A.

2 Case Study
Avatar(2009) – Blockbuster film
By Rory Forde
 Initial Ideas
The film started out like any other movie,
with a story and some concept art, however
at the time (pre-2005) it was felt that the
technology did not meet the need for what
the filmmakers envisioned. In 2005 it was felt
that the technology to produce the movie
was available. To create the world that the
story was set in, many artists were hired to
envision this world. Multiple areas around
Additionally, the design team China were used as inspiration for the setting
used animals on Earth as of Avatar.
inspiration for the animals in
Avatar, scaling them up to suit
the world of Pandora, the
setting of the Movie.
Inspiration for the design of
the alien characters would
have been taken from tribal
art.
 Setting and Costumes
Around 25 different sets were used in the production of Avatar, with around 40,000
square feet of floor area alongside a rainforest set consisting of around 10,000 square
feet. Furthermore, a year and a half’s work was put into creating props for the movie
alongside thousands of costumes. For different settings there would be a need for a
multitude of risk assessments, as there would be different risks posed with differing
sets. In addition to this a location recce would have needed to be created for the
rainforest set due to its size.
 Training the performers
The actors had to undergo many courses before they could be
recorded, these courses included:
• How to ride a horse
• Archery
• Dialect and Language training (A new language had to be
learnt consisting of between 400 and 500 words)
• Short and simplified marine corp training (Main Character)
• Weaponry and fight training
• Helicopter piloting training (This was done to make the
movements of the pilots in the movie more realistic)
This would have proved necessary as to ensure the safety of the
performers and also add realism to the movie.
 Sound design and acting
Sounds were recorded from real objects and wildlife, additionally these
sounds were then manipulated to create new sounds that are unique to the
world that the producers wanted to create.

The artists were taken to a real rainforest so that they would be able to
reproduce the movements that their body would make when in an
environment like that of the movie’s. Actors could reproduce the body
movements associated with stepping into deep mud, or traversing the rocky
landscape of some parts of the vast world in the movie. There would have
been a location recce and a risk assessment created as to prevent any harm
to the actors and crew.

Two soundtracks were created for the movie, one half was to represent the
human race in the film and the other soundtrack was created to represent
the alien race within the movie.