Director James Cameron had been working on Avatar since he first wrote its 80 page treatment. When he realised technology was not at the stage it needed to be to pull Avatar off, he decided to shelve it and wait until the VFX industry caught up with his imagination.
20th Century Fox then gave him $10 million to direct a proof-of-concept for Avatar. Soon after, they greenlit the production.
The motion capture work lasted for only 31 days. Then the real work began — the innovative visual effects that no one else had been able to deliver. Cameron persevered with his vision and brought a whole new universe to audiences.
Avatar made $2.9 billion at the box office to become the most successful feature film ever made.
In this official documentary, Cameron and his team reveal the techniques used to shoot the biggest box office hit of all time.