The success of Avatar was a result of James Cameron’s dedication to pushing continue pushing the boundaries with filmmaking technology. When it comes to the development of the suite of Avatar sequels such as Avatar: The Way of Water, Cameron and Jon Landau opted to double down on 3D technology in an attempt to make the production an immersive experience for movie-goers from around the world.
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“If you really study the film from a 3D standpoint, we utilize 3D more in a dramatic scene than we do in an action scene. Action scenes tend to be fast cutting. You can’t take in all of the 3D but if you’re just there, I’m just gonna call it at a dinner table and you’re in 3D, suddenly you as an audience are a part of that moment,” Landau tells ComicBook.com’s Brandon Davis. “So, the way we utilize 3D, we utilize it as a window into a world, not a world coming out of a window. And we want you in the theater for the screen plane to disappear and you forget that you’re in a theater.”
Because of the 3D technology used in the film, Landau adds that the entire cut will play at 48fps even though the movie was just partially shot with that frame rate.
“We’re creating some of the content at 48. Why? Because there is strobing artifacts that you see and it makes it less clear to follow action,” Landau adds. “We don’t need 48 frames in a closeup, but when we’re doing dynamic action and we want you to pay attention to what’s specifically there, we don’t want that white picket fence. That strobing and the 48 frames, especially in 3D, let’s us get rid of that.”
The sequel is confirmed to feature several returning stars that include Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, Dileep Rao, CCH Pounder, Matt Gerald, and Sigourney Weaver. The cast for the sequels will include several more newcomers than returning members, though, with the likes of Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Michelle Yeoh, Jemaine Clement, Oona Chaplin, David Thewlis, Vin Diesel, and CJ Jones all set to appear as well. Plot details for the sequels are currently unknown.
Avatar: The Way of Waterย lands in theaters on December 16th.
