Attracted by the geographical uniqueness and well-preserved local culture of the village, while taking the high altitude, extreme weather and thin air into consideration, the team used iPhones to complete the work.

Gan Wei, director of the film, said that the phones have saved the team of 10 from having to carry heavy equipment and enabled them to shoot smoothly at-20 C in strong winds, while battling high-altitude sickness.

Speaking at a "Today at Apple" session in Shanghai on June 27, he shared the experience of the film shoot.

Gan recalled how the staff chased the sheep while they were moving, across the uneven ground with the phone in hand, to capture dynamic videos of them. He also described how they used the cinematic mode to shoot the young woman dancing against the backlight to create a soft, silhouette effect, and to produce close-ups on her face that highlighted her immersion in the dance.

These techniques imbued their work with the texture of a movie and hugely aided the post-production process, he said, adding that his heart rate could soar higher than 170 beats per minute after a period of filming.

Producer Zhang Jiajie said that the film shoot was full of unexpected situations. On one occasion, they were chased by a Tibetan mastiff and had to throw away their equipment to distract the hound.