This is How 'Modern Family' Shot Last Night's Episode with iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks

Last night's episode of "Modern Family" was both hilarious and very well filmed. Using nothing more than iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks, each character used FaceTime to interact with one another in a first-person selfie view. We are all familiar with various movies and television shows using iPhones to snap quick scenes here and there, but this episode went even further by using it as the basis of the entire episode; with genius I might add.

The majority of the episode was shot with an iPhone 6 and an iPad Air 2 which both shoot great quality video at 1080p. The director brought more modern day life of a family and how they communicate in a tech savvy society today. Having the episode start with a simple phone call, you can watch the episode's antics unfold as one thing leads to another and everyone suspects the daughter is in Vegas getting married. The best part is the simple fun that comes from seeing the episode from one character's perspective, watching Claire's internet habits as she talks to her brother, father, and kids.

On the technical side, since the iPhone shoots at a slightly higher frame rate than film, stepping down footage to fit the television format was needed in post. Then, piecing the episode together in an effort to emulate a MacBook screen and FaceTime calls helped shape the story and the personality of each character in their day-to-day lives.

If you can get past the somewhat obvious product placement by Apple in this episode, it's an incredibly funny and well executed show. Also worth noting is that the brand did nothing more than simply supply the equipment to film and never actually payed for product placement on their end. It's simply genius marketing and a win-win by Apple as the target audience of the show is so widespread.

The full four-minute behind-the-scenes video can be downloaded for free via iTunes, so be sure to check that out to see a bit more from behind the camera, or iPhone.

[via BGR and USA Today]

Andrew Griswold's picture

Andrew Griswold is a photographer and designer based in Indianapolis. Born and raised in Indy he has made a name for himself by staying very active in the creative community in both photography and design. He has also founded a community of photographers via Instagram connecting them with brands to work with and shoot locally.

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9 Comments

This was a genuis move on their part. Not only was this episode particularly funny, but it created a huge amount of buzz. They executed it incredibly well.

Can't agree more! I have to admit that its been fun seeing tech added into shows lately thought in 5-10 years that tech will likely look funny to us in shows or movies today. The texting in things like House of Cards was the greatest element added to a show I had seen. Then this episode came out and it was really really well done. It just seemed to fit perfectly with the family and the story.

Also a huge ad for Apple in the meantime...lol....

hehe yep. Wonder how much apple paid for this. And I also wonder who's idea it was. Apple's or the creators of the show. So many questions that probably will never be answered :p

thanks :) Guess a apple fan voted my question down. :)

Your questions were answered in Andrew's article and in the video embedded

heh true. Didnt read that paragraph I guess :)

Apple didn't pay anything. As stated in the article they simply supplied products to ABC to use free of charge and it was the shows creators that came up with the idea. Considering the shows history and target audience it worked for both parties. The show is well known for using every day tech, especially Apple products, in almost every show.