James Cameron: An Avatar for Success

With Blockbuster films like Terminator, Terminator 2, Alien, Titanic, and now Avatar, it would be safe to say that the world has heard of James Cameron. Also with Titanic and Avatar being the top two all time grossing films in history. He is considered by the world to be a success. But he wasn't born spitting out one successful picture after another. So how did this self made successful man start off? And what did it take for him to become such a tremendous success?

Born James Francis Cameron on the 16th of August 1954, in Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada. Nobody could have ever imagined how he would change the world around him.

The town of Kapuskasing is located halfway between the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and Toronto. It is where Phillip and Shirley Cameron started their life together. They were from families with traditional values. Young and in love they thought their marriage would last forever.

Phillip was a very salt of the earth no nonsense kind of guy. While Shirley grew up with an interest of the arts, especially drawing and painting. She had a more liberal veiw of the world. Phillip and Shirley intent on having a big family eventually had 5 children. James Francis Cameron was their first born.

From an early age James seem to be fasinated with fantasy. Just like many other young boys of that time, his room was littered with comic books. He especially enjoyed the Marvel comics. Spiderman and the X-men were his favorites. James spent many weekends encamped at the nearby Niagra Falls cinema with his siblings and friends. Where he developed a love for movies.

At the age of 12 James decided to be a comic book artist when he grew up, and told anyone who would listen of his plans for his career. With his mothers influence, and encouragement it is no surprise he had become a fairly good artist by the age of 12.

Comic books continued to fascinate James up until high school where his interested turned more towards science fiction. James Cameron has said "I would have to say that in my youth I was an absolutely rabid science fiction fan. I read all the classics, all the old Ace paperback novels. I was really into people like Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, and Kurt Vonnegut. When I read science fiction I saw stuff in my head that I had never seen in films." - ( Marc Shapiro's book)

In 1971 when James was a teenager his father an engineer got a job in orange county. Now living in California his dream had expanded and he was intent on becoming a film maker. So James was happy to be closer to Hollywood.

After graduating from High School James was torn between two career paths, the arts or Science. In 1973 James announced to family and friends he had decided to become a scientist. Enrolled at nearby Fullerton College (a two year community college) James majored in Physics and English with a minor in Engineering.

James made good grades at college but was torn between the strict reality of science and the freedom of the arts. During those frustrating days at college James would go to great lengths to explore creative outlets to calm his mind. James would often borrow the camera of a family friend Susan Gaede. He was often eager to play with her camera. After struggling with higher level Math, he became interested in becoming a writer.

At the age of 20 he dropped out of college shortly before the fall semester in 1974. Having to work several different kinds of jobs to support his writing dreams. When not working as a truck driver for a local school district, you could find him making amateur movies, reading or writing. His dreams still alive even if he couldn't support himself with them yet.

Things changed in 1977 when he went to the theater and saw Star Wars for the first time. James Cameron said "I walked into Star Wars and just went 'Wow!'" he recalled, remembering that magic moment. "Star Wars was what I had been seeing in my head all along, I saw that all the things I had been imagining could now be done." - (Marc Shapiro's book)

Obviously inspired he knew he had to change his career path if he was going to make his dream come true. So he started pitching ideals for a movie looking for funding. After securing money to make his first movie, he quite his job and started the task of learning the art and craft of making movies. He read everything he could get his hands on. He made his own models, sets, and even dolly tracks at his home. But he was fast on his way to making his first movie and pursuing his dream. Due to an unexpected change in his funding he had to cut his first film to just 12 minutes. If you haven't ever heard of his first movie or seen it then check this out.

Xeno Genesis
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8786521104625863614#

James had made amateur movies up until 1977 basically only showing them to family and friends, but never attempting to get them into the hands of anyone in the industry that could help him make his dreams happen. Without the money he needed to finish his film he edited his film into a 12 minute special effects laden promo reel. And with the new 35 millimeter film Xeno Genesis in hand as a calling card. He felt inspired enough to take the next step. In 1980 he used this short film to get in the door of Roger Corman's New World Pictures.

Roger Corman was known for giving many unknowns their first chance to make movies so James figured it was a good place to start. So he went calling with his short promo in hand.
"I just knocked on their door one day with these reels," Cameron laughingly recalled the day he showed Xenon Genesis to Chuck Kaminsky, the head of 'I can build miniatures, I can work an effects camera and I know a bit about animation.' I wasn't looking for anything more than a job as an effects technician." -(Marc Shipiro's book)

Chuck Kaminsky was impressed enough with James that he gave him a job. James started work on Battle Beyond the Stars, and quickly became the film's production designer. This was James first real theatrical job. It was the chance that put him on his way toward his dreams of a film career.

James took every opportunity to learn from his time at Roger Corman's New World Pictures.
He spent as much time as he could on the set. A constant perfectionist he never gave up on his dreams. Not his dream of becoming a film maker or a writer. He continued to perfect his skills as a movie maker and continued to write.

He debuted as a director in 1981 with Piranha Part Two: The Spawning. His dreams where beginning to become reality.

His screen play Terminator was a huge success among Hollywood studio's but nobody wanted to let James direct it because he had very little experience or credit as a director.
Unwilling to let any studio make Terminator without him being the director finally in 1984
he directed The Terminator. A futuristic action-thriller starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton. It was a huge success. After this came a string of successful science-fiction action films such as Aliens in 1986 and Terminator 2: Judgment Day in 1991. He became one of the most sought-after directors in Hollywood.

A very successful writer, and director James still had not approached his greatest accomplishments yet. Nobody at this time could have known what the future had in store for him. But it wasn't all successes, and definitely wasn't easy. He had challenges both professionally and personally. Professionally he lost a copyright lawsuit brought by Harlan Ellison involving the movie The Terminator. Newer prints of the film acknowledge Ellison. Just to be able to direct The Terminator, James had to give up the rights to the movie, and has no rights to the the huge profits of the saga. Personally he had been married and divorced several times already by this time.

Spouses up to this point in time:

Sharon Williams (14 February 1978 - 1984) (divorced)
Gale Anne Hurd (1985 - 1989) (divorced)
Kathryn Bigelow (17 August 1989 - 1991) (divorced)

James always working and always dreaming carried on and didn't let anything stop him from his dreams. He made True Lies which was not considered a success by any means and it was racked with controversy. The movie content seemed to bother several organizations. James continued and moved on to other movies.

He was consumed with the Titanic by the fall of 1995. He was so immersed into his research that he was becoming his own expert. However, he wasn't happy. He knew he could overcome all the problems that this movie presented. But He felt he needed to shoot the actual Titanic.
James Cameron announced, in an excerpt from a personal diary that appeared in Wired magazine, that unless he could film the actual remains of the Titanic, he would not make the film. "I wanted to create a kind of living history of the event. I thought, 'We have to shoot it for real.'" - (Marc Shiparo's book)

Forever the artist he drew the picture of Rose (Kate Winslet) in the movie, Titanic (1997).
On the 14 March 2004 episode of "Inside the Actors Studio" (1994), Kate Winslet claimed her nude portrait for Leonardo DiCaprio in the Titanic (1997) was drawn by Cameron. She also said the artist's hand shown in a close-up was Cameron's.-(Internet Movie Data Base)

Titanic became a mega-success for James. With it's over 200 special effect shots it personally won him three Academy Awards. And became the highest grossing film in history.

While his professional life was on track his personal life was once again in turmoil. With yet another marriage falling apart. His marriage to:
Linda Hamilton (26 July 1997 - 1999) (divorced) 1 child:
Josephine Archer Cameron born 15 February 1993.

James the constant perfectionist and dreamer still had yet another goal to reach for but for this movie he would have to fall back on his science background and put on his inventors hat.

The movie Avatar was in his head but technology was not able to make his dream a reality yet. There was no way to take the people of earth to Pandora.

As a young boy James had loved to read jungle adventures. He wanted to make a movie that would tie a jungle adventure, science fiction, and special effects all together to tell the amazing story he had in his head and was writing. But there was no way to do it.
So James put his companies to the task of creating. He found the actors he needed to tell the story virtual unknowns at the time. Although it would take him more than 10 years to create the magic that is Pandora on the screen for us James was constantly moving his dream into reality. Turning the impossible at the time into the possible.

(When asked how did he come up with the story for Avatar) Well, my inspiration is every single science fiction book I read as a kid. And a few that weren't science fiction. The Edgar Rice Burroughs books, H. Rider Haggard - the manly, jungle adventure writers. I wanted to do an old fashioned jungle adventure, just set it on another planet, and play by those rules.-(Internet Movie Data Base)

Working hard with his production company 'Lightstorm Entertainment', and the company that he was one of the founders of a visual effects company 'Digital Domain' the journey to Pandora was set into motion.

In his role as an inventor, which he had to do to overcome the challenge of turning the images in his head into images we all could see on the big screen this is his notable accomplishments:

Co-created the newly high-definition video system with cinematographer Vince Pace that was recently used to film Ghosts of the Abyss (2003).

He has developed a new generation stereo imaging camera called "The Fusion Camera"

In the time between making Titanic and his return to feature films with Avatar, Cameron spent some years creating documentary films, and also co-developing the digital 3-D Fusion Camera System. Described by a biographer as part-scientist and part-artist, Cameron has also contributed to underwater filming and remote vehicle technologies.-(wikipedia)

Now with all the parts in place, all the players on board, the inventions acquired, and story all ready to tell he could finally make this journey happen. And oh what a journey! For over two and a half hours you will be enveloped into the screen, the action, and the lives of the nature loving Natives of this amazing world Pandora. His imagination once again has taken the world to higher levels of enjoyment, and amazement and has paid off at the box office for James, becoming the all-time number one grossing movie in history, out doing his movie Titanic. The 3-D and special effects in this movie will truly change how movies are made.

On Avatar (2009): My approach to 3-D is in a way quite conservative. We're making a two-and-a-half-hour-plus film and I don't want to assault the eye every five seconds. I want it to be comfortable. I want you to forget after a few minutes that you are really watching 3-D and just have it operate at a subliminal, subconscious level. That's the key to great 3-D and it makes the audience feel like real participants in what's going on.-(Internet Movie Data Base)

Oh and he seemed to put it all together finally with his amazing professional success, he has found what seems to be his life long love in his current spouse.
Suzy Amis (4 June 2000 - present) 3 children:
Twins, Claire and Quinn, born 4 April 2001.
Elizabeth Rose, born on 29 December 2006.
Also has a stepson named Jasper, from Suzy Amis' marriage to Sam Robards.

Oh yes it has been a wild ride, and an amazing journey for James. I am just so glad he has taken us along for the ride. I personally can't wait to see what he will come up with next. This man is truly an Avatar for success!
But if you only learn one thing from this journey that James Cameron has taken us on then let it be to always go for your dreams. He never stops dreaming. He never lets anything stand in his way, overcoming any problem to make his dreams a reality. He never seems to stop learning, imagining new possibilities, and growing his skills to make himself even better then he was. Well I hope you have enjoyed the story and enjoyed the journey of this very successful man. Here is a list of his awards he has earned along the way:

Awards for
James Cameron

Oscar Nominations
Academy Awards, USA
Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s)
2010 Nominated Oscar Best Achievement in Directing
for: Avatar (2009)

Best Achievement in Editing
for: Avatar (2009)
Shared with:
Stephen E. Rivkin
John Refoua

Best Motion Picture of the Year
for: Avatar (2009)
Shared with:
Jon Landau

1998 Won Oscar Best Director
for: Titanic (1997)

Best Film Editing
for: Titanic (1997)
Shared with:
Conrad Buff IV
Richard A. Harris

Best Picture
for: Titanic (1997)
Shared with:
Jon Landau

Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s)
2003 - President's Award
The Oscar-winning filmmaker and auteur that helped develop the face of modern genre film-making. His classic works include: The Terminator (1984), The Abyss (1989), Aliens (1986), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) and producer of the recent film Solaris (2002). He took mainstream film by storm with his monumental blockbuster Titanic (1997), which is the all-time box office champ. Mr. Cameron receives this award in recognition of his continued devotion to quality film-making much in the spirit of our founder Dr. Donald A. Reed.

1998 - President's Award

1996 Nominated Saturn Award Best Writing
for: Strange Days (1995)
Shared with:
Jay Cocks

1995 Won Saturn Award Best Director
for: True Lies (1994)

1995 Won Saturn Award Best Director
for: Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Nominated Saturn Award Best Writing
for: Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Shared with:
William Wisher Jr.

1991 Won Saturn Award Best Director
for: The Abyss (1989)

Nominated Saturn Award Best Writing
for: The Abyss (1989)

Sources:
Internet movie Data base
http://www.imdb.com

Marc Shapiro, James Cameron: An Unauthorized Biography of the Filmmaker, Renaissance Books: Los Angeles (2000)

wikipedia