Avatar-New Era of Film

     I hope I am not the only one excited for the new James Cameron movie Avatar. Cameron has directed many cultural favorites such as: Titanic, the Terminator series, and Aliens. He has also directed, produced, and written many other works which I can’t delve into too deeply here.

    

     Cameron’s newest film creation called Avatar is an immense 3D animated film. Cameron thought of this film many years ago, but the technology was just not there to make his dream a reality. This film combines 3D animated characters, environments, and effects with live action shots. Of course, ‘real’ actors are apart of this film as well which makes this film rather unique.

     

     Just writing about this film gets my my imagination souring of what this movie has the potential to be.

     

     Based on the images, trailers, and clips that are currently available across the net, one can understand why many people are excited about this film—it truly is a step away from traditional film making. When I say traditional film making, I am referring to a simple movie setup: cameras, actors, sets, and “3,2,1, ACTION!”

    

     This film is quite different in that the actors are filmed on set while animators monitor and record their movements and facial expressions. These elements are than used within the animations of the characters to create realistic images made possible by computers. Star Wars revolutionized film by using a combination of models, animation, and live action to create an revolutionary step for film; the Lord of the Rings trilogy revolutionized films by developing computer technology to combine live action shots with animation as well; Avatar, in my opinion, is revolutionary as well.

    

     If you look at majority of the movies coming out into theaters (2012, for example), these films have an immense amount of computer generated elements and environments. This ‘new era’ of filmmaking is exciting, expensive, and another movement in the evolution of film. This new era of film is moving forward with the current generation who expect movies to be over-the-top, have immense action and animation, and have great acting of course.

    

      Cameron’s new film Avatar will set the stage for new technologies in film, animation, and 3D cinema that is now becoming more possible to achieve.

    

     Please follow the links I have provided and tell me what you think below!

    

     Avatar is set to release next month on December 18th. With the rumored cost of 500 MILLION DOLLARS, this movie has a lot of hype and expectations to satisfy. And even if this film becomes “The Worst Expensive Movie Ever Made”, I will still be on the edge of my sit for the entire ride!