Avatar got 9 Oscar nominations just as I predicted (21% of the readers predicted 9-10 nominations according to the poll in my previous post, congrats to you). With 9 nominations Avatar leads the pack together with “The Hurt Locker” that also got 9 nominations.

It’s gonna be an exiting evening March 7th when the winners as announced, only 33 days away, Avatar FTW

Here’s the complete list of all the categories and nominees.

PICTURE:
Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air

DIRECTOR:
James Cameron – Avatar
Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds
Lee Daniels – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Jason Reitman – Up in the Air

ACTOR:
Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
George Clooney – Up in the Air
Colin Firth – A Single Man
Morgan Freeman – Invictus
Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker

ACTRESS:
Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side
Helen Mirren – The Last Station
Carey Mulligan – An Education
Gabourey Sidibe – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia

SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Matt Damon – Invictus
Woody Harrelson – The Messenger
Christopher Plummer – The Last Station
Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Penélope Cruz – Nine
Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air
Maggie Gyllenhaal – Crazy Heart
Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air
Mo’Nique – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Mark Boal – The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds
Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman – The Messenger
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen – A Serious Man
Bob Peterson, Pete Docter – Up

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell – District 9
Nick Hornby – An Education
Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche – In the Loop
Geoffrey Fletcher – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner – Up in the Air

ANIMATED FEATURE:
Coraline
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Princess and the Frog
The Secret of Kells
Up

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
Ajami (Israel)
El Secreto de Sus Ojos (Argentina)
The Milk of Sorrow (Peru)
Un Prophète (France)
The White Ribbon (Germany)

ART DIRECTION:
Avatar
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Nine
Sherlock Holmes
The Young Victoria

CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Mauro Fiore – Avatar
Bruno Delbonnel – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Barry Ackroyd – The Hurt Locker
Robert Richardson – Inglourious Basterds
Christian Berger – The White Ribbon

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:
Burma VJ
The Cove
Food, Inc.
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
Which Way Home

DOCUMENTARY SHORT:
China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province
The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
Music by Prudence
Rabbit à la Berlin

ANIMATED SHORT:
French Roast
Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty
The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)
Logorama
A Matter of Loaf and Death

LIVE-ACTION SHORT:
The Door
Instead of Abracadabra
Kavi
Miracle Fish
The New Tenants

VISUAL EFFECTS:
Avatar
District 9
Star Trek

COSTUME DESIGN:
Bright Star
Coco before Chanel
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Nine
The Young Victoria

MAKEUP:
Il Divo
Star Trek
The Young Victoria

FILM EDITING:
Avatar
District 9
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire

SOUND MIXING:
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Star Trek
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

SOUND EDITING:
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Star Trek
Up

ORIGINAL SCORE:
James Horner – Avatar
Alexandre Desplat – Fantastic Mr. Fox
Marco Beltrami & Buck Sanders – The Hurt Locker
Hans Zimmer – Sherlock Holmes
Michael Giacchino – Up

ORIGINAL SONG:
“Almost There” from The Princess and the Frog
“Down in New Orleans” from The Princess and the Frog
“Loin de Paname” from Paris 36
“Take It All” from Nine
“The Weary Kind” from Crazy Heart

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• John Landau, producer of Avatar, talks about 3D and the future (5)
• James Cameron talks 3D in general and some Avatar movie news (4)

Avatar (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) [Blu-ray]

Avatar

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The viral marketing site for Avatar -  avtr.com – has gone live whit a lot of new content. It’s a fictional site where RDA (Resource Development Administration), the ones who are responsible for mining on Pandora, gives you news updates about whats happening on Pandora.

The Resource Development Administration has selected reporter Alison Boyd to bring Earth an in-depth look into the AVATAR program. Reporting from Pandora, Alison’s reports focus on day-to-day life and the supporting tools utilized by the RDA to carry out its mission. Boyd’s distinguished career includes covering geo-political events as well as being embedded in conflict zones.

One of the coolest things about the site, if you have a web cam, is the ability to interact with a virtual 3D helicopter (a Scorpion Gunship). Kinda hard to explain, just visit the site to have a look.

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James Cameron's Avatar RDA Scorpion Gunship

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Combat Amp Suit

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Military Grinder Vehicle

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Thanator Creature

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Neytiri Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Movie Masters Jake Sully Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Interactive Battle Pack Set

James Cameron's Avatar Movie Masters Colonel Miles Quatrich Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Leonopteryx Collectible Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Mountain Banshee Creature

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Dire Horse Creature

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Jake Sully Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Dr. Grace Augustine Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Norm Spellman Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Private Sean Fike Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Colonel Miles Quaritch Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Trudy Chacon Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Tsu Tey Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Eytukan Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Corporal Lyle Wainfleet Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Jake Human Action Figure

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This post just feature a few of the action figures that’s already available, they are made by Mattel and look like you would expect, a bit plastic. But it’s still fun to have a look at the toys as you get to see a lot of details on the machines and creatures that flash by very fast  in the teaser trailer.

Some of the toys includes a little card that you scan via your webcam and by that creates an on-screen augmented reality robot or character that you can play around with on your computer, it looks very cool and is kind of hard to explain so have a look at the embedded video.

Now you know what to buy you kids/friends for christmas!

If you want to see all the toys, have a look at Amazon.com

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Scorpion Gunship

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Combat Amp Suit

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Military Grinder Vehicle

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Thanator Creature

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Neytiri Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Movie Masters Jake Sully Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Interactive Battle Pack Set

James Cameron's Avatar Movie Masters Colonel Miles Quatrich Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Leonopteryx Collectible Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Mountain Banshee Creature

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Dire Horse Creature

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Jake Sully Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Dr. Grace Augustine Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Norm Spellman Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Private Sean Fike Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Colonel Miles Quaritch Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Trudy Chacon Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Tsu Tey Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Eytukan Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar RDA Corporal Lyle Wainfleet Action Figure

James Cameron's Avatar Na'vi Jake Human Action Figure

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Enjoy.

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An All New World Awaits

I can’t wait to get there…

From comingsoon.com

The Opening Day Luncheon for ShoWest was sponsored by IMAX, who showed a sizzle reel of recent and upcoming IMAX movies. They didn’t show any footage from James Cameron’s highly-anticipated Avatar, which will be opening in IMAX 3D on December 18, but they did reveal a new tagline for the film which hints on what to expect:

“An All New World Awaits”

One can probably expect the first trailer with X-Men Origins: Wolverine and maybe a teaser poster.

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Sounds cool right? I think so. Then I saw this clip embedded below.

It has nothing to do with Avatar, but it really shows in a good way how it could be done. This clip is some kind of demo or viral marketing thing and includes a lot of special effects.

Imagine this in Camerons hands, ad some more special effects, multiply that by ten. And lastly, ad 3D and you will literally be there.

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Another interview with James Cameron (and Vincent Pace) from the 3D Entertainment Summit that was held a week ago.

James Cameron Talks about Avatar and 3D | Studio Daily

At a two day summit devoted to all things 3D, conference founder Robert Dowling sat down with director James Cameron and 3D cinematographer Vincent Pace to talk about their perspectives on the stereoscopic movie-making.

“If I could have shot Titanic in 3D I would have,” declared Cameron. “Any spectacle would benefit from it.”

Pace, who supplies 3D camera systems and post production, noted that there’s a knee-jerk reaction that only big players in Hollywood will attempt 3D movie-making. “The proof of concept and visionary aspect happened eight years ago with the documentary on the Titanic,” he said, “Not big budget films but people committed to changing entertainment. There’s nothing in the entertainment palette that can’t be considered in 3D, whether it’s nature, documentaries, sports…it’s been proofed out and we’ve seen successes across the board.”

Camera systems are now mature, said Cameron and Pace. Cameron mentioned that the first day of shooting Avatar, Hannah Montana was also shooting, on a different continent. “The question came up, were there enough cameras and crews?” he says. “We put a stake in the heart of that argument. Anyone contemplating a feature shouldn’t be concerned about availability of cameras or crews. They’re all operational at this point.”
With regard to how creativity is impacted by working stereoscopically, Cameron emphasized that “you have to make a good movie first.” Stereo is tertiary, he says, behind story, cast, design. “It has to be value added so the 2D experience is a good movie and the 3D movie is its own experience for those who want to seek it out.”

Dowling pointed out that many viewers are leery of 3D, remembering the red/green glasses of the 1950s. “There’s still misconceptions in peoples’ minds,” he says. But Cameron’s rejoinder was that 3D is “more mature by miles from the 1950s.” And he scolded 3D producers who might create a production that reinforces the negative experiences of yesteryear. “All it takes is one bad experience and people are turned off by 3D,” he said. “Anyone contemplating a long-term strategy has to think about any dumb short-term experience. Anyone using anaglyph glasses is not going to have a good time unless they’re a 5 year old on Ritalin. You’re creating a marketing challenge you have to dig yourself out of. We have to hunt those people down and take them out back because they’re hurting it for the rest of us.”

Dowling asked if exhibitors are excited about 3D movies. Pace replied that they can’t ignore the numbers for some of the recent 3D movies. “People are beginning to embrace it,” he said. “But exhibitors have to see really good 3D movies out there. Cameron’s point of view is that, since the “stereo renaissance,” all the films from Chicken Little onward have looked great, even when they were converted from 2D.

With Avatar gaining in buzz as it nears its release date (Dec. 18, 2009), Dowling asked Cameron, does he feel “an added sense of pressure”? “Yes, it can’t possibly meet expectations,” said Cameron. “I went out, got drunk and got over that. But it’s what we set out to do with Avatar that’s exciting. Look, here’s a big studio picture being shot in 3D. We’re taking the gamble.”

“It’s groundbreaking even without the 3D, he continued. “We’ve got digital performances in realtime. The movie might suck. I’ve drunk the Kool-Aid and I think it runs pretty well. As with any 3D film, there’s no stinkin’ screen. For the audience, it becomes a window into a reality, unfettered by what the director wants to put into that window. The stereoscopic illusion fires more neurons in the brain. Peoples’ brains are more active and it becomes a visceral experience.”

Cameron noted that he’s challenging Fox to be creative about how they market Avatar. Trailers will play at IMAX 3D shows, he added, saying that “the studio marketing machine will kick into gear and figure out how to make it work.” But he also noted that, although people will seek out the 3D experience, Avatar will be sold in every other manner. “It has to live and die on its merits,” he said.

For filmmakers contemplating making a 3D film, Cameron urged that they first talk with Pace. “Do your homework if you want to shoot in 3D,” he cautioned. “It’s not daunting. You can be demystified quickly. But there’s a lot of conflicting information out there.” Pace agreed, adding that a filmmaker contemplating 3D should ask all the questions and evaluate the answers. “We have real world examples whether it’s a feature film, sports or a concert to give him or her the confidence level needed to move forward.”

As to how much 3D would add to a film budget, Cameron noted that “as a producer you have to deal with everything and 99 percent of them don’t have to do with 3D. The 3D is a small specialized area.”The bigger the movie, the more the 3D’s incremental costs hide in the budget, says Cameron. Except when visual effects are involved. “They get more expensive in 3D,” he said. But it isn’t double the work: after roto, paint and whatever else is done to one eye, the changes are applied to the second eye and rendered. “If you want to number-crunch, y9ou can show that the additional cost is always off-set by the additional revenue, which has been the case for the last three years,” he said. “And I think it’ll get even better. It’ll get to the point where 3D is just another line item.”

Last word…”If you’re serious about exploring the idea of making your movie in 3D, get the camera for a day and play around. Every director will treat stereoscopy slightly differently. Develop your aesthetic with it.”

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James Cameron talked at the 3D Entertainment Summit where he said that we’ll have to wait a bit longer to see the first footage from the movie Avatar, even he doesn’t seem to know for how long. I hope we’ll see it sooner than later, I’m can’t wait…

James Cameron Talks Content Driven 3D and Avatar Trailer Details « FirstShowing.net

Earlier today I caught James Cameron’s keynote presentation at the 3D Entertainment Summit in hopes of potentially catching a first look at some actual footage from Avatar. Unfortunately we weren’t treated to any footage, but as always, Cameron dished up some fascinating discussion, including panning some major industry decisions. Anyone who reads this site already knows my opinion on 3D, but I’ll continue to say that it is Cameron who I believe will finally show us what 3D is truly capable of. Unlike Jeffrey Katzenberg’s more broad beliefs in the future financial benefits of 3D, Cameron believes that we will eventually get to the point where 3D is used like sound or color – just another standard filmmaking technique.

The reason I believe that Cameron is such a brilliant mind and the true leader of the 3D revolution is because of his approach to it. He explained that he went into Avatar with the goal of making a big blockbuster movie in 3D and hoped that there would be enough theaters to show it in. Since it took so long to make, that isn’t a concern anymore, Cameron joked. But it was more important for him to “think like a filmmaker” and not like an executive. “3D has to be content driven” was his most valuable message. While most of the industry is still experimenting in 3D, Cameron says that his “proof of concept” was the two documentaries that he and Vince Pace have made – Ghosts of the Abyss and Aliens of the Deep.

Cameron believes that ultimately a good movie should come first, not 3D. He adds that 3D shouldn’t occupy the minds of filmmakers while they’re shooting, but should just be another item on the agenda, in theory. And that is exactly what everyone else is doing wrong. To the rest of the industry, 3D is a way to make money, a gimmick designed to attract audiences and sell tickets, not as a filmmaking technique. Cameron believes so firmly in this idea, that he goes as far as to say that Avatar would still be a groundbreaking movie even if you took out the 3D. And that’s because from the very ground up, he focused on telling a good story and making a good movie before worrying about the 3D aspect.

When asked about his opinions on other filmmakers, specifically Tim Burton and his work on the upcoming Alice in Wonderland, Cameron openly criticized Burton’s decision to convert to 3D after the fact. It “doesn’t make any sense to shoot in 2D and convert to 3D,” Cameron said. And that’s not the only industry decision that he panned, the other being meager attempts to provide a 3D experience at home by releasing DVDs with anaglyphic glasses (meaning the red and blue cardboard ones) in the packing. It is “stunting 3D growth,” he said, and hurting the progression of the format. Cameron’s agenda wasn’t to attack these decisions, instead he felt they weren’t helping progress the 3D when that’s what we need the most.

So when will we ever see a trailer for Avatar? Our friend at MarketSaw caught Cameron in the hall after his keynote and got an explanation as to why we haven’t seen anything yet. Apparently there are a few lengthy scenes from various parts of the film that are complete, but they do not have enough finished material from the film to cut a representative teaser. He hasn’t yet spoken to Fox regarding trailer placement, but he mentioned there are a few good 3D releases next year that would be perfect to debut a trailer on, including Monsters vs Aliens next March. Will we finally see a trailer then? All I know is that Cameron still has 12 months of work left on Avatar, so maybe we should stop pestering him and let him finish!

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