New Technologies and Creating a Believable World - Avatar

James Cameron makes film to push the boundaries and develop technology.

Cameron introduced the first “motion capture” characters in his film Total Recall, and included the first human movements in CGI in Terminator 2.

It took 4 years to make Avatar, about two thirds of it being computer generated.

Combining live action and CGI.

Simulcams – to see the final shot in real time

3D Fusion cameras – high definition footage, 3D, lightweight

Special ringed head cameras – to capture fine expression changes

All of these embrace technological convergence, in creating equipement to capture sound as well as visuals and edit these in suites including the best in production technology - top of the range computers, which are also examples of technological convergence.

Cameron said “it is the most difficult thing I have ever done”.

ALL DONE TO CREATE A BELIEVABLE, IMMERSIVE WORLD

This development of new technologies was made possible by the immense funding provided by 20th Century Fox, as owners of the film. The equipemtn was made specifically to create a world for the audience to believe in and enjoy, so eesentially to provide audience gratification for the target audience of young action-seeking males, for example. By investing so much time and money in this proliferation of equipement 20th Century Fox could be sure that Avatar would be received well by the UK audience.

How was The Boat That Rocked produced to appeal to a UK audience?

The Boat That Rocked

                                          a film by Richard Curtis

How was The Boat That Rocked produced to appeal to a UK audience?

1) Actors

- The film contains a strong British cast, including well known actors such as Bill Nighy and Nick Frost (above).

- This plays off of audience expectations, after having seen them in previous movies, they make several assumptions about The Boat That Rocked.

2) Script

- British films do not ride on the excitement and accesibility which fuels many Hollywood movies. Instead British films focus on a strong script and casting, full of British humour.

- The film is set in and around Britain, with mostly British characters. This helps the audience relate to the characters and empathize with them.

3) British Culture and History

- The storyline of The Boat That Rocked revolves around events in British history and involves very British characters, such as the typically striaght politicians.

4) Working Title Films

- Working Title Films, founded in 1983, are a renouned British film company, responsible for such films as Shaun of The Dead and Hot Fuzz. They have also produced many famous rom-com's such as Love Actually and the Bridget Jones series.

- Having a reliable British film company backing the film, it would make the audience feel comfortable that it will be a film they like.

good but you need to idnetify the impact of new tehnology on production - how was this film specifically made? You have plenty on Avatar on production and technology but little for TBTR

New Technologies: You need to use theory to explore how this was made possible - it is not enough just to identify it. It is also important to compare the specific production techniques used in the making of TBTR

Navigation

Production


Distribution & Exhibition


Marketing

Extended answers for Avatar

How was TBTR produced to appeal to a UK audience?

As seen through the cinema of British history, Richard Curtis is an extremely successful director, whose films thrive on their 'British-ness', which we Brits have come to know and love. It is it's own genre of comedy, and is often non viable to international audiences; searching for more conventional thrills found in movies like Transformers and Avatar. Richard Curtis directed 'The Boat That Rocked' (2008), a British comedy which tells the story of the original pirates of British radio, set in the 1960's.

The film was produced to directly appeal to a British audience in several ways:

1) British films often have a cast dominated by Brits, and TBTR is no exception. Some of the featured actors include Nick Frost; associated with his previous work on other quirky British comedies such as Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. The inclusion of such an actor has a positive effect on the movie; British viewers recognise the image he portrays and has portrayed in past movies, and use that to make assumptions on the new film. Considering Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz were seen as good films, the inclusion of Nick Frost was inteded to have a positive effect on the image of the movie.

Richard Curtis expressed himself 'I wanted to include known actors, but not famous ones.' This would give the movie a friendly and familiar feel to a British audience, without the film seeming dominated by huge global superstars. It was an ensemble piece, supported equally by a strong cast of British actors and comedians (Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans, Emma Thompson, Jack Davenport and Chris O'Dowd), instead of being overwhelmed by one or two huge Hollywood names.

2) The script of The Boat That Rocked contained typically British comedy. The jokes were sarcastic, dark and sometimes childish e.g. pun on words 'Twatt'. The humour also focused on sex, playing off the conventional British attitude 'naughtiness' and the taboo's surrounding sex. This sort of humour links back to shows such as 'Faulty Towers', one of the most 'British' comedy shows of all time.

3) The film played off of British culture and history to great effect. It was set in and aroud the British Isles, and almost all of the characters were British. This makes audience relationships with the characters easy to build and creates sympathy throughout the movie. The storyline is based upon real events in British history; the drama involving pirate radio in the 60's. It has been somewhat warped to appeal to a UK audience e.g. the politicians appear a lot more upper class 'conservative toff's' than they would have actually been, considering the party in power was actually labour at the time. This was done as British audiences like to see a clear divide between 'goodies' and 'baddies', and the film obviously portrays the hippie and rock and roll movement as good- meaning balance is needed by presenting some 'baddie' characters through the politicians- playing off another British custom, to complain about the government for comedic effect.

4) Working Title, very British film company. British location shoots. This means the locations seen in the film are identifiable for the audiences and help encompass them in the action. Working Title films are a renouned and succesful British film production company, known for their British comedies, so many British viewers would feel inclined and comfortable to go a support the British film industy, especially with a movie backed by a studio they know and trust.