Through demonstrations of the X500 Pro Max’s imaging capabilities and insights into Kolder’s creative decisions, the masterclass aims to help more creators use smartphones for cinematic storytelling.
Co-engineered with ZEISS, the newly launched vivo X500 Series combines an advanced ZEISS Telephoto Lens System with cinematic video capabilities, giving creators the flexibility to capture different perspectives and shape their visual stories. In the masterclass, Kolder uses the X500 Pro Max to demonstrate how camera settings, framing, and editing choices contribute to a finished film.
The collaboration reflects vivo’s user-oriented approach to innovation and its mission to create value through technology. Through practical filmmaking education, vivo helps creators learn to use its imaging tools and develop their own approach to visual storytelling.
“We believe smartphones should be a first choice for creative expression, not a second-best option for professional filmmaking. Together with Sam Kolder, we want to challenge that perception and give more creators the freedom to tell their stories,” said Yu Meng, Vice President and Head of Imaging at vivo. “By combining the imaging capabilities of the vivo X500 Series with practical filmmaking education through Kolder Creative, we aim to help creators focus less on the complexity of their equipment and more on the people and moments they want to capture.”
Known for cinematic travel and adventure films defined by distinctive transitions and immersive storytelling, Sam Kolder shares the techniques and thinking behind his work through Kolder Creative. The platform offers learners a closer look at his filmmaking process, connecting technical instruction with practical creative experience.
The masterclass extends Kolder’s collaboration with vivo following “The Garden Route”, a cinematic short film shot entirely on vivo X300 Ultra. Through practical instruction, he shares the creative decisions behind his filmmaking, helping aspiring creators understand how individual shots come together to tell a cohesive story.
Across one introductory video and nine lessons, Kolder guides learners through creating a vertical Reel, a short-form social media video. The course covers native camera controls, composition, footage selection, editing, sound design, color grading, and export. Each stage builds on the same project, showing how individual techniques contribute to the finished film.
“The technology has finally caught up in the world of film. A phone now does what used to take a bag of gear,” said Sam Kolder. “This course is an inside look at how I turn mobile footage into a cinematic film, start to finish, so people can see every decision along the way.”
Using vivo’s native camera app, Kolder explains how technical choices support the story he wants to tell. He demonstrates Log recording for greater flexibility in color grading, shows how frame rate and shutter settings affect the appearance of movement, and explains how neutral-density (ND) filters help control exposure. Practical comparisons show the effect of each choice and when creators might use it.
Kolder also explores the composition within the vertical 9:16 frame. Using examples from the project, he shows how close-ups, medium shots, and wider views add variety and form complete sequences. He starts with a broad story direction while remaining open to unexpected moments during filming and new possibilities during editing.
In DaVinci Resolve, a video-editing and color-grading application, learners see how he organizes and selects footage and builds a narrative around voiceover and music. Matching movement between shots creates fluid connections, while sound design adds atmosphere and presence. Color grading follows an approachable workflow using look-up tables (LUTs) and adjustment nodes that allow shots to be refined.
To support hands-on learning, the course includes the Reel’s final soundtrack and offers a 50% discount to Filmkid LUTs, which Kolder uses in his grading demonstrations, and a 50% discount to LUTs by Bryn North, a fellow filmmaker and Kolder collaborator. Together with guidance on exporting vertical social video, the masterclass gives learners a complete workflow in which they can apply to their own stories.
vivo X500 Pro Max brings together imaging capabilities that support the creative principles explored throughout the masterclass. Its 200 MP ZEISS APO Telephoto Camera gives creators tighter framing options, complementing the course’s emphasis on capturing varied shot sizes and building complete sequences from different perspectives.
For creators working with color in post-production, Cinematic Pro Log Video on the ZEISS TrueDynamic Main Camera provides a flexible foundation. A dedicated Log curve, specifically tuned to the camera’s 17 EV ultra-high dynamic range, preserves rich highlight and shadow detail and subtle tonal gradation, giving creators greater scope to shape the final image through the LUT-and-node workflow demonstrated in the course. DaVinci Resolve natively supports vivo Log and vivo Wide Gamut, enabling a more seamless integration into professional color-grading workflows and refine color, contrast, and tonal expression in post-production.
Multi-Focal 4K 120 fps recording and the main camera’s native 4K 240 fps recording expand the possibilities for capturing movement and creating slow-motion footage. A 7800 mAh BlueVolt Battery and 90W FlashCharge support the demands of filming on location, helping creators stay ready as scenes unfold and conditions change.
Through the masterclass, vivo and Kolder Creative show how a smartphone can serve as the primary camera for a complete filmmaking project. By explaining the technical process and creative decisions behind a finished Reel, the collaboration helps learners approach their own projects with greater intention and confidence.
The ten-video vivo x Kolder Creative smartphone filmmaking masterclass is available from November 9, 2026 via https://www.koldercreative.com/.
