James Cameron might have lost out on the Best Director statuette at last Sunday’s Academy Awards, but there is no denying that Avatar is having a significant impact on Hollywood filmmaking practices. In this six-minute interview with Time magazine, Cameron answers readers’ questions about the film and the future of 3D technology. He informs us that he is interested in “space exploration, deep ocean exploration and alternative energy,” three subjects which could make for a pretty snazzy 3D adventure.

The best question by far is, “How do you think the use of 3D and CGI will affect cinema?” Cameron acknowledges that Hollywood is already 3D crazy and says that this is a classic example of Hollywood getting it wrong. “We showed them that a movie that took four and a half years to make and was authored in native 3D can make a lot of money from which they conclude that if they just smash-bash a movie into 3D in an eight week period they can accomplish the same thing.” Cameron says that CGI technology will only continue to improve and that filmmakers are at an intriguing crosswords, where if they can imagine it, they can create it.

I’m still skeptical however. While filmmaking can advance technologically at its heart, the cinema remains an art form based in “reality”. Whatever that may be.

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