasphemy, while others believe that this levels the playing field by allowing everyone, even those who can’t afford fancy cameras, the chance to be filmmakers.
-TEAM STREAMERIUM
