Director Reveals the Behind-the-Scenes of DJI's Osmo Pocket 4 Launch Ad: Typhoons, Monkey Thieves, and Honest Camera Critiques

Filmmaker Reilín Joey has shared a full behind-the-scenes account of directing and editing DJI's official launch advertisement for the Osmo Pocket 4. Released on July 7, 2026, the documentary-style video chronicles a production that spanned two continents and 12 shooting locations — from wildlife safari scenes in Cape Town, South Africa, to a typhoon-compressed schedule in Hong Kong — and closes with Joey offering a frank assessment of the camera's limitations.

A Self-Funded Ski Film That Opened the DJI Door

Joey says the DJI opportunity grew out of a passion project. After co-founding the creative company Outline with production partner Mos, he self-financed a ski film shoot in Japan. The video exceeded expectations, surpassing 300,000 views, and led directly to an approach from DJI.

He then partnered with cinematographer Jacques Crafford to develop the campaign proposal. According to Joey, the two pulled at least one all-nighter to meet the submission deadline; DJI's marketing team approved the pitch within hours of receiving it. The team subsequently built a shot list of more than 100 setups, each planned in pre-production to showcase a specific Pocket 4 feature, with detailed blocking and talent action notes.

Shooting Predominantly in D-Log, with Texture and Noise Reduction at Minimum

Joey explains that nearly all Pocket 4 footage in the advertisement was captured in DJI's D-Log color profile, with the camera's onboard Texture setting at -2 and Noise Reduction at -2. White balance was set manually according to shooting conditions, and the included ND filter kit was used to maintain consistent shutter speeds.

Additional production coverage was shot on a Sony FX3 with 24-70mm f/2.8, 70-200mm f/2.8, and 16-35mm lenses. Joey acknowledges that most advertising shots could theoretically have been captured on the Pocket 4 itself, but the FX3 offered greater operational efficiency across a large, multi-location, multi-crew shot list.

Final color grading for the official advertisement was completed by DJI in-house. For his own director's cut, Joey developed a separate LUT and grading workflow that converts DJI D-Log footage into the DaVinci Wide Gamut color space, where he adjusts exposure and color density before applying heavy film grain in the shadows.

Monkey Raid, Typhoon Warning, and an Emergency Crew Departure

The Cape Town leg opened with wildlife safari sequences that Joey describes as some of the most difficult shots in the entire production. The crew waited hours for a few seconds of giraffe footage, and on the final day a herd of elephants surrounded the production vehicles. Amid the chaos, a group of monkeys made off with a backpack containing thousands of dollars' worth of equipment.

A more personal setback followed the Cape Town family scenes. Crafford received a call about his pregnant wife and departed the production immediately. First assistant camera operator John Teichert stepped up to co-shoot the remaining seven days alongside Joey — an arrangement the director notes is not suited to every working relationship, but one that preserved critical production time.

Hong Kong presented its own complications. The crew landed to an immediate typhoon warning, forcing a complete rescheduling of a full week of talent and location bookings. Conditions then swung from thunderstorms to 40 °C (104 °F) heat within days. During a ferry scene with only 30 minutes available, the team improvised by rigging an iPhone 15 Pro with a 13mm ultra-wide lens to capture close-up detail shots of the Pocket 4's gimbal and controls.

Director Praises the Camera, but Calls Out ND Filter and Slow-Motion Limitations

Joey's overall assessment of the Osmo Pocket 4 is positive, though not without reservations. He notes a visible quality difference between the 1x and 2x lossless zoom settings, while acknowledging that performance in high-light environments such as rapeseed fields remained acceptable. His highest praise is reserved for the camera's ability to capture authentic, candid moments without the presence of a full production setup.

His criticisms are specific. The magnetic clip-on ND filter kit remains cumbersome to operate in his view. More significantly, the camera exits D-Log mode when shooting 4K at 120 fps or 240 fps slow motion — a constraint he states plainly: "For me, that essentially makes the slow-motion feature useless in a serious creative workflow." DJI's newer dual-lens model, the Osmo Pocket 4 Pro (Pocket 4P), features an upgraded D-Log 2 color profile, though DJI has not yet clarified whether its slow-motion modes resolve this issue.

Joey also shared a personal note: at age 14, he saved a full year of pocket money to buy a DJI Phantom 2 as a birthday gift to himself, only to crash it within days. Despite the pressures of the commission, he describes directing a DJI launch campaign as a genuine privilege.

DroneXL Editorial Perspective

One thing this carefully crafted advertisement does not say out loud: DJI flew a production crew across two continents, through a typhoon and a monkey raid, to produce a launch campaign for a camera that American consumers cannot legally purchase. When the Osmo Pocket 4 was announced on April 16, 2025, no US pricing was disclosed — because DJI has been on the FCC Covered List since December 22, 2025.

A creator in Manchester or Hong Kong can watch the same advertisement and walk into a store to buy the camera. A creator in Omaha sees the same film and hits a wall built by their own government. The security designation changes nothing about that practical reality: American creators are paying a price levied on them by Washington, while the only domestically compliant alternatives cost more.

The production budget itself is a signal. A company exiting a market does not commission a two-continent launch campaign. DJI is actively building demand worldwide and leaving the American freeze to Washington to explain.

Credit is also due to Joey for the honest ending: a director publicly identifying the ND filter and slow-motion D-Log shortcomings of the product he was hired to promote is worth more to prospective buyers than any spec sheet on a retail box. More commissioned creators should close their victory laps the same way.

Source: Reilín Joey YouTube channel

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