Shot on iPhone 11 Pro by Star Wars Director Rian Johnson
Star Wars director Rian Johnson has joined the growing list of high profile directors who have turned to a smartphone to shoot a movie. Apple were kind enough to give him a free iPhone 11 Pro and he was up for the challenge.
At the recent Apple event, Tangerine director Sean Baker and FiLMiC Pro’s chief technical officer Christopher Cohen explained how FiLMiC Pro utilizes all the cameras of iPhone 11 Pro.
So it seems Apple are keen to push the filmmaking capabilities of the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max, more than previous models. The new iPhone 11 Pro now carries an ultra-wide angle lens, an extended dynamic range and 4K video can be shot at up to 60fps.
Would Johnson shoot a full length film with one?
Rian Johnson directed Star Wars: The Last Jedi and the upcoming Knives Out. So how did he find the “shot on iPhone 11 Pro” experience? On Twitter, Johnson had this to say when he announced his experiment:
“Apple let me mess around with their new iphone pro, and I cut together this little thing. Pretty shots of Paris ftw. I usually find phone camera upgrades to be baby-steps and not very exciting, but this wide angle lens is a real game changer.”
When asked if he would shoot an entire feature with one, Like Soderbergh, he replied:
“It makes sense for the way he shoots – for me, the size of the camera is not a huge factor and the imaging tech in a full sensor Alexa is obviously superior. But look, someday, maybe…”
Let’s take that as a no, then. Here’s what he came up with in Paris:
Paris 9/19 from rcjohnso on Vimeo.
At casual glance, it looks nothing more than some random shots of Paris, that any of us might film. YouTube and Vimeo are full of such casual holiday videos. However, on closer inspection, there are some interesting creative uses of the camera.
Johnson uses a lot of movement. Plus there’s a good use of the iPhone 11 Pro’s slow motion capabilities. He also gets some nice lens flares from the sun (no anamorphic required). And an effective use of the iPhone 11 Pro’s auto focus to create some focus pulls.
Shot on iPhone 11 Pro by George Nolfi
Apple also gave a iPhone 11 Pro to George Nolfi, who made The Adjustment Bureau and the upcoming Apple TV Plus film The Banker. Nolfi went for a more narrative approach, with this comic short film called Tough Crowd.
“TOUGH CROWD” 09.21.19 from Hyphenate Films on Vimeo.
Nolfi’s film is a simple tale of a boy in a park trying to impress his friends, who score his football skills. At first they’re not too impressed, but will he win them over on the third try?
The film is a well constructed visual story (no need for dialogue) as you would expect. Also, Nolfi makes expert use of the iPhone 11 Pro’s slow-motion capabilities.
“It was a lot of fun shooting a project on a phone knowing I had three lenses to choose from,” said Nolfi. “It felt like a hybrid production, possessing the advantages of a phone yet with some of the key creative tools of traditional studio filmmaking.”
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