Ridley Scott's ‘Behold’ Is a Stunning Short Film Shot Entirely on the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Director Ridley Scott’s new short film was announced at Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked 2023, unveiling the latest Galaxy S23 series. Partnering with Samsung, Scott created the beautiful film with stunning details, captured entirely with Galaxy S23 Ultra, showing its superior camera capabilities.

Written by Luke Scott and based on an idea from the Ridley Scott Creative Group’s newly established creative division, the film, Behold, refers to a maxim – beauty is in the eye of the beholder, inviting the audience to find the glimmer of beauty within the frame of a challenging environment, looking for the value in things that have been discarded. 

Shot in December in the banlieue of Kaliste in Marseille, an environment abandoned to the elemental forces of distressed society, Behold sees Kaliste take on a personality, at one time freshly painted and full of hope, but in the present no longer so welcoming as a home. The film follows a young man, confronted by hostility and aggression, chased into a world where he's forced to find his escape, his own version of peace. 

The film also features an original poem from Barbican Young Poet, Royal Court Writer’s Group, and Soho Theatres Writers Lab alum Jeremiah 'Sugar J' Brown. The recital of Us from the British-Jamaican writer demands something that we are all entitled but few achieve - freedom.  

“I think the idea is allegorical,” said Ridley Scott. “It’s a very simple, emotional piece of storytelling. And shooting on a phone, we were able to access real environments and smaller spaces.” 

Created in association with Plan’it and Cheil, and with VFX from Untold Studios, the collaboration marks the second time in recent years that Scott’s production company RSA Films have created narrative storytelling for Samsung Galaxy. Joe Wright’s award-winning 2021 puppetry short Princess and Peppernose was also captured entirely with a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. 

The S23 Unpacked launch will also see the release of a separate upcoming film, shot on a Galaxy S23 Ultra, from South Korean director Na Hong-jin.