James Cameron buys 50 Red Epic-M cameras, probably for Avatar sequels

By Adam Rosenberg April 25, 2011

James Cameron seems to be getting himself set before he goes into production on the next Avatar movie. A pair of upcoming sequels to the 2009 sci-fi hit were confirmed late last year, with stated plans to drop Avatar 2 in 2014 and Avatar 3 in 2015. He shot the initial movie using a set of Sony HD cameras and, for the 3D, a modified version of the 3D digital Fusion Camera System, which he developed with Vince Pace. It seems he might be going with one of the increasingly popular offerings from Jim Jannard’s Red Digital Cinema Camera Company for the two sequels.

In a brief post on the company’s REDUSER discussion forums, Jannard wrote: “Jim Cameron buys… 50 EPIC-Ms. An official announcement to follow.” That announcement hasn’t yet followed, but the purpose of the purchase, part of it anyway, seems clear enough. Maybe Cameron has big plans for a relative’s upcoming wedding, but the more likely conclusion here is that he intends to use some or all of these cameras for the Avatar sequels.

Cameron picked up Red’s Epic-M cameras, which are reported to run for roughly $58,000 apiece. They shoot at a 5K resolution — the top of what’s out there right now — which means that when Avatar: The Big Huge Special Edition Trilogy box set comes out for whatever the reigning high-def home video format will be in 2020, it won’t look like crap on your futureTV.

Cameron joins a small yet growing group of other filmmakers who will be the first to make magic happen with Red’s Epic-M line. Peter Jackson nabbed 30 of them for his upcoming two-part telling of The Hobbit. Steven Soderbergh used them for his 2011-releasing ensemble action flick Contagion. Red will also be used for Ridley Scott‘s Alien prequel/spin-off/whatever Prometheus and Marc Webb’s The Amazing Spider-Man.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Sci-Fi

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

Entertainment

The best thrillers on Netflix right now

Willem Dafoe and Denzel Washington in Inside Man.

When it comes to thrillers on Netflix, April is apparently Denzel Washington month. Washington stars in three of our new picks for the best thrillers on Netflix, including Inside Man, Devil in a Blue Dress, and The Little Things. This is clearly a genre that plays to Washington's strengths, as he's been headlining thrillers for decades now.

The other new addition to our list this month is Body Double, a 40-year-old thriller that will hopefully be rediscovered now that it's on Netflix. If you're looking for even more thrills, then keep reading for all of the best thrillers on Netflix right now.

Entertainment

Like Amazon Prime Video’s Fallout series? Then watch these 5 great movies right now

A woman looks out at an industrial landscape in Fallout.

Amazon Prime Video is wishing everyone a happy apocalypse this month as all eight episodes of Fallout season 1 hit the streaming servic e. But even if this show is a breakout hit that gets an immediate second season order, it could be two years or longer before new episodes arrive. So if you're looking for more postapocalyptic stories, then you've come to the right place.

However, the thing that you need to remember is that there's almost nothing else that shares the exact tone of Fallout, which can be really funny without slipping into farce. Regardless, some of our picks clearly inspired the Fallout games and the TV show. And you can see for yourself as we run down the five great movies that you need to see if you like Fallout.
Six-String Samurai (1998)

Entertainment

3 great sci-fi movies on Hulu you need to watch in April 2024

A close up of one of the giant robots in Pacific Rim.

One of the things that's become clear with the recent arrival of Hulu on Disney+ is that the former is more of a real streamer than the latter. If you want sci-fi movies on Disney+, there aren't many options beyond Star Wars and a handful of live-action movies that were produced by Disney itself. Hulu, on the other hand, can pull from 20th Century Fox's R-rated sci-fi flicks like Alien and Predator, while also adding an assortment of modern science fiction movies from other studios.

To make things easier for you, we've put together this list of the three sci-fi movies on Hulu that you need to watch in April. Only one of the three films is on loan from a rival studio, which means that it won't be around on Hulu in May. But all three are going to give you the science fiction fix that you need.
The Fifth Element (1997)