As Apple accelerates its Hollywood ambitions, the tech giant has quietly revolutionized on-track filming for its upcoming Brad Pitt-starring Formula 1 movie. According to exclusive reports, Apple designed a bespoke, iPhone-based camera system capable of capturing blisteringly fast racing footage in ProRes—a professional-grade video format favored by filmmakers.
The rig, developed in collaboration with F1 teams and cinematographers, leverages the iPhone’s compact size and computational prowess to mount cameras in traditionally impossible spots: inside cockpits, on suspension components, and even beneath chassis. This allowed director Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) to shoot hyper-immersive, 360° racing sequences at speeds exceeding 200 mph.
"Traditional cinema cameras are too bulky for these angles," explained an insider. "The iPhone’s ProRes output gave us theatrical-quality footage while surviving vibrations that would shatter conventional setups."
Read the full technical breakdown of Apple’s racing rig here.
The innovation highlights Apple’s growing synergy between its hardware and entertainment divisions. By repurposing consumer technology for cinematic use—mirroring techniques pioneered in Napoleon and Creature Commandos—Apple achieves unprecedented flexibility. The F1 film’s crew reportedly deployed over 20 iPhone rigs during shoots at actual Grand Prix events, syncing footage via custom software.
Meanwhile, Apple’s creative bets extend beyond racetracks. In unrelated but equally ambitious news, director Danny Boyle confirmed his long-awaited horror sequel 28 Years Later will embrace widescreen grandeur.
Boyle teases scale and infected terror in the new trilogy’s opener here.
Analysts note Apple’s strategy of embedding its ecosystem in Hollywood: iPhones enable cutting-edge filming, while Apple TV+ distributes the results. The still-untitled F1 project, produced by Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, races toward a 2025 release—with audiences none the wiser that cinema-grade shots originated from modified smartphones.
As Boyle’s zombies loom and race cars roar, one truth accelerates: iPhones aren’t just for selfies anymore. They’re Oscar contenders’ secret weapons.
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