“Avatar” with a sense of Greece
While «Avatar», the movie, is still «breaking» one record after another, in Box Office, few are those who know that behind the dream world «erected» by James Cameron is the Greek’s origin executive producer and screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis, a woman, who is characterized by many as the rising star of Hollywood, and has worked with most of the «giants» of filming industry. Among those are Oliver Stone, Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg. Probably unknown to our country, Laeta Elizabeth Kalogridis, becomes famous in the U.S. at the early 90’s. At the age of 29 and having not yet fulfilled her studies at the Film School UCLA, she managed to sell her first script to Warner Bros! It was the «In Nomine Dei», a film about Jean d’Ark, which was never shot.
However, Laeta Kalogridis is not disappointed and she still «intrudes» more and more in the entertainment industry. Thus, in March 1995 she wrote the original script of the highly successful «X-Men». There are entries in the writing of other scenarios – the most famous is that of «Tomb Raider». The Greek origin writer has already obtained significant contacts, which in 2002 drive her next to Oliver Stone, who writes the screenplay for «Alexander» movie, which, however, experienced negative reviews.
The big opportunity for Laeta Kalogridis, who in the meantime does not stop writing feverishly scenarios, comes during the strike of Screenwriters who had a conflict with the companies about pays and took place for several months. She takes the place of the mediator and she is credited to a large extent the outcome of the action by her proper handling.
The «takeoff»
But even this initiative is not good enough to highlight her at the extent that this occurred when James Cameron – who she has already known for ten years, assigned her as the executive producer on «Avatar». At the same time, the U.S. media report rumors that she helps him to write the script, however that was not officially confirmed.
Those who believe that one success carries the other are absolutely right, at least in regards to the course of Kalogridis. So, the next stop is Martin Scorsese, who rely for the first time on a woman writer and assigns the script for the thriller «Shutter Island», with the cast to be composed by the biggest names in show biz, such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Kingsley and Max von Sintof. And as if this was not enough, Kalogridis signs a cooperation agreement with DreamWorks to take the script and the 3D film adaptation of the television cartoon series of Japanese Manga, «Ghost in the Shell», supervised by Steven Spielberg!
Her next goal, is to complete the script in the dramatic action comedy «Knight Day» set to be released next July with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz! Will she pull through? If we, however, take into account her previous successes, the opposite is what will be a great surprise.