Posts Tagged Digital Video

The following short film was shot and editing entirely on the new iPhone 4. Yes, you read that correctly… I said shot AND edited on an iPhone. The quality of the images is incredible for such a small device. Editing was achieved using the new iMovie app for the iPhone. I know it is easy to be wowed by Apple’s publicity and Steve Jobs’ Reality Distortion Field but this is really impressive stuff. When iMovie was first released on the Mac just over 10 years ago it blew me away. It was one of the features that led me to purchase my first Mac in 1999 (a blueberry coloured iMac DV). The potential that iMovie offered for regular (non-expert) users to make high quality movies with relatively inexpensive equipment was very significant. As is so often the case, Apple’s integration of hardware and software was critical. Along with iMovie they introduced the Firewire connectivity that made the process of getting footage from a DV camera to the Mac really straightforward. iMovie on the iPhone 4 is a similarly significant development in video editing, and not just for consumers. The fact that you can now carry both the shooting hardware and the editing software and hardware in your pocket is remarkable and would have seemed unbelievable back in 1999. The fact that the picture quality of movies made on the iPhone 4 exceeds that of the movies that I was able to make on my iMac DV is even more extraordinary. Who knows what will be possible in another 10 years time?

iPhone 4 film – “Apple of My Eye” from Michael Koerbel on Vimeo.

Perhaps more interesting than the initial movie shown above is the ‘making of’ documentary that follows. It is clear that the guys that made this film know a thing or two about movie making. They also have the benefit of some specialist gear to help them get those great shots with the iPhone. The use of a tripod (and in this case, dollies) makes all the difference (as I am forever telling my students when they learn to make their own movies).

I’m keen to see other examples of movies made entirely on the iPhone so please feel free to post links in the comments below. I can’t wait to see what kids can do with this technology.