Apple Shooting 3G iPhone Commercial in 5th Avenue Store?

[MacRumors]

Apple's 24-hour flagship 5th Avenue retail store in Manhattan is in the process of shutting down for the night. Apple's retail page reflects the temporary shutdown:

Please note we will be temporarily closed Thursday, May 29 at 3:00 p.m. and will reopen Friday, May 30 at 9:00 a.m. During this time, please visit one of our other two Manhattan locations.

Employees are telling passersby that a commercial is being shot at the 5th Avenue Apple store. We've been told that Apple's 5th Avenue store has only been entirely closed twice in its history: the iPhone launch and the Leopard launch.

According to our sources, Apple is actually filming a commercial for the upcoming 3G-capable iPhone with filming to occur inside and around the 5th Avenue store.

Article Link

[raskar]

wohoo.. a commercial for my next iPhone
can't wait for its release....

[Saladinos]

It's days now. Days.

[Shasterball]

OMG. A commercial in Manhattan. Oh wait...that happens 4x a day.

[Kingsnapped]

As a professional production guy, here's my take on it.

If it were a non-apple feature film/production, they wouldn't use Apple employees as lockdowns/PAs to keep people away from the store. They would be renting cops and paying PA's $75 for the night.

If it were an iPhone 3G commercial, they wouldn't have the store's regular employees anywhere nearby. As we all know, Apple guards their secrets very closely, and wouldn't allow any employees anywhere near the glass store. We also know that Apple's advertising partners have signed a lot of NDA's, and wouldn't tell anybody anything over the phone... especially the concept of the ad itself (the Big Lebowski bollocks). We also know that apple ads are shot on soundstages, with small crews. This is not the case here, as it is in a store, and employing a relatively large production crew.

My bet is that it's some sort of sizzle reel/presentation video for the upcoming keynote, or possibly a future keynote. They also may be shooting an internal video, but they have the mockup store for that. They also wouldn't need a Jib. A possible explanation for that is having the store closed for a separate (internal/presentation) video, and rolling out a Jib for stock shots as long as they have the lighting and film permits.

Bottom line: Too many people/wrong location for an iPhone ad. They also wouldn't need exterior shots of an Apple store for a national iPhone spot. It's something else.

[fleish]

As an Apple fan and someone who can't wait for the 3G, this new Forbes article has to excite....

http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/29/ste...rtner=yahootix

[thaitillidie]

Originally Posted by fleish

As an Apple fan and someone who can't wait for the 3G, this new Forbes article has to excite....

http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/29/ste...rtner=yahootix

Yep. Something wicked (and ingenious) this way comes. And I'll be damned if there isn't more interest and anticipation for this updated version than there was for the 1st gen phone. But I still cannot comprehend how Apple does it. There are countless numbers of people -- ranging from the factory workers who are assembling the phone to employees within the company itself -- who've seen it, touched it (no pun intended), masturbatorially fondled it and yet nobody, I mean NOBODY, has stepped forward with a leaked photo or feature details or nothing. It's simply amazing when you think about it. How the f@$& does he do it?!!! Is he and the company paying people shush money?

I'm still trying to strategize how I'm going to be able to get it on launch day...without, that is, doing anything radical or denying myself the most basic of human needs (like eating, sleeping, taking a dump etc etc) by standing in a store line like an idiot a freakin' week before it releases.

I think it's gonna be unavoidable though. How are y'all gonna insure you get one on launch day??

[Diode]

Originally Posted by Kingsnapped

Bottom line: Too many people/wrong location for an iPhone ad. They also wouldn't need exterior shots of an Apple store for a national iPhone spot. It's something else.

Not unless they wanted to generate hype by doing the new iphone comercial in the store.

Look at this thread ... 400+ posts just on some camera's showing up to a apple store. Steve's not stupid ... the hype alone is well worth the effort of doing something like this.

[Kingsnapped]

Originally Posted by Diode

Not unless they wanted to generate hype by doing the new iphone comercial in the store...

There's already plenty of hype. By too many people, I mean there's too many people (employees and production cew) that have access to this set. Considering how secretive Apple is about new productions, and espcially the iPhone, any ads for it are going to be an absolutely closed and secure set. Not a glass box surrounded by retail employees.

[CKtoph]

Originally Posted by Kingsnapped

As a professional production guy, here's my take on it.

If it were a non-apple feature film/production, they wouldn't use Apple employees as lockdowns/PAs to keep people away from the store. They would be renting cops and paying PA's $75 for the night.

If it were an iPhone 3G commercial, they wouldn't have the store's regular employees anywhere nearby. As we all know, Apple guards their secrets very closely, and wouldn't allow any employees anywhere near the glass store. We also know that Apple's advertising partners have signed a lot of NDA's, and wouldn't tell anybody anything over the phone... especially the concept of the ad itself (the Big Lebowski bollocks). We also know that apple ads are shot on soundstages, with small crews. This is not the case here, as it is in a store, and employing a relatively large production crew.

My bet is that it's some sort of sizzle reel/presentation video for the upcoming keynote, or possibly a future keynote. They also may be shooting an internal video, but they have the mockup store for that. They also wouldn't need a Jib. A possible explanation for that is having the store closed for a separate (internal/presentation) video, and rolling out a Jib for stock shots as long as they have the lighting and film permits.

Bottom line: Too many people/wrong location for an iPhone ad. They also wouldn't need exterior shots of an Apple store for a national iPhone spot. It's something else.

- I agree. It's almost definitely not a non-Apple feature film/production.

- Obviously not being there myself, I can't say, but from the pictures that we've all seen, it seems very apparent that the personnel actually allowed into the property and on the set of filming was very limited even to Apple employees. The majority of those Apple employees were asked to be security detail outside of the building, and even at that, they pushed that border from next to the building to about a surrounding circumference to the edges of the sidewalks. I'm not saying it can only be a commercial for the 3G iPhone, and perhaps it's my naiveté but I think it could be a possibility.

- I disagree. As a professional production guy yourself, do you really believe that Apple would go to this much trouble for an internal presentation video?

- Saying that bottom line Apple wouldn't need exterior shots of an Apple store and to go to this extent for a national iPhone spot...doesn't that lack a bit of a sense of creativity? I feel like you need to give Apple more credit. Once again, I'm not trying to say that this is 100% an iPhone commercial and every other possibility is wrong, but I am saying that there definitely is no bottom line here. You could, in fact, be spot on, but you might not be.

[billystlyes]

Originally Posted by Shasterball

OMG. A commercial in Manhattan. Oh wait...that happens 4x a day.

The skit from SNL where William Shatner tells the trekkies to get a life comes to mind.

[Greezyg]

somebody get in that store stat! set a laptop to go to like stickam.com and stream video from inside the store!!!

[ricosuave]

We are getting closer to 3G day!

[macman7002]

Guided tour anyone?

[LVdustin]

Originally Posted by macman7002

Guided tour anyone?

Guided tour for what though, and why make it so private...

[Mr Ikasu]

You have to wonder what they are doing that would warrant closing their flagship store.

Surely if it was a simple commercial at the Genius Bar or whatever it would have been cheaper just to build a replica and use that.

Interesting...

[Kuska]

Ha aHa Ha Ha!

Clues everywhere!

Store shuts at '3'

Opens on the 30th at 9.00...................'3-9' looks a tad like '3g'...........

........Or maybe I've just been reading the detective thread on electronic computers and shipping containers for too long - Elementary my dear Watson....

[Van Wildonher]

I'm starting to doubt the in store release of the 9th. How often does Apple get and start selling new products within 10 days?

Although the iPhone will be very similar to the first one so they may not need more than an hour or two training for it?

[berkleeboy210]

Originally Posted by Van Wildonher

I'm starting to doubt the in store release of the 9th. How often does Apple get and start selling new products within 10 days?

Although the iPhone will be very similar to the first one so they may not need more than an hour or two training for it?

Well, It might not be the SAME day. but because the keynote is on a Monday I wouldn't be surprised if the Phone was released in June 13, at 6pm. The Friday following the keynote.

I just want some more concrete info to pop up so I know when it's safe to put my current on eBay.

[twoodcc]

interesting. can't wait to find out for sure

[puckhead193]

is it too late to ask them for a PA job

[tempman001]

During Memorial Weekend they shot a commercial for the new iPhone in LA just in case anyone cared to know

[CKtoph]

Originally Posted by tempman001

During Memorial Weekend they shot a commercial for the new iPhone in LA just in case anyone cared to know

More info? Need to provide some sources for posts like that

I could just walk around telling people that Steve Jobs was in my house preparing for his keynote

[VideoShooter]

Originally Posted by CKtoph

More info? Need to provide some sources for posts like that

I could just walk around telling people that Steve Jobs was in my house preparing for his keynote

Who's Steve Jobs?

[Chris Stroud]

Originally Posted by VideoShooter

Who's Steve Jobs?

Leave now, or get flamed... that is blasphemy in these parts.