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“Final Destination 5,” the latest in the perhaps the most inaccurately named series of films ever, is being directed by Steve Quale, who’s worked with James Cameron on “Aliens of the Deep” and “Avatar.”

Luckily, it appears there’s more Tony Todd than in prior episodes.  This is good because his presence along is scarier that most of the horrific–and generally, extremely unlikely–deaths the characters experience.

It was this challenge of accomplishing the visual goals of T-REX that led Hugh Murray down the line of experimentation that would eventually result in The Polar Express, a 3D experience unique to IMAX theaters.  Polar Express proved to be a phenomenal success and IMAX hoped to parlay the box office numbers into sales of additional IMAX systems.

Polar Express was released in November 2004.  At the time, IMAX was still selling and leasing their MPX film projectors, designed to fit a 1570 projection system into an existing 35mm auditorium while maintaining the existing theater dimensions.  IMAX would not have a digital projector system in place until 2008, even though the digital deployment into mainstream cinema had begun in 2005.  The success of Polar Express would spur a mass deployment of digital 3D systems, which in turn could find their roots in the IMAX 3D film T-REX.

A former film financier, Michael C Lewis partnered with director Brett Leonard in the 1990′s to form L-Squared Entertainment.  The company produced Leonard’s Virtuosity, starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.  L-Squared then produced Leonard’s two forays into IMAX 3D, Siegfried and Roy: The Magic Box and T-REX (which was actually released first).  But Lewis knew that there had to be a better economic model for producing and distributing 3D than the costly IMAX film method.  There had to be a better way.

Lewis teamed up with Josh Greer, who in 1994 had founded the internet design company Digital Planet, which specialized in extremely immersive movie and theme park attraction websites (including that for the IMAX-based Back to the Future attraction at Universal Studios).  By 2000, Greer had joined Walden Media, where he worked on James Cameron’s Ghosts of the Abyss and Aliens of the Deep.  As a life-long fan of 3D, this was a dream come true.  It not only put him out in the field spreading the 3D gospel among theaters, so to speak, but it helped solidify a relationship between Cameron and Greer – one which would become instrumental in the future.

Everybody knows about the IMAX 3D release of Ghosts of the Abyss.  Not many know that of the 97 theaters the film opened in, around half were 35mm theaters using an over-under 3D system Greer helped develop and install.  After working on this 35mm project and working with Cameron, observing how digital stereoscopic filming gave greater flexibility to the filmmaker, Greer was ready to bring forth the next big thing.  Together with Lewis, they formed a new company to be at the forefront of the digital 3D revolution – REALD.

In the next installment, the tale of the three dragons.

Tim Liversedge’s”Roar: Lions of the Kalahari”

Toni Myers’ “Hubble”

Brett Leonard’s “Siegfried and Roy: The Magic Box”

Keith Melton’s “Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs” 

Sean Phillips’ “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure”

and Greg MacGillivray’s ”Arabia.”  

A large portion of MacGillivray’s “Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk” was filmed in 2D and converted to 3D in post-production and he’s told me that around 70% of his next film, “To the Arctic” will undergo the same process.

It is thought that if life is there, it will have thrived from the gravitational tidal flexing that the moon experiences when it orbits around Jupiter, which we think warms the liquid water beneath the surface. We also suspect that something very much like the hydrothermal vents we have on Earth.

It is very likely that should we find hydrothermal vents similar to those we have on Earth, we will find life thriving around it.

From science.nasa.gov:

Hydrothermal vents form along mid-ocean ridges, in places where the sea floor moves apart very slowly (6 to 18 cm per year) as magma wells up from below. (This is the engine that drives Earth’s tectonic plates apart, moving continents and causing volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.)

Unlike plants that rely on sunlight, bacteria living in and around the dark vents extract their energy from hydrogen sulfide (HS) and other molecules that billow out of the seafloor. Just like plants, the bacteria use their energy to build sugars out of carbon dioxide and water. Sugars then provide fuel and raw material for the rest of the microbe’s activities.

(Go HERE to read the full article)

Hydrothermal Vents:

From James Cameron’s ‘Aliens of the Deep’:

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Download Aliens of the Deep

Synopsis: James Cameron, director, deep ocean adventurer and space exploration visionary, combines his talent and. Aliens of the Deep – IMAX 3D | Moviefone.com Aliens of the Deep – IMAX 3D Movie – Starring Dijanna Figueroa, Pan Conrad, Kelly Snook, Kevin Hand, James Cameron – Director(s) James Cameron, Steven Quale – Few who witnessed the. I don't regret going to the movie. . Your source for Aliens of the Deep reviews. Aliens of the Deep (2005) – IMDb Aliens of the Deep is the result of expeditions to several hydrothermal vent sites in the. Award(R)-winning director James Cameron (Best Director, TITANIC, 1997) in ALIENS OF THE DEEP. Aliens deep movie – Shop sales, stores & prices at TheFind.com Aliens deep movie – 457 results from 102 stores, including Aliens Of The Deep (Widescreen), Aliens of the Deep -, Aliens of the Deep, Aliens Of The Deep, Aliens of the Deep (2005. Visit Answers.com for Cast, Crew, Reviews, Plot Summary. but i just wish they would've shown more of the
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A short video on the new 3-D camera technology developed by James Cameron and Vince Pace.

The Fusion Camera System a.k.a. Reality Camera System 1 was designed as a way to shoot features in stereoscopic 3-D. This digital high-definition camera was used on Cameron’s documentaries and movies Aliens of the Deep, Ghosts of the Abyss and Avatar.

Each lens has a different filter , which removes different part of the image as it enters each eye. This gives the brain the illusion it is seeing the picture from two different angles, creating the 3D effect.

Continuing to develop new technology as he went along, Cameron also devised a ‘virtual camera‘, a hand-held monitor that allowed him to move through a 3D terrain.

This, Cameron said, allowed him to create ‘the ultimate immersive media‘, which he anticipates will exceed any and all expectation.

In essence, this allowed Cameron to direct the film as if it was computer game. If he wanted to change the viewpoint, he could click a few buttons on a mouse and a computer would redraw the virtual world from the new perspective.  Suuuupppeeerrr  coool

James Cameron has always given us movies that are beyond anything we would expect whether it’s about an upcoming apocalypse (“The Terminator,” “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”), a rescue team plunging into an alien-colonized planet (“Aliens”), a secret agent finding out about his cheating wife (“True Lies”), a romantic interpretation of a tragedy (“Titanic”), or a real-life deep sea adventure (“Aliens of the Deep”). So when he releases a new movie with an extremely high budget and spent years and years shaping it, it saddens (and angers) me that people expect it to be downright disappointing. That lack of appreciation for a director who obviously loves his work and cares about his audiences just doesn’t fly with me. That group-think of hoping someone would fail is such an ugly quality and I don’t ever want to be a part of it. As I expected, “Avatar” exceeded expectations and I cannot help but rub its success on the faces of those people who judge a movie by its trailer (including the fools who claim “it sucks” without proper justification such as actually watching the film). Whatever happened to giving something the benefit of the doubt?

“Avatar” tells the story of humans–divided into researchers and the army–who go into another planet called Pandora in hopes of extracting the mineral Unobtainium to save Earth from an energy crisis. The catch is that the area where most of the element of interest is found underneath a giant tree that is inhabited by the Na’vi, the blue-colored, highly spiritual natives who do not get along with the humans despite efforts from the lead researchers (Sigourney Weaver, Joel David Moore) to get to know their culture and customs. After waking up from a coma and finding out about his twin brother’s demise, a paraplegic marine named Jake Sully (Sam Worthington–words cannot describe how much I love this guy) is hired by a colonel (Stephen Lang) to gain the natives’ trust (through transfering his mind into an avatar–a DNA hybrid of man and Na’vi) and double-crossing them in the end. In exchange, the colonel promises to give Jake the functionality of his legs by means of an expensive spine surgery. However, things quickly got more complicated when Jake falls in love with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) and the fact that Jake finds it more liberating (or meaningful?) to be in a Na’vi than a human.

One of the many qualities I loved about this film was its ability to be about a lot of things (love, self-awareness, faith, discovery…) but never losing the wonder of meeting and interacting with an alien culture. Note that I use the word “culture” instead of “species” because we really got to know what they were about and why we ultimately root for them. Right when we plunged into the dangerous world of the Na’vi, I felt like I was experiencing something completely new. Like the lead character, everything was fascinating. I wanted to touch the strange-looking flowers and I wasn’t sure whether a certain creature was friendly or ready to attack. The theme of rebirth was consistently tackled throughout the picture in meaningful ways. Although some may see it as having a religious perspective, being not a religious person myself, I was moved by the possibilities and the interpretations made me feel more alive. I just wish that there were more metaphors and discussions regarding the science. I was interested in how they created an avatar. They did mention DNA hybridization but I’m sure that’s not the complete story. “DNA hybridization” may sound complicated to most people but once one has studied the basics (I have), it’s really a quite simple concept. Having set in the future, it could have really increased that “wow” factor by offering us unconventional explanations and poking fun of the limited technology we have now. (Since we think we’re so technologically advanced nowadays.)

I was very engaged when Weaver’s character was explaining the parallels between the neural connections in our brain and the Navi’s complex relationship with mother nature. That particular scene really supported my ethics and beliefs that a true scientist is sensitive to its subjects and not just all about the cold science. That message is really important to me because, from my experiences, every day I’m surrounded by a lot of people who are all about the brain but who are seriously lacking emotional intelligence. The director makes it apparent that this is about brains vs. brawns (scientists and Na’vis vs. the army) but I think it’s much more layered than that because there were scientists in the film that didn’t care about the natives and there were members of the army that did care (Michelle Rodriguez). Despite all the extended action sequences, I thought it had something more in its core and that’s why I couldn’t help but admire the picture. Admittedly, the story could have been much stronger but when I look back on it, the only way it could strengthen that aspect is to have another hour or so. I certainly wouldn’t cut a scene from the final version because I thought each one had something special to offer. It definitely had Pocahontas elements to it yet it’s different because it was able to offer a modern (or futuristic?) interpretation.

“Avatar” is an outstanding achievement in filmmaking, especially when it comes to its visual effects. I would not be surprised at all if it won every single technical awards in the Oscars or perhaps a Best Picture nomination. With a budget of over $300 million (from what I read from multiple sources), I thought the budget really translated onto film. Not only did the CGI images looked sharp by themselves but it was also amazing to see the CGI mesh so well with live action and the live actors. My experience was also magnified because I saw the movie in 3D. (I suggest you watch it in 3D as well.) With a behemoth of a running time that is 160 minutes (personally, I wish it ran longer), it may seem intimidating at first. But once all the action and imagination starts, you will not want to take a bathroom break. I can only hope others will have a chance to be absorbed in this world that Cameron has created for us. Most of all, I wish that people would stop hating on huge projects such as this one and show more appreciation and humility toward people who work so hard to offer us something new. It’s alright to express distaste after actually giving the final product a chance. But it’s important to still have some respect because what we project to the world is ultimately a reflection of us.

James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is an Academy-Award winning Canadian film director, producer and screenwriter. He has written and directed films as disparate as The Terminator and Titanic. To date, his directorial efforts have grossed approximately US$1.1 billion domestically, unadjusted for inflation. After a string of landmark feature films, Cameron turned his focus to documentary filmmaking and the co-development of the digital 3-D Fusion Camera System. He is currently working on a return to feature filmmaking with the science fiction film Avatar, which will make use of the Fusion Camera System technology. Avatar is scheduled for release in December 2009.

James Cameron (“The Terminator,” “Aliens,” “Titanic”) directed this deep sea adventure which stars Ed Harris as the leader of a team of divers hired for a rescue mission after a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks. His ice queen of a wife (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) who he does not get along with comes along and a lot of tension brews between them. The divers are aided by the Navy led by Michael Biehn but we later discover that he is not emotionally, psychologically, and physically equipped enough to handle the pressure (pun intended) of staying underwater for an extended period of time. This film surprised me because I did not think it would be as emotional as it was. I thought what was going to happen was the divers would find the submarine, encounter some aliens and head back home. I did not think that it was going to be a story of survival, clashing against differing positions of power, dealing with fear and paranoia, and pushing an extraterrestrial agenda. The underwater scenes were nothing short of amazing. I really felt like I was deep sea diving with the characters because all I could see were giant rocks, endless darkness, and blue light coming from their mode of transports. It reminded me of scenes from a fascinating documentary (also directed by Cameron) called “Aliens of the Deep.” I also liked the fact that the alien angle of the story was minimized up until the very end. The tension rises after each scene due to human errors and vulnerabilities so I had no trouble buying into everything that was happening. When Biehn’s character finally lost it, I was scared for all of the characters that he considered his enemy because he knew how to kill and do it efficiently. Although the film could have been shorter, in some ways it worked to its advantage because we really get to feel how it was like to be stuck underwater for almost three hours. Two stand out scenes for me were the resuscitation and the falling into the abyss scenes. I felt a whole range of emotions during those scenes and even I had to tear up a bit because I had no idea how it was all going to turn out. In many ways, it had the drama of “Titanic” and the horror of “The Thing.” There’s a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche (or some version of it) in the beginning of the film that perfectly summed up the experience. That is, “If you look into the abyss, the abyss will look into you.”