10 full-length films shot on the phone

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Little-known works of authorship and popular paintings, the creators of which were not afraid to change a professional camera to a mobile phone.

1. SMS Sugar Man

• South Africa, 2008.
• Drama.
• Duration: 81 minutes.
• IMDb: 4, 0.

Director Aryan Kaganov (aka Jan Kerkhoff) made the first full-length picture using a smartphone. But, despite the obvious simplicity and cheapness of filming, he did not break the plot into too small scenes like ordinary videos from the phone, but showed a whole story. The film tells the story of a certain Sugar Man who orders the murder of the father of a prostitute, and brings her and other girls together with clients.

2. Night fishing

• South Korea, 2011.
• Fantasy, horror.
• Duration: 30 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 5.

The famous author of "Oldboy" and "The Handmaid" Park Chang Wook shot a half-hour picture on a smartphone in 2011. Probably, first of all, because all the work was sponsored by one of the largest mobile operators in South Korea.

In the center of the plot is a fisherman who at night pulls the body of a dead woman out of the water. But she suddenly comes to life, and it turns out that the trouble happened to the main character himself.

3. Finding Sugar Man

• Sweden, Great Britain, Finland, 2012.
• Documentary, biography.
• Duration: 86 minutes.
• IMDb: 8, 2.

The documentary from documentary filmmaker Malik Benjellul is dedicated to the musician Sixto Rodriguez, who recorded two albums in the early 70s and then disappeared without a trace. His songs have become insanely popular in South Africa, and two fans decide to figure out what happened to the talented musician.

The director began filming the film with an 8mm camera. But due to technical and financial difficulties, he had to complete the picture using a smartphone app that simulates tape recording. As a result, the film came out so beautiful and touching that it won an Oscar for Best Documentary Work in 2013.

4. I play with phrases

• USA, 2014.
• Drama, comedy, crime.
• Duration: 110 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

Experimental director Jay Alvarez shot the black and white film entirely on a smartphone. But, given the chamber construction of the plot, it is almost impossible to notice. The picture tells about two friends who move to live in a big city. Soon one of them is robbed, and the other gets a good job.

Much of this picture consists solely of dialogue and telephone conversations, so the actors are shown in close-up and medium-sized shots. But even with such simple filming, the author managed to create a rather intense plot.

5. It's hard to fool yourself

• USA, 2014.
• Drama, thriller.
• Duration: 90 minutes.
• IMDb: 5, 7.

Aspiring actor Peter, with his wife and two friends, goes to celebrate his birthday in a secluded mansion. But soon the relationship in the company becomes more and more tense, and Peter ceases to distinguish between reality and fiction.

The money for this film was raised through crowdfunding, and initially the authors planned to shoot it with a professional camera. But it turned out that a smartphone with good optics copes just as well.

6. Mandarin

• USA, 2015.
• Drama.
• Duration: 88 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 1.

This picture was shot by the future creator of Project Florida, Sean Baker. The plot focuses on two transgender women from Los Angeles who face rude treatment from a taxi driver.

The use of a smartphone significantly saved the budget of the picture, allowing you to spend money on location filming and props. As a result, the independent film became a hit at the 2015 festivals.

7. Nine trips

• USA, 2016.
• Drama.
• Duration: 83 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

The film, shot entirely on a smartphone, takes place in one taxi. The Uber driver on New Year's Eve becomes a forced witness to personal dramas and the clarification of relations between passengers. But he himself is going through hard times.

The director of this film, Matthew Cherry, is now known as the executive producer of Black Klansman. But his independent work of 2016, although it looks like a completely chamber work, is also very catchy with emotion.

8. Bassoon

• Russia, 2018.
• Comedy.
• Duration: 61 minutes.
• IMDb: 4, 3.

By 2018, Russian cinema has reached the stage of filming on smartphones. "Fagot" tells about a young man named Maxim, who wants to part with his girlfriend. The hero does not think of anything better than telling his girlfriend that he is homosexual.

The whole action is shown from the perspective of the main character, he himself does not appear in the frame. Usually the character is just talking to some one interlocutor.

9. Out of your mind

• USA, 2018.
• Thriller, detective.
• Duration: 98 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 4.

The famous director Stephen Soderbergh, experimenting with new technologies, shot a full-length thriller on a smartphone. He tells about a girl who, escaping from a compulsive suitor, ends up in a psychiatric hospital. This is where her pursuer works. Although there is a possibility that it only seems to her.

10. High-flying bird

• USA, 2019.
• Drama, athletic.
• Duration: 90 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 2.

Another picture of Soderbergh on our list was released directly on the streaming service Netflix. This is the story of a sports agent who pulls a young basketball star into a promising but dangerous adventure.

Considering that the director already uses professional optics, his films, shot on a smartphone, are absolutely not inferior in quality to the rest of the film production. And the quality of the picture in the "Bird of high flight" confirms this.