Zhangjiajie, Avatar Filming Location / Avatar Sequel / Avatar 2
A group of mountain ranges floating in the sky, shrouded in mist, beautiful and magnificent... This is the classic scene “floating mountains” from Avatar. Recently, the World Natural Heritage site Zhangjiajie launched an “Avatar Tour” for visitors, allowing them to experience a real-life version of Avatar based on scenes from the film. Director Cameron once said that Avatar was “inspired by Zhangjiajie,” but whether the real-life “Hallelujah Mountain” is based on Huangshan or Zhangjiajie became...
A group of mountain ranges floating in the sky, shrouded in mist, beautiful and magnificent... This is the classic scene “floating mountains” from Avatar. Recently, the World Natural Heritage site Zhangjiajie launched an “Avatar Tour” for visitors, allowing them to experience a real-life version of Avatar based on scenes from the film. Director Cameron once said that Avatar was “inspired by Zhangjiajie,” but whether the real-life “Hallelujah Mountain” is based on Huangshan or Zhangjiajie became the focus of debate among netizens and the tourism industry. By slowing down the film, it can be found that about 25 minutes are entirely Zhangjiajie's mountain and water scenery. Appearing multiple times are the South Heaven Pillar on the front mountain of Huangshizhai, and Cleaving the Mountain to Save the Mother in Golden Whip Stream appears no fewer than 5 times.
However, what appears most often are still the Baofeng Lake waterfall and the Qingtian Pillar (Qiankun Pillar) inside Mihun Platform in Yuanjiajie. The biggest difference between Zhangjiajie and Huangshan is that Huangshan is granite landform, very smooth on top with almost no vegetation, while Zhangjiajie is quartz sandstone landform, with very lush vegetation coverage on top.
The newly launched “Avatar Tour” by Zhangjiajie Traveler's Club will combine 15 scenes from the film and offer multiple tour routes such as “Avatar - Pandora Magical Tour,” “Avatar - Hallelujah Mountain Fantasy Tour,” and “Avatar - Floating Mountain Mystery Tour.” The attractions cover classic scenic areas in Zhangjiajie such as Golden Whip Stream and Yuanjiajie, but each route has its own style and characteristics. Major clubs, mainly the Hunan Zhangjiajie Traveler's Club, have launched the “Zhangjiajie Avatar Tour” premium travel route for domestic and international tourists, and it is deeply welcomed by visitors. This tour route will lead visitors to personally experience the magical and spectacular world of the American sci-fi blockbuster Avatar. On the Golden Whip Stream route, they can experience romantic outdoor scenes from the film such as “Welcoming Guests Rock,” “Golden Whip Rock,” “Cleaving the Mountain to Save the Mother,” and “Meeting After a Thousand Miles.” On the Yuanjiajie route, they can admire the prototype of the Hallelujah floating mountain piercing the clouds, the “Qiankun Pillar,” as well as mysterious scenery such as “Number One Bridge Under Heaven” and “Mihun Platform.” On the Tianzi Mountain route, they can enter the fantasy mystery realm composed of attractions such as “West Sea Peak Forest,” “Warriors Taming Horses,” “Imperial Brush Peak,” and “Fairy Presenting Flowers.” On the Baofeng Lake route, they can touch the dreamlike scenery from the film. This tour route truly allows Chinese and international visitors to personally experience the magic and grandeur of the American sci-fi blockbuster Avatar in Zhangjiajie, Hunan, China.
Since Zhangjiajie Traveler's Club newly launched the “Avatar Tour” premium travel route, it has received countless travel inquiries and tourist group bookings. Although winter is the off-season for tourism in Zhangjiajie each year, the number of tourists coming to Zhangjiajie to experience the “Avatar Tour” has been gradually increasing, nearly tripling compared with last year.
On January 25, 2010, Zhangjiajie's Qiankun Pillar was officially renamed Avatar's “Hallelujah Mountain.” On that day, hundreds of local residents and domestic and international tourists witnessed the renaming ceremony. The Qiankun Pillar is one of Zhangjiajie's “three thousand wondrous peaks.” It is located at the southern end of the Yuanjiajie Scenic Area, at an altitude of 1,074 meters, with a vertical height of about 150 meters. It has the imposing presence of holding up heaven and standing on earth, hence the name Qiankun Pillar. In December 2008, Hollywood photographer Hanson conducted a four-day location shoot in Zhangjiajie. A large number of landscape photos later became prototypes for various elements of the “Pandora Planet” in the American sci-fi blockbuster Avatar. Among them, the image of the Qiankun Pillar became the prototype of “Hallelujah Mountain,” the floating mountain. After Avatar became a global hit, hundreds of millions of viewers around the world became even more fascinated by Zhangjiajie, the prototype location of “Hallelujah Mountain.”
On January 26, Beijing time, Avatar director James Cameron revealed the first draft of the sequel to this 3D blockbuster, Avatar 2, while attending the Producers Guild of America Awards ceremony. He stated that the production team had been planning to build the world in the Avatar film and had been advancing these characters. The original intention of making Avatar was to lay the foundation for creating a sustainable new world. Avatar 2 will create a new world and new characters. Cameron said the team will invest more funds to make a film even more perfect than the first Avatar.
Avatar 2 Plot Revealed
When talking about the plot of Avatar 2, Cameron said he had plans to make a sequel very early on. “From the beginning, I had the outline of the entire story in my head. Some scenes in Avatar were specifically reserved as foreshadowing for the sequel.” It is understood that in the plot of Avatar 2, humanity will fly out of Pandora and arrive at a gas-rich planet named Polyphemis, exploring its completely different ecological environment.
Cameron revealed that the production team already has quite a few ideas about the several moons of Polyphemis and the ACA (the Alpha Centauri A) solar system. Polyphemis is a gas planet twice the size of Jupiter, with a red spotted surface and atmospheric layers covered year-round by swirling hurricanes. Because its eye resembles the black pupil of the cyclops Polyphemus in Greek mythology, it got this name. Pandora in the Avatar film is one of this planet's fourteen moons.
Cameron further stated that he will spend more money to build and beautify this new world, including all digital characters, digital plants, trees, mountains, and so on. Once these are completed, the film will achieve twice the result with half the effort. This may mean that in Avatar 2, humanity will conduct deeper exploration of the solar system, or Jake will lead the Na'vi into space.
Sequel Preparations Ready
Many viewers who have seen Avatar call it a great film. One reason is that it created a complete world and endowed it with countless vivid details sufficient to make it believable. Considering that the huge investment in Avatar was mainly in technological equipment innovation and the modeling of the film's computer characters and virtual scenes, if no sequel were made, these intangible assets would be wasted.
Therefore, Cameron has stated on multiple occasions that he wants to make sequels, and at least two more. It is understood that the production company is currently hiring technical staff for Avatar 2. In addition, some main actors, including Sam Worthington, who plays the male lead Jake, and behind-the-scenes technical staff, have signed 3-5 year contracts with the production team and related institutions.
In a recent interview with MTV, Cameron also said: “Completing Avatar 2 will be relatively easier because the related technology is already familiar, and the sequel will be shot quickly. When we made the first film, we spent a lot of time creating the alien world and these characters. After we finished the capture, we spent another 9 to 10 months creating the CG characters. Then we made their facial muscles move... Now we have Jake, we have Neytiri. Sam can perform immediately. These computer characters are like their gloves. So we can start immediately.”
Production Team Will Shoot in Zhangjiajie
Cameron once said he believes 3D technology will increasingly become mainstream. In Avatar, 60% is pure special effects technology, and 40% is live-action, with live-action combined with special effects. Hollywood CG art design master Eric Hanson, who worked closely with the Avatar production team, is an expert lecturer for the National Original Animation Advanced Training Class (animation technology direction) hired by China's Ministry of Culture, and also a specially appointed visiting professor at Hunan University's Digital Media Research Institute. He served as scene production supervisor for The Fifth Element and The Day After Tomorrow, was responsible for producing many Hollywood special-effects blockbusters, and is one of the judges for the Academy Awards. It is understood that Eric Hanson, accompanied by staff from Hunan University's Digital Media Research Institute, went deep into Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area in mid-December 2008 for a four-day location shoot.
Guo Honghui, chairman of Zhangjiajie Tourism Company, said in an interview that since the company planned and launched Zhangjiajie's “Avatar Tour” themed travel, it has attracted great attention from tourists and all sectors of society. The company immediately contacted Gao Chunming, director of Hunan University's Digital Media Research Institute. According to information provided by Director Gao, the Avatar production team is currently preparing related work for the sequel and will arrange time to go to Zhangjiajie again for location shooting. Recently, Zhangjiajie Tourism Company is using relevant channels to invite director Cameron and the main creative staff of the production team to Hunan for location scouting and exchange, and has already carried out a series of preparatory work for this.
Guo Honghui, who was attending the “2010 CITS Expo Alliance National Work Conference” in Shanghai, recently revealed by phone that China International Travel Service Head Office has considered launching Zhangjiajie's “Avatar Tour” themed travel route nationwide after the Spring Festival. Recently, according to Zhangjiajie's tourism department, although this month is the winter off-season, as of January 27, the number of tourists visiting Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area reached 129,529, 1.5 times the number in the same period last year. Among them, Yellow Dragon Cave Scenic Area received a total of 15,000 domestic and international tourists, up 30% year-on-year. It can be predicted that with the further popularity of Avatar and the location shooting and buildup for Avatar 2, Zhangjiajie has already ushered in a new upsurge in tourism amid widespread debate and heated discussion in public opinion.