Page by Gabriella Pollner
Background
Background & Summary:
James Cameron wrote Avatar in 1994 and looked to begin filming before finishing the movie Titanic in 1996. However, Cameron felt that the technology of the twentieth century was not advanced enough to fulfill the vision he had intended to portray to audiences. This led Cameron to wait until 2006 to begin filming. After spending approximately $237 million to make the film, Avatar was released in 2009 and grossed over $2.78 billion worldwide.
Avatar, a 2009 film written and directed by James Cameron, is about a paraplegic ex-marine Jake Sully who was selected to participate in the Avatar program. After his brother was killed in an armed robbery, Jake Sully took his brother’s spot in the program. By participating in the program, Sully needed to travel 6 years from Earth to a planet called Pandora, which was inhabited by a species of people-like creatures referred to as the Na’vi. The Na'vi lived in a village on land that held a rare mineral called unobtanium. The advanced human technology of the year 2154 allowed people to enter a machine that transported their mind into the bodies of the Na’vi. (This was done by mixing and altering the DNA of a Na'vi and of a person). This acted as a suitable cover to complete the human's mission, which was to infiltrate the Na’vi village and convince them to relocate from the precious land. By agreeing to complete this mission, Sully was promised a surgery to fix his legs and allow him to walk again. Sully was required to gather intel about the Na’vi for the humans and their general who is referred to a the Colonel. In the end, the humans begin a war against the Na’vi and as Sully builds stronger bonds with the Na’vi, he was forced to choose between staying loyal to the Na’vi or the humans.
Audience & Message:
James Cameron targeted Avatar to appeal to every audience, ranging from adults, families, technology enthusiasts, teenagers, and especially 'hardcore: Science-fictions fans' (Kerry and Catharine: Target Audience par. 2). Despite its violence and intense action scenes, Avatar ultimately aims to submit a positive message to viewers. Avatar’s positive messages include the focus on glorifying nature. By leading a battle to preserve the planet, the protagonist portrays a hero who saves the planet of Pandora, its nature, and its people. Lastly, Avatar focuses on the resurrection of its hero (Sully, the protagonist), and ties in nature to do so.
Although it contained several positive messages, Avatar also portrayed many negative connotations, as well. The concept of good versus evil included the demolishing of the planet’s environment in order for humans to acquire a rare resource. For example, the movie contained a terrible war, leaving many Na’vi dead or severely injured. Also, the movie demonizes large (American) corporations and explains that they are willing to demolish entire ecosystems in order to strike riches.
When watching Avatar, James Cameron evidently portrays his own anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist views. The film does not promote anti-war, but instead anti-violence opinions. This is unmistakably shown in the beginning of the film when the Na’vi chief’s daughter, Neytiri, regrettably is forced to kill an animal in order to save Sully in his first day of his mission. Neytiri angrily says to Sully that one must not kill unless it is necessary and chants an apologetic prayer after killing the animal. This is one of the many analogies that Cameron uses to express his anti-violence views. Avatar subtly emphasized on demonizing large corporations, the military, and the marines. The movie could have focused more on the reasoning behind these people’s actions and developed more of a storyline (in that sense) rather than immediately portraying these groups as antagonists without giving an ideal amount of background information.
Filming Techniques:
Avatar used two major filming techniques, 40% of which were live-action filming and the rest were computer-generated imagery (CGI). Avatar used CGI to capture film through (computerized) miniatures that were later morphed with their appropriate Na’vi character (Today par. 2). Through these two combined techniques, Cameron was able to capture his vision of making the film original and stunning. In the beginning stages, actors filmed the non-critical parts of the movie.
These parts were done in preparation of the animation work so the two could be combined in the future. Also in the beginning stages, actors played their roles in front of a camera that was used to specifically capture their movements and expressions. This technique allowed a more realistic transition from the real screen to the CGI and animations. Cameron was given a substantial amount of flexibility and not forced to perfect every scene in the film-making process because most of the filming ultimately transitioned into computer-generated images.
These filming techniques were used in order to better communicate an astounding picture and an important message to the audience. Since the technology used in making this film was so advanced, each fragment was able to be precise and straightforward. Avatar focused on conveying messages through picture rather than through excessive dialogue (Avatar blog par. 15). The techniques helped to communicate a message and purpose, as it allowed the audience to pay attention to specific details. Since people’s beliefs range diversely, different messages can be understood from the movie. For example, scientists may believe that Avatar’s interpretations of the future may be accurate and extremely possible. More conservative people may not believe in the importance of preserving nature, contrasting to Avatar, were nature was powerful enough to resurrect a character.
Our Interpretation:
We interpreted Avatar to be a remarkable picture. The advanced technology that was used in the film effected the communication towards the audience and ultimately led to the film’s incredible success. Avatar raises awareness in the possibilities for the future of the filming industry and the future of science. We can only wonder and hope that the Universe will cease to act on violence and war, as we saw first-handedly saw a planet’s destruction.
James Cameron wrote Avatar in 1994 and looked to begin filming before finishing the movie Titanic in 1996. However, Cameron felt that the technology of the twentieth century was not advanced enough to fulfill the vision he had intended to portray to audiences. This led Cameron to wait until 2006 to begin filming. After spending approximately $237 million to make the film, Avatar was released in 2009 and grossed over $2.78 billion worldwide.
Avatar, a 2009 film written and directed by James Cameron, is about a paraplegic ex-marine Jake Sully who was selected to participate in the Avatar program. After his brother was killed in an armed robbery, Jake Sully took his brother’s spot in the program. By participating in the program, Sully needed to travel 6 years from Earth to a planet called Pandora, which was inhabited by a species of people-like creatures referred to as the Na’vi. The Na'vi lived in a village on land that held a rare mineral called unobtanium. The advanced human technology of the year 2154 allowed people to enter a machine that transported their mind into the bodies of the Na’vi. (This was done by mixing and altering the DNA of a Na'vi and of a person). This acted as a suitable cover to complete the human's mission, which was to infiltrate the Na’vi village and convince them to relocate from the precious land. By agreeing to complete this mission, Sully was promised a surgery to fix his legs and allow him to walk again. Sully was required to gather intel about the Na’vi for the humans and their general who is referred to a the Colonel. In the end, the humans begin a war against the Na’vi and as Sully builds stronger bonds with the Na’vi, he was forced to choose between staying loyal to the Na’vi or the humans.
Audience & Message:
James Cameron targeted Avatar to appeal to every audience, ranging from adults, families, technology enthusiasts, teenagers, and especially 'hardcore: Science-fictions fans' (Kerry and Catharine: Target Audience par. 2). Despite its violence and intense action scenes, Avatar ultimately aims to submit a positive message to viewers. Avatar’s positive messages include the focus on glorifying nature. By leading a battle to preserve the planet, the protagonist portrays a hero who saves the planet of Pandora, its nature, and its people. Lastly, Avatar focuses on the resurrection of its hero (Sully, the protagonist), and ties in nature to do so.
Although it contained several positive messages, Avatar also portrayed many negative connotations, as well. The concept of good versus evil included the demolishing of the planet’s environment in order for humans to acquire a rare resource. For example, the movie contained a terrible war, leaving many Na’vi dead or severely injured. Also, the movie demonizes large (American) corporations and explains that they are willing to demolish entire ecosystems in order to strike riches.
When watching Avatar, James Cameron evidently portrays his own anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist views. The film does not promote anti-war, but instead anti-violence opinions. This is unmistakably shown in the beginning of the film when the Na’vi chief’s daughter, Neytiri, regrettably is forced to kill an animal in order to save Sully in his first day of his mission. Neytiri angrily says to Sully that one must not kill unless it is necessary and chants an apologetic prayer after killing the animal. This is one of the many analogies that Cameron uses to express his anti-violence views. Avatar subtly emphasized on demonizing large corporations, the military, and the marines. The movie could have focused more on the reasoning behind these people’s actions and developed more of a storyline (in that sense) rather than immediately portraying these groups as antagonists without giving an ideal amount of background information.
Filming Techniques:
Avatar used two major filming techniques, 40% of which were live-action filming and the rest were computer-generated imagery (CGI). Avatar used CGI to capture film through (computerized) miniatures that were later morphed with their appropriate Na’vi character (Today par. 2). Through these two combined techniques, Cameron was able to capture his vision of making the film original and stunning. In the beginning stages, actors filmed the non-critical parts of the movie.
These parts were done in preparation of the animation work so the two could be combined in the future. Also in the beginning stages, actors played their roles in front of a camera that was used to specifically capture their movements and expressions. This technique allowed a more realistic transition from the real screen to the CGI and animations. Cameron was given a substantial amount of flexibility and not forced to perfect every scene in the film-making process because most of the filming ultimately transitioned into computer-generated images.
These filming techniques were used in order to better communicate an astounding picture and an important message to the audience. Since the technology used in making this film was so advanced, each fragment was able to be precise and straightforward. Avatar focused on conveying messages through picture rather than through excessive dialogue (Avatar blog par. 15). The techniques helped to communicate a message and purpose, as it allowed the audience to pay attention to specific details. Since people’s beliefs range diversely, different messages can be understood from the movie. For example, scientists may believe that Avatar’s interpretations of the future may be accurate and extremely possible. More conservative people may not believe in the importance of preserving nature, contrasting to Avatar, were nature was powerful enough to resurrect a character.
Our Interpretation:
We interpreted Avatar to be a remarkable picture. The advanced technology that was used in the film effected the communication towards the audience and ultimately led to the film’s incredible success. Avatar raises awareness in the possibilities for the future of the filming industry and the future of science. We can only wonder and hope that the Universe will cease to act on violence and war, as we saw first-handedly saw a planet’s destruction.
Avatar (2009) movie trailer
Filming techniques / special effects
Above, James Cameron, writer and director of Avatar, describes the animated filming process.