James Cameron’s Frame Rate Gamble: Why Nolan Remains Unimpressed

The much-discussed Avatar: Fire and Ash is set to arrive in cinemas soon, with anticipation building steadily. In a recent conversation with Discussing Film, director James Cameron disclosed that approximately 40% of the new film employs a high frame rate technique. The interviewer remarked that this approach felt “more seamless” in Fire and Ash, noting its relative novelty compared to the now-familiar 3D format.

James Cameron’s Approach to High Frame Rate

Cameron was quick to clarify his perspective on the technology, stating,

High frame rate shouldn’t be thought of as a format. 3D is a format. 70mm is a format. High frame rate is a way of improving 3D. So, it’s an authoring tool.

He elaborated on how the production made use of this method:

We’ve used it in two ways. To create an otherworldly sense of hyper clarity in the underwater scenes. We just used it for every underwater scene in ‘The Way of Water’ and in ‘Fire and Ash’. In the above water scenes, we only use it where we have a stroboscopic artifact due to panning or lateral motion of a character.

For context, certain sequences in The Way of Water, particularly those set beneath the surface, were presented at 48 frames per second—double the standard 24 FPS. This technical choice contributed to the film’s notably smooth visual quality.

Christopher Nolan’s Reservations About High Frame Rate

Christopher Nolan, widely regarded as a master of his craft, is known for his commitment to traditional filmmaking methods. Alongside several peers, he has voiced concerns about motion smoothing—a television setting that artificially increases the frame rate of standard 24 FPS content. In 2018, Nolan and others addressed the Directors Guild of America’s Creative Rights Committee, writing,

Many of you have seen your work appear on television screens looking different from the way you actually finished it. Modern televisions have extraordinary technical capabilities, and it is important that we harness these new technologies to ensure that the home viewer sees our work presented as closely as possible to our original creative intentions.

While motion smoothing may suit live sport, it tends to strip away the distinctive cinematic quality from films by making them appear unnaturally fast. Director Neill Blomkamp has also expressed his unease with higher frame rates, remarking,

If you were to show a child who’s six months now a 48fps movie, when they’re sixty, it’ll be as familiar to them as 24fps are for us now. But there may be an alien quality from 48fps; it has kind of a hyper-realism that takes away the cinema of it. I don’t actually like 48fps. I prefer 24fps

Clearly, not every innovation is universally embraced.

Box Office Prospects for Avatar: Fire and Ash

According to industry estimates, Avatar: Fire and Ash was produced with a budget of $250 million. Cameron himself has previously expressed uncertainty regarding the financial success of the third entry in the series and whether it would justify further expansion of the franchise. In an interview, he commented, “We’ll make some money. But the question is, what kind of a profit margin, if any, is there, and how much of an inducement is that to continue on in this universe?”

Nonetheless, current projections suggest a strong opening, with forecasts placing the debut weekend between $100 million and $130 million—just shy of The Way of Water’s $134.1 million start. The future of the series may well hinge on these results.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is scheduled for release on 19 December.