Sundance Contender Shot with iPhone

Although not on the list of Sundance Film Festival winners which follows, it is worth noting one particular drama that received very good notices. Tangerine tells the story of a couple of transgender prostitutes working working the streets of Hollywood, and what’s note worthy here is the fact that it was entirely shot on an iPhone 5S.  There have been many amateur cinematic efforts using iPhones, but this was made by an award winning Indie Filmmaker, Sean Baker, and it is the first iPhone acquired movie to make it all the way to Sundance. It was was shot on the streets of L.A. using a Steadicam “Smoothee” and a set of anamorphic adapter lenses to capture widescreen, 2:35:1 aspect ratio.  I haven’t yet seen the film myself, but reviews of both the visuals and the overall movie are solid, so I’m trying to follow up with the Director to find out a little more about his experience creating a feature entirely with consumer electronics….Stay tuned.

The Complete List of 2015 Sundance Film Festival Winners

U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic:  Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Directing Award: U.S. Dramatic:  Robert Eggers, The Witch
Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award: U.S. Dramatic:  Tim Talbott, The Stanford Prison Experiment
U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Collaborative Vision:  Advantageous
U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Excellence in Editing: Lee Haugen, Dope
U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Excellence in Cinematography:  Brandon Trost, The Diary of a Teenage Girl

U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary: The Wolfpack
Directing Award: U.S. Documentary: Matthew Heineman, Cartel Land
U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Cinematography: Matthew Heineman, Cartel Land
U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Break Out First Feature: Lyric R. Cabral, David Felix Sutcliffe, (T)ERROR
U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Vérité Filmmaking: Bill Ross, Turner Ross, Western
U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Social Impact: Marc Silver, 3½ MINUTES

Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize: The Stanford Prison Experiment

World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary: The Russian Woodpecker
Directing Award: World Cinema Documentary: Kim Longinotto, Dreamcatcher
World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Editing: Jim Scott, How To Change The World
World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Impact: Pervert Park
World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Unparalleled Access: Pervert Park

World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic: Slow West
Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic: Alanté Kavaïté, The Summer of Sangaile
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Acting: Regina Casé and Camila Márdila, The Second Mother
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Acting: Jack Reynor, Glassland
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Cinematography: Germain McMicking, Partisan

Audience Award: NEXT, Presented by Adobe: James White
Audience Award: World Cinema Documentary: Dark Horse
Audience Award: World Cinema Dramatic: Umrika
Audience Award: U.S. Documentary, Presented by Acura: Meru
Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic, Presented by Acura: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Short Film Grand Jury Prize: World of Tomorrow
Short Film Jury Award: US Fiction: SMILF
Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction: Oh Lucy!
Short Film Jury Award: Non-fiction: The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul
Short Film Jury Award: Animation: Storm hits jacket
Short Film Special Jury Award for Acting: Back Alley
Short Film Special Jury Award for Visual Poetry: Object