Memorable movies are about people  worth knowing.  In fact, narrative films are often named for their key characters. So we have “The Godfather,” “E.T.,” “Thelma & Louise,” and “Goldfinger.” But characters are also crucial in nonfiction films, as mojo journalist Mike Castellucci demonstrates in  “Carrie’s Cakes.”

In this short video report, produced for a Texas TV station, Castellucci visited Ennis, Ireland, “to see if the thing that makes small towns click is universal.”  A featured speaker at this year’s MoJoCon International Conference, Castellucci  shot the movie on his iPhone. It was handheld not for artistic purposes, he explained, but because he forgot his tripod.

While the mini-doc has a protagonist–a baker named Carrie—Castellucci finds room for other characters. It’s the human element that makes the film much more than a sequence of pretty places. And if you watch a second time, you’ll notice a number of small touches, for example Carrie’s gesture of thankfulness at the 1:33 mark.

About the filmmaker: Castellucci is the creator of the Emmy Award-winning iPhone show: “PHONING IT IN: Life on an iPhone.” You can see a piece of the next episode–“Steam Medicine” here.

Castellucci  is also the Video News Artist-in-Residence Michigan State University.

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The Mobile Movie of the Week feature showcases outstanding mobile-shot videos from around the world. We welcome your comments, and if you know of videos that should be honored, email us at info@mobilemoviemaking.com