Immerse yourself in the neon streets of Tokyo manga with a new 'Shot on iPhone' film

Kento Kaku, star of the 'Shot on iPhone' film 'Midnight'

The "Shot on iPhone" series is a showcase of Apple's camera technology in its smartphone line. Using the iPhone 15 Pro, Wednesday's latest addition to the series shows off its capabilities in producing broadcast-quality content.

Titled "Midnight," the 19-minute short film brings the classic Osamu Tezuka manga to life, telling the story of an unusual taxi driver played by Kento Kaku. When encountering truck driver Konatsu Kato, fighting and a chase ensues as they fend off a local gang trying to kill them.

Taking a hyper-realistic approach, the film goes through the brightly-lit Tokyo at night, giving the iPhone the opportunity to show its low-light capabilities. The iPhone 15 Pro has other benefits that helped production, including recording 4K 60fps footage to an external USB-C storage device, and recording in log.

The film is directed by Takashi Miike, a prolific director known for films such as "13 Assassins," "Ichi the Killer," and "Audition."

"As we were shooting, I naturally began to challenge myself to think about how we could make a work unique to iPhone, beyond the usual approach to a film," Miike said in a statement according to The Hollywood Reporter. I truly felt that the iPhone has the power to do things that a conventional movie camera can't."

Miike mentions the use of Action Mode to help capture the facial expressions of the actors during scenes, which apparently worked beyond the capabilities of a conventional stabilizer. Cinematic Mode was also impressive to the director, who referred to it as a game-changing feature that will "break the conventional thinking of filmmakers."

In an accompanying behind-the-scenes video, the production is shown using camera cars equipped with a crane, with the iPhone attached to capture the action of a car chase. Other methods included using it to film extremely low angles for a car stunt, and running alongside actors.

The iPhone is also used to produce the visual effects, with its rear LiDAR employed to scan the car for an accurate 3D model.

The video is the latest in a number of videos that have used the iPhone 15 Pro to make broadcast-quality footage. As well as being used for the "Scary Fast" Apple Event, it was also the camera used to film an Olivia Rodrigo music video.