Finally the visual effects category appears to be getting more recognition. The Academy Awards next year will feature five nominees instead of the three that have so far been the norm. The board of governors also changed rules governing the Feature Animation category. The minimum length of these features has been brought down from 70 minutes to 40 minutes. This puts it on par with other feature film categories.
The changes seem to represent the ever growing impact of animation in the present filmmaking business. Graphics, stop motion animation and such have been growing quality and importance for a while now. But sadly it has lacked the recognition. The fact that Andy Serkis was refused a nomination for his role as “Gollum” in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is still a sticking point for many.
In other news, James Cameron will bring back his blockbuster hit “Avatar” one more time to limited cinemas. Digital 3-D and IMAX 3-D theaters will start showing the movie from August 27th onwards. But this won’t be quite the same “Avatar” you’ve seen before. Eight minutes of new footage, including action scenes and new creatures, will be added to the movie. Cameron said that this release was in response to fans who want to spend more time on the fictional planet-moon of Pandora.
So far the extended version will be available only to the domestic market. But if it does well, it might make it out worldwide as well.