The third and latest film in director James Cameron's Avatar series, Avatar: Fire and Ashes, will be released simultaneously in Japan and the US on December 19th. To commemorate this, a two-part documentary, The Making of Avatar, which captures behind-the-scenes footage of the previous film, Way of Water, and the latest, Fire and Ashes, will be exclusively released on the streaming site Disney+ Star from November 7th. A trailer for the documentary has also been released.
"Avatar: Fire and Ashes" is the third film in the series, following "Avatar" (2009) and "Avatar: Way of Water" (2022). The series is set in the year 2154, when Earth is on the brink of destruction. Humanity's last hope for survival lies on the mysterious planet Pandora. In order to mine valuable mineral resources, humanity develops "avatars," bodies that combine the DNA of the indigenous Na'vi and humans. Jake (Sam Worthington), a former Marine who lost both legs in battle and lost hope in life, becomes an avatar and comes into contact with the Na'vi. Resonating with their way of life, Jake falls in love with a Na'vi woman, Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), and regains his will to live.
Jake and Neytiri have built a family and are living peacefully with their children, including Kili (Sigourney Weaver) and their son Roak (Britten Dalton). However, when humans led by Quaritch (Stephen Lang) appear on Pandora, they are driven out of the sacred forest. Jake and his friends join forces with the "Sea Tribe" they encounter there, and despite great sacrifices, they succeed in repelling the humans.
The latest film also features familiar characters, including Tonowari (Cliff Curtis), the tribal leader of the sea tribe "Metkaina," who fought alongside Jake and the others against human invasion, his wife Ronal (Kate Winslet), Tsireya (Bailey Bass), who shares a bond with Roak, and the giant sea creature Turkun. Additionally, the film features the first appearance of Varan (Oona Chaplin), leader of the "Ash Tribe," who, unlike the "Forest People" and "Sea People" who have coexisted with nature, has developed a deep hatred for nature after being betrayed by it. Director Cameron expressed confidence, saying, "It's definitely the most emotional of the three films, and people have said it's probably the best. I think it's a moving film."
The documentary also includes first-look footage from the latest film, "Fire and Ashes," and features extensive filming across the globe, including Manhattan Beach and San Pedro in California, Lake Shasta, Hawaii, the French Channel Islands, New Zealand, and the Bahamas.
The trailer includes footage that gives a glimpse behind the scenes of how the ultimate spectacular 3D images are created through the filming process, which was meticulously focused on authenticity, and the live performances of the actors that add realism.
At the beginning, director Cameron said, "Avatar makes use of technology, but the people who made it are incredibly talented. They captured every expression and emotional movement and brought the world to life." Saldana, who plays Neytiri, said, "Without actors, all we have on Pandora is the scenery," and Washington, who plays Jake, emphasized, "Every scene is based on acting; everything is real."
The video also features Jon Landau, who served as producer on numerous Cameron films, including "Titanic" (1997) and the "Avatar" series, and passed away last July due to illness, revealing that performance capture was done not only on land but also underwater, saying, "We want to capture and digitize the performance, even underwater. The actors can perform in an environment similar to Pandora." At the end of the video, director Cameron says, "We'll take you behind the scenes of the production, which overcame a mountain of challenges," further building anticipation ahead of the release of his latest film.
