Avatar’s Sensorial CGI Brings us Closer to Nature
This video essay argues and illustrates how James Cameron’s Avatar (2009) creates a sensorial and spiritual (viewing) experience through computer-generated imagery in which technology becomes a tool to connect with divine nature.
We first look at Avatar’s underlying holistic philosophy of Nature Spirituality, also described as “dark green religion” (Taylor 2013). In the second part of the video, we see how Avatar’s computer-generated imagery (CGI) facilitates a phenomenological experience of Nature Spirituality. Finally arguing that Avatar’s (spiritual) CGI invites human/nature connection and ecological awareness. The previously mentioned reveals a new paradox where technology actually brings us closer to nature which lies in strong contrast with how the movie itself portrays technology and thus reveals a new level of analysis and a deeper layer of reflection.
Produced by: Eva Dekkers Kaja de Koff Charlotte Hopmans