Apple CEO Tim Cook, when introducing the iPhone 15 Pro Max last year, mentioned that the camera was intended for professional filming. In fact, Apple filmed one of its launch events with the iPhone 15 Pro series. Now, five filmmakers have taken on the challenge and actually shot five short films using the iPhone 15 Pro Max. These short films are available for free on MAMI YouTube channel and if you happen to watch them you might start to believe that in the right hands, it’s not about megapixels but about perspective and storytelling.
Also read: 5 movies worth watching on YouTube shot entirely with iPhone 15 Pro Max
Five filmmakers — Saurav Rai, Archana Atul Phadke, Faraz Ali, Saumyananda Sahi and Prateek Vats — under the guidance of industry icons like Vishal Bhardwaj, Vikramaditya Motwane and Rohan Sippy have released five short films titled ‘Crossing the border’, ‘Illusion’, ‘Óbur’, ‘A new life’ And ‘Jal Tu Jalaal Tu’ respectively using iPhone 15 Pro Max And MacBook Pro with M3 Max chip.
Filmmakers have been selected Mumbai Moving Image Institute (MAMI) to create short films for the MAMI Select initiative – Shot on iPhone in 2024.
Vishal Bhardwaj, the iconic director who shot his film Fursat on an iPhone 14 Pro – believes that filming with a non-traditional camera can be liberating. “You don’t have to restrain yourself with the photos, the depth or the colors you capture… If you work hard at your vision, the results will surprise you,” he said.
“The iPhone really benefits filmmakers. It gives people the opportunity to capture amazing things,” said Vikramaditya Motwane.
While the results of using an iPhone to film are posted on YouTube for everyone to see, what’s interesting is that each of the five filmmakers had different perspectives on how they felt while filming. on iPhone.
Use ProRes to get it right
Prateek Vats is filming’Jal Tu Jalaal Tu‘ using the iPhone 15 Pro Max mentioned that he filmed in a 4:3 aspect ratio, reminiscent of box TVs from the 90s. Using the iPhone 15’s 24mm main camera Pro Max, he frames character portraits so the audience can see them through his eyes. He used the iPhone’s ProRes Log recording capabilities by precisely adjusting specific areas of exposure and color.
The short film, which he co-directed with Shubham, was inspired by Anton Chekhov’s short story Death of a Government Secretary. Titled Jal Tu Jalal Tu (You are water, You are omnipotent), the film shows the anxiety of a factory worker who accidentally insults his employer. The film delves into power dynamics and social hierarchies in a blue-collar environment.
Use Cinematic Mode to tell stories
Saurav Rai, producer’, said: “We shot on the iPhone 15 Pro Max and then sent it for color grading.Road crossing line’. The short film narrates the story of a woman who smuggles goods like saris and umbrellas across the India-Nepal border to make a living.
“Been using Apple products for a long time… iPhone 15 Pro Max is made for filmmakers. Cinema mode keeps his richly developed characters in sharp focus while blurring the foreground or background. “Shooting like this gives you stunning depth of field that you can control in post-production or on the iPhone itself,” explains Rai.
Get the right mix of 24mm to 120mm shots
Archana Atul Phadke, for her short film titled ‘Illusion’, favored long takes as a remarkable storytelling device. The film focuses on a boy who spends all his time on his iPhone only to lose it – and himself – in the desert. To juxtapose the vast landscape with the fledgling protagonist, Phadke used the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s native camera to compress and decompress the storytelling.
“With the default 24mm main camera, I explored wide-angle shots from the start. Towards the end, the 120mm Telephoto camera — which provides incredible depth — makes the boy’s world become increasingly smaller,” Phadke explains.
Use the Voice Memos app for audio
Filmmaker Faraz Ali Óbur (Cloud) is a tragic film about a teenager who loses memories of his sick mother. The memories were on his iPhone, which he pawned to a pharmacist in exchange for medical aid money for his mother.
“Color can lean toward tragedy or comedy,” he explains. “ProRes video with Log encoding gives me and my grading artists the raw materials we need to find that delicate balance.”
For this film, Ali recorded ambient sounds on an iPhone 15 Pro Max using the Voice Memos app and an external mic. On the Mac, he also uses Final Draft to work on his scripts, as well as Adobe Photoshop to color grade stills during pre-production.
Getting the right rig
Saumyananda Sahi’s MoviesA new life‘ is about an immigrant factory worker who leaves behind his pregnant wife in search of better job opportunities. Shot in Kolkata and Bengaluru, the film examines the implications of fatherhood and long-distance relationships.
Cinematographer Runal Hattimattur used a small rig on a tripod with an iPhone 15 Pro Max to film.
“We were filming video calls in real time, and the iPhone was part of the performance. That kind of storytelling is only possible here… I can lock exposure or shoot Log like I usually do on an Arri Alexa film camera,” he explains.
