Jan 8, 2007 - Director James Cameron will begin principal photography on the movie Avatar in April 2007, according to Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman, Chairmen of Fox Filmed Entertainment. James Cameron wrote the film based on an idea he's been kicking around for over a decade.
Avatar will mark Cameron's return to feature films as director. His last theatrical release, Titanic starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, was nominated for 14 Academy Awards in 1998.
The film won 11 Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director.
According to the studio, Avatar will be a mix of live-action photography and "new virtual photorealistic production techniques invented by Cameron’s team." Cameron's new technique uses image-based performance capture along with a real-time virtual camera system. This new system allows filmmakers to create CG worlds and, according to the press release, "blend them with dramatic performances and live action in ways never before possible."
20th Century Fox is aiming for a summer 2009 release. By that time the studio anticipates digital 3D theaters will be commonplace, allowing theater chains across the country to show the film in its digital 3D format.
After a worldwide search, Cameron tapped Australian Sam Worthington (The Great Raid, Somersault) to star as Jake Sully in the film. Zoe Saldana (Guess Who, Haven) will play a woman Jake first betrays and then falls in love with. Worthington and Saldana have both signed on for future sequels.
In the press release announcing the upcoming start of production on Avatar, Cameron stated, "For me, as a lifelong fan of science fiction and action, Avatar is a dream project. We’re creating an entire world, a complete ecosystem of phantasmagorical plants and creatures, and a native people with a rich culture and language. The story is both epic and emotional. The two things that make this film even possible are pioneering advances in CG effects and performance capture, as well as my 22 year relationship with Fox, since only with great trust can you operate so close to the cutting edge. I plan to honor that relationship by bringing them a winner. And I have the team to do it, the best team of artists and technicians I’ve ever been privileged to work with. This one’s going to be a grand adventure.”
“Every year, our business makes hundreds of films, most of which come and go. But a Jim Cameron film is different,” Tom Rothman and Jim Gianopulos were quoted as saying. “Jim’s movies raise the bar, both in storytelling and use of technology. Avatar will do so again. The world he has created is breathtaking and the action breathless. It will take two more years, but in the summer of 2009, Avatar will be a seismic change in the movie going experience.”
Avatar will be shot in Los Angeles and New Zealand.
Avatar - The Official Synopsis
Avatar is an emotional journey of redemption and revolution. It is the story of a wounded ex-marine, thrust unwillingly into an effort to settle and exploit an exotic planet rich in bio-diversity, who eventually crosses over to lead the indigenous race in a battle for survival. It thus again combines the elements of massive spectacle and intimate character that made Titanic the highest grossing film of all time; a title it still holds by over three quarters of a billion dollars.
Avatar will mark Cameron's return to feature films as director. His last theatrical release, Titanic starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, was nominated for 14 Academy Awards in 1998.
The film won 11 Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director.
According to the studio, Avatar will be a mix of live-action photography and "new virtual photorealistic production techniques invented by Cameron’s team." Cameron's new technique uses image-based performance capture along with a real-time virtual camera system. This new system allows filmmakers to create CG worlds and, according to the press release, "blend them with dramatic performances and live action in ways never before possible."
20th Century Fox is aiming for a summer 2009 release. By that time the studio anticipates digital 3D theaters will be commonplace, allowing theater chains across the country to show the film in its digital 3D format.
After a worldwide search, Cameron tapped Australian Sam Worthington (The Great Raid, Somersault) to star as Jake Sully in the film. Zoe Saldana (Guess Who, Haven) will play a woman Jake first betrays and then falls in love with. Worthington and Saldana have both signed on for future sequels.
In the press release announcing the upcoming start of production on Avatar, Cameron stated, "For me, as a lifelong fan of science fiction and action, Avatar is a dream project. We’re creating an entire world, a complete ecosystem of phantasmagorical plants and creatures, and a native people with a rich culture and language. The story is both epic and emotional. The two things that make this film even possible are pioneering advances in CG effects and performance capture, as well as my 22 year relationship with Fox, since only with great trust can you operate so close to the cutting edge. I plan to honor that relationship by bringing them a winner. And I have the team to do it, the best team of artists and technicians I’ve ever been privileged to work with. This one’s going to be a grand adventure.”
“Every year, our business makes hundreds of films, most of which come and go. But a Jim Cameron film is different,” Tom Rothman and Jim Gianopulos were quoted as saying. “Jim’s movies raise the bar, both in storytelling and use of technology. Avatar will do so again. The world he has created is breathtaking and the action breathless. It will take two more years, but in the summer of 2009, Avatar will be a seismic change in the movie going experience.”
Avatar will be shot in Los Angeles and New Zealand.
Avatar - The Official Synopsis
Avatar is an emotional journey of redemption and revolution. It is the story of a wounded ex-marine, thrust unwillingly into an effort to settle and exploit an exotic planet rich in bio-diversity, who eventually crosses over to lead the indigenous race in a battle for survival. It thus again combines the elements of massive spectacle and intimate character that made Titanic the highest grossing film of all time; a title it still holds by over three quarters of a billion dollars.