The world’s greatest Lumia filmmaker’s must-have apps

“There is nothing that says more about its creator than the work itself.”

So said, Akira Kurosawa, one of cinema’s most revered filmmakers. Well, if this is the case then Lee Righini is a modern day adventurer of epic proportions. The man you voted as the greatest Lumia filmmaker ever, Lee’s multi-media masterpiece Transitions, which was filmed entirely on a Lumia 1020, is a magical masterpiece, charting his fantastic road trip around New Zealand. In this case, seeing really is believing.

To try and understand how he works such wonders with his Lumia, we caught up with the man himself. Lee shared some top tricks and tips as well as his must-have filmmaker apps. So, if you’re an aspiring Lumia filmmaker, you’re in for a treat.

So, Lee, which video apps do you use most often for filming?

I pretty much only use Timelapse Pro and the Lumia Video Trimmer. With video, you tend to do the post out of the camera, so it’s not really so common to use in-camera apps.

In terms of video apps, I think the most useful one for me has been Timelapse Pro. I know there are critics of this app, but it’s always worked flawlessly for me and has allowed me to get some great time-lapse video.

I have also had a lot of fun with Lumia Cinemagraph, but these don’t really make it into my films. The video backgrounds that we did in Transitions were partially inspired by them, though.

And how about non-video apps?

For shoots in general and for organizing myself I use Evernote. Another app that I find really handy when I shoot and trail (and I know I risk sounding like a Lumia fanboy), is Here maps. I always download the offline maps when I travel so it makes Here a pretty essential filming/travel app.

What about accessories? Are they good for filming?

One thing that’s kind of strange about shooting video with the Lumia for me is that in the beginning, I used to make a lot of extra accessories, camera grips, lens hoods, that type of stuff, but as I have gotten more experienced, I have stopped trying to professionalize the phones and instead embraced and benefited from their naturally convenient form factors. The introduction of the Lumia camera case also made it that much easier to pick up a phone, snap it on to a monopod, and start shooting.

Finally, do you have any top tricks to share with aspiring Lumia filmmakers?

One trick I did with the audio when I needed a high quality audio recording and no picture, was to cover the camera lens while recording the audio – I did this because it generates a smaller file which was easier to send on a limited connection (it was for a voice over that Fabien Cousteau recorded for me from the Aquarius reef base). The other reason was that none of the dedicated audio recorders that I could find (I tested them all) generated an audio file, which used the full potential of the Lumia audio recording capabilities, like the Native Lumia Camera/Video.

There you have it, a useful handful of app tips and tricks from your greatest Lumia filmmaker of them all, Lee Righini. But what about you? Which apps do you use when creating your own film masterpieces? Let us know about your in the comments below.