Nightmare On Elm Street Shot on iPhone 11 Pro using FiLMiC Pro

Ever have nightmares about a top cinematographer using an iPhone to shoot a movie? If so, then SCREAM now because Roy H Wagner ASC has been recreating a scene from the classic 80s horror, Nightmare On Elm Street. And he used an iPhone 11 Pro to do it.

In the challenge, himself and Shane Kelly – the original gaffer on the movie – tested what would happen when iconic horror met iconic portable handset. When Freddy Krueger grabbed an iPhone 11 Pro to slash chunks out of a movie budget?

Well, by the look of the size of the crew and extra kit in play… maybe not.

“We had this crazy idea that we would recreate something I did in 1986… We’re going to recreate a scene but we’re not shooting on film. Nor are we going to be shooting it with the top end cameras.” Roy H Wagner

Next generation

The all-star crew was directed by Lukas Colombo, who was born the same year as the film’s release (1987). However, in the making of video, it’s Wagner who takes centre stage.

In the making of video you get plenty of behind the scenes information, including kit used. So while they shoot on an iPhone 11 Pro, there’s also monitors, a truck of lights and crew to move them around. The film is edited on DaVinci Resolve and Wagner has it set up so he’s able to see the graded version of the shot on set.

Shame the BTS documentary of a smartphone film is shot using a higher grade camera. When I see that, I’m more inclined to see the whole exercise as a marketing exercise. Still, we get to see an iPhone 11 Pro used in a way we might not have seen before.

For me, it’s really insightful to see what happens when a big crew uses a smartphone to film. We get a glimpse into how top pros do it and clues as to what we might be missing in our own set ups. There’s also some lighting tips from the master.

“Brings back some nightmares.” Shane Kelly, Gaffer

At the end of the making of, they show the remade scene compared to the original. Again, it’s interesting to see the difference. The 35mm version from 1987 has very high contrast while the iPhone 11 Pro version has less. Normally, we expect smartphone shot video to be very high contrast.

Wagner also has an interesting method for extra smooth stabilisation. While Soderbergh uses a wheelchair…

And here’s Wagner using FiLMiC Pro’s autofocus mode:

By using autofocus mode, it helps to change focus during a shot if the actor is moving around the scene. To get this setting in FiLMiC Pro you need to double-tap the focus rectangle to get the wider focus box.

Here you can see Wagner using the iPhone 11 Pro with a heavyweight MOZA gimbal. This is the MOZA Aircross 2, a gimbal designed for DSLR and bigger cameras. The gimbal weighs 950g (2 lbs) and can carry a payload of up to 3.2kg (7 lbs), which compares well with smaller gimbals.

You can also see a couple of other grip items attached. There’s an ARES Z Axes double handle grip and a Kondor Blue cage, which the iPhone is mounted to. The ARES Z Axes has damping springs to reduce or remove the up and down movement (like footsteps).

Although this does add a lot of extra weight, Wagner it’s much less than the 100lb cameras he was used to.

VideoVillagePro

YouTube channel VideoVillagePro hosts the BTS doc is. In the “about” section it says: “VideoVillage.Pro is home to the Beyond the Darkness series — a unique online, digital university hosted by two-time Emmy award-winning cinematographer, Roy H. Wagner, ASC. The series is designed to take the filmmaker on an immersive journey into the world of Hollywood cinematography — from a look into Old Hollywood and surviving in the politics of today’s Hollywood, to tools and technologies of the trade, to a complete look at Roy’s process in step-by-step views of his many widely-successful projects.”

Watch the full recreated scene here: