I saw Avatar the other day, and I was taken by the magic of that world. I think the reason that it captivated me was because I always wondered what if things were even more connected, what if we could send thoughts between people, animals, etc.
Did you know that Aspen trees in many places in North America are interconnected. They have the same root system for miles at a time. Is that not amazing!..
What if intelligent life developed in the forms of trees, or maybe that is where it is going...
***
The second thought that has struck me is the story of James Cameron. There is definitely a lesson here:
He grew up in Canada, and later on in California when his family moved. He was captivated by the movie industry, but did not see a way to make it happen. "I couldn't see myself as a future film director. In fact, there was a definite feeling on my part that those people were somehow born into it, almost like a caste system. Little kids from a small town in Canada didn't get to direct movies."
He enrolled in California State University at Fullerton, where he decided to study physics. "I liked science and I thought I might want to be a marine biologist or physicist. But I also liked to write, so I was pulled in a lot of different directions. I liked the idea of an ocean, even though I'd never seen or been in one. I loved the idea of being in another world, and anything that could transport me to another world is what I was interested in."
While he was doing well in school, it was not his thing and he ended up dropping out and working a series of random jobs "such as working in a machine shop, being a truck driver, a school bus driver, painting pictures, while he continued to write at night."
"I was completely self taught in special effects. I'd go down to the USC library and pull any theses that graduate students had written about optical printing, or front screen projection, or dye transfers, anything that related to film technology…if they'd let me photocopy it, I would. If not, I'd make notes."
"Filmmakers, especially those with a technical bent, admire Cameron for "his willingness to incorporate new technologies in his films without waiting for them to be perfected," says Bruce Davis, the executive director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. It adds to the risky nature of Cameron's projects, but his storytelling has reaped enormous benefits. There's a term in Hollywood for Cameron's style of directing, Davis says: "They call this ‘building the parachute on the way down.'"
"I was completely self taught in special effects. I'd go down to the USC library and pull any theses that graduate students had written about optical printing, or front screen projection, or dye transfers, anything that related to film technology…if they'd let me photocopy it, I would. If not, I'd make notes."
"Filmmakers, especially those with a technical bent, admire Cameron for "his willingness to incorporate new technologies in his films without waiting for them to be perfected," says Bruce Davis, the executive director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. It adds to the risky nature of Cameron's projects, but his storytelling has reaped enormous benefits. There's a term in Hollywood for Cameron's style of directing, Davis says: "They call this ‘building the parachute on the way down.'"
By Anne Thompson
- Popular Mechanics
