Let me just say this up front… Avatar is amazing! It’s no wonder that Wired magazine said that this movie will change film forever.

When James Cameron first conceived Avatar, 15 years ago, the technology did not exist to make his dream a reality. He spent time developing the technology, even going as far as having to convince cinemas to upgrade their projectors to be able to screen the movie!

Plot summary

Jake Sully, former first recon marine now confined to a wheelchair, is sent to Pandora – a human outpost being mined for a rare mineral which is the key to solving Earth’s energy crisis. His mission: infiltrate the Na’vi, an humanoid race who have become an obstacle to mining the precious ore.

Because the atmosphere on Pandora is toxic to humans, they have created the Avatar Program, in which human “drivers” have their consciousness linked to an avatar – a remotely-controlled biological body that can survive the lethal air.

In Avator form, Jake can walk again. As Jake learns more about the Na’vi, he has to face conflicting emotions -- loyalty to the marine corp over a sympathy towards the Na’vi.

The plot reminded me of Pocahontas and Fern Gully.

Production notes

After 4 years of production, it’s finally hitting movie screens in both 2D and 3D. If you have the choice, I’d recommend seeing the 3D version. After all, that’s what all the fuss is about.

The movie was shot using the same Fusion 3-D camera system first used in Cameron’s IMAX feature Ghost of the Abyss in 2003.

Gone are the cheap cardboard glasses with red and green lenses -- the bane of anyone who wore ‘normal’ glasses for seeing. Cameron developed the digital 3-D stereoscopic technology that uses polarised lenses activated by infrared. The glasses handed out fitted nicely over my ’seeing’ glasses, which I must admit, are quite small. If your fashion sense tends towards the giant bug-eye look, you might want to wear contact lenses.

Stunning 3D CGI

The film itself combines live-action and CGI imagery to create a visually stunning experience. To achieve that seamless integration, he came up with something called “Simulcam” – a revolutionary new camera able to superimpose CGI images over live images being filmed in real-time.

“We turned the set on the soundstage into a capture volume and turned the physical camera into a capture virtual camera, so we were able to integrate CG characters and environments into our live action.” [Cameron said…] “We have people in flying vehicles, and I can see what is outside the window, fed in, in real time.”

Hopefully the experience will be the same at home on blu-ray. The Blu-ray Disc Association has announced that the specifications for 3D Blu-ray have been finalised. I say “hopefully” because using the technology will require hardware upgrades for most people. Specifically, new HDTVs (that support stereoscopic 3D) and Blu-ray hardware and glasses for the whole family.

Also, apart from Avatar, there are few compelling 3D movies available right now.

All that aside, Avatar is definitely worth seeing -- for all ages. There is no gratuitous violence, at least, no more than any of the Star Wars films.

Here’s the trailer:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9ceBgWV8io

Some links for further reading:

• Official Avatar website
• Avatar page on IMDB
• James Cameron’s New 3-D Epic Could Change Film Forever -- Wired
• The Crazy Tech Behind James Cameron’s Avatar

Been a while since I last posted, due to a change in work and lifestyle.

Right now I’m juggling web and film projects. Interestingly, my experience with project managing website development has benefitted the film projects. Sure, there are different considerations but the big picture things are similar – resources available, time needed and budget constraints.

At the heart of all these activities is the undeniable importance of diligent planning.

Don’t start any projects – web or film, without sitting down and mapping out your ideas.

One of the most interesting aspects of working on these projects is meeting really creative people driven by passion. It’s inspiring.

Check out the skate stunt:

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/16567160

This dramatic, one-off spectacle was created using the worlds biggest water screen projector.

The water screen, moored especially for this occasion in the middle of the Thames between the London Eye and The Shell Building, created an enormous vertical screen of water that extended to 72 feet in height and 100 feet across.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XT_Yqj7PVyo

via: RubberRepublic

This dramatic, one-off spectacle was created using the worlds biggest water screen projector.

The water screen, moored especially for this occasion in the middle of the Thames between the London Eye and The Shell Building, created an enormous vertical screen of water that extended to 72 feet in height and 100 feet across. Specially created Watchmen footage was projected onto the screen to showcase Dr Manhattans translucent and shimmering form.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydgX0-Y9MoI

via: RubberRepublic

Another exclusive in film clip of Watchmen. Veidt assesses the ongoing threat.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKp04S8t7MA

via: RubberRepublic

A look at the Watchmen characters Nite Owl II/Dan Dreiberg and Rorschach/Walter Kovacs with actors Patrick Wilson and Jackie Earle Haley.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8YuVa_nehM

via: RubberRepublic

Another online Watchmen exclusive. See Silk Spectre and Dr Manhattan in action. Your chance to see them in action, meet the actors and see behind the scenes before the big release on 5 March.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKCt4OmAA_8

via: RubberRepublic

An exclusive behind the scenes chat with Watchmen director Zack Snyder and legend Dave Gibbone. Who Watches the watchmen?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aYwXRihNC0

via: RubberRepublic

A look at the Watchmen characters The Comedian/Edward Blake and Ozymandias/Adrian Veidt with actors Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Matthew Goode.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIuy5CfJM8U

via: RubberRepublic