Greek Village Stars in New iPhone Ad

Shot in Mani, Peloponnese, the new artsy Apple commercial goes viral


Greece seems to be trending lately, not only as a tourist destination but as a film location, too. More and more foreign production companies are choosing to shoot large numbers of scenes or entire films here, boosting the local film industry by offering actors and crew members much-needed jobs, and promoting the country as a whole by highlighting its natural beauty, its unique landscapes and its friendly people.

One recent example is Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus “Take Mine” ad, which was shot in the Mani region of the Peloponnese, using more than three dozen local actors, extras and crew members. The ad follows a young woman – played by Nefeli Kouri, one of Greece’s emerging young talents – who returns to her home village in Greece, bringing along her iPhone 7 Plus. While catching up with her family, she takes a picture of her grandmother, who is amazed at how the image comes out. Before long, the young woman is taking pictures of everyone in the entire village.

 

The ad is meant to show off the properties of the iPhone 7 Plus portrait mode and new depth-of-field feature, but it also does quite a good job at portraying rural life in Greece. Some critics have found it condescending, arguing that most people nowadays have seen a picture-taking smartphone before, and that Greek villagers are not that backward. Then again, the villagers in the ad seem, on the whole, to be impressed with the photo quality rather than the phone itself, and the grandmother even asks her granddaughter to send her the photo, suggesting that she, too, has a smartphone.

The spot initially aired in the US last weekend during both the NFL Football playoffs and Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards and, criticism notwithstanding, is already trending on social media.


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