After showing during the 2015 Grammys how the iPad can be used by artists to make music, Apple released a new ad in time for the Oscars to prove the tablet's usefulness in filmography. Narrated by acclaimed American screenwriter and director Martin Scorsese, Apple's latest ad was shot in its entirety on iPad Air 2s.
The iPad's latest ad spot is a return to Apple's more traditional format, in which the company seeks to inspire consumers with its products and empower them with slogans such as "you're more powerful than you think." It was Apple's "Dreams" ad campaign that used the aforementioned slogan, but Scorsese runs a counter narrative in the latest commercial and urges filmmakers and other artists to remain awake and in touch with their goals.
In the ad spot, which was created on iPads by students from the Los Angeles High School for the Arts, Scorsese says dreaming can trivialize the obsession that carries people through both failures and successes.
"I mean, if you're dreaming you're sleeping. It's important and imperative to always be awake to your feelings, your possibilities, your ambitions," says Scorsese, adding, "Every step is a first step. Every brush stroke is a test. Every scene is lesson. Every shot is a school. So, let the learning continue."
As it has done with its other empowering ad spots, Apple launched a web page that lists the apps and equipment that were used in the Los Angeles County High School for the Art's digital short.
The young filmmakers used the Final Draft Writer app for draft scripts and enhanced the iPads' HD cameras with FiLMiC Pro, an app Apple says surpassed the $5,000 Sony FS100 in a blind testing of image processing and tied with the $13,000 Canon C3200.
As was the case in the ad that ran alongside the Grammy's, the creators of the latest commercial turned to the GarageBand app and Apogee MiC to handle sound capture. And to add a final touch of polish to the video, the high school students used the VideoGrade app -- they were split on the level of vibrancy and saturation the video should have, however.
"One team tried vibrant, expressive color, while another wanted a moodier, monotone feeling," says Apple. "The new Retina display helped them accurately capture the vivid colors and stark contrasts they were aiming for."
