Monday, October 14, 2013

Fantastic WDI Video Shows James Cameron, Joe Rhode and WDI Imagineers working on Avatar Land, New Concept-arts, and more !


Wow-ow, Disney Parks has released for D23 Japan a fantastic video showing James Cameron and WDI Imagineers working on Avatar Land! This is the very first insight that you will have in the hyper-secret design of the "World of Pandora" that Imagineers will recreate at Animal Kingdom. And there is even some new artworks shown inside the video!

So, it's time to have a closer look at what this great video is showing us thanks to enhanced screen captures that i did for you. Definitely click on each image to see them in big size!

The video starts with James Cameron talking from the performance capture stage where he actually shoot scenes for one of the THREE upcoming Avatar sequels - if you have a closer look you'll even be able to see one of the scenes of the new movie! Cameron say how delighted he is to work with WDI Imagineers and, wishing the best to guests of D23 Expo Japan, he add that Lightstorm and WDI share a same deep commitment to create an unparalleled immersive environment for the Avatar land.


Then, Imagineer Joe Rhode  appear - picture on top - and describes more precisely what guests will experience at Animal Kingdom Avatar Land and how the land will "come to life" when you'll interact with it and will seems to be a living creature itself. Joe Rhode also say how the project will be filled with new technology, new style, new materials, and is a tremendous tour de force to achieve what they thought was impossible, a recreation of the world of Pandora. The video last 3.35 minutes and during this time here are the great shots that you can see in the video that you will find of course at the end of this article.

First, there is shots of a meeting at WDI with James Cameron, Bob Iger, Tom Staggs, Joe Rhode and others WDI Imagineers in a room with a model of Avatar land...


You've note the two Navi's statue in the background, i suppose. Here is a closer shot of the same meeting.


Always during the same meeting there is another interesting shot with Joe Rhode talking to James Cameron in a room where are displayed on the walls unseen Avatar land renderings!!


Talking about renderings the video shows two new artworks starting by this first impressive one below showing a daylight view of the land on a new angle.


Now you remember this other beautiful artwork unveiled last Saturday, always showing the land by daylight...


Well, thanks to the video you can discover how will look exactly the same scene at night!


And as we talk of night scenes the video also do an interesting zoom on the boat ride artwork that you saw Saturday, proving that there will be six guests by boat in case you didn't noticed it yet.


Where things become extremely interesting is when the video shows James Cameron, Joe Rhode and others looking at a test of what seems to be the movie for the flight simulator ride, not the final version of the movie, of course.


When you look at the video it seems that the platform from which they look at the movie is moving but in fact it's not, it's the movie itself which gives this feeling.


Others greats shot also show James Cameron testing the creation of WDI Imagineers to reproduce the bioluminescent vegetation of Pandora.


And another sequence shows Cameron with Joe Rhode looking at a movie which also seems to be related to Pandora's vegetation.


The icing on the top of the cake comes with this incredible shot showing the whole team of WDI  Imagineers working on the Avatar land, the most secret team of all WDI! 



And now, as i know you're dying to watch the video here it is, of course watch it in full screen mode!



Pictures and video: copyright Disney

5 comments:

Rafael said...

It will be amazing. It would be awesome if Paris could receive Pandora at the Studios.

K. Martinez said...

It looks great. I haven't been to WDW in quite a while and this just might be a deciding factor whether I make a return trip to Florida or not in the future. Nothing currently offered at the WDW property is beckoning me back. Also smart move to place it in DAK. It definitely fits the theme.

Marco Antonio Garcia said...

Wow again! That's incredibly awesome!!!

I must say that I'm not a big Avatar fan, I mean, I liked the movie, but didn't love it, nevertheless I must say that this is really impressive, probably the most impressive thing ever built in a Theme Park if the renderings are fateful to what will be built.

Mark Hickson said...

The Bio lighting effect is fiber optic strands that can be moved with your hand. Looks like the attraction mix for now is a flight simulator, a dark boat ride and an interactive walk-thru. "Pandora" will be taking the place of Camp Mickey.

Marco Antonio Garcia said...

Well Rafael, maybe if DLP manages to save a lot of money for a couple of hundred years the Resort will have the money to add Pandora to the Studios!

By the way, the concept of the family walking at night and the floor lighting as they walk looks great, but considering that during most part of the year those patches will be packed with people, the whole patch will be always alight most of the time...