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By the time Sean Connery took the stage at the 70th Academy Awards, the creators of Titanic found themselves hauled back from the brink of disaster, to savour Oscar greatness.

Paul Gambaccini nears some of the tears and triumphs that surrounded the production of what was the most expensive film ever made.

Diving to the wreck of Titanic, 12,000 feet under the North Atlantic, became an obsession for director James Cameron.
Over many dives Cameron came to know every detail of the celebrated catastrophe. He visited the wreck more times than any other human being, and the moviemaker felt a compulsion to tell the tale of those on board the first and final voyage in 1912.

But to make a new film about a familiar tragedy on the scale he wanted required a very big budget.
When the production hit the $200 million mark, the studios that back it feared ruin - but ended up with the biggest grossing film of all time.
Titanic, in every sense. was a work of extraordinary scale and wonder.
The passion of director James Cameron for the real ship wreck drove the production, but how was it for cast and crew?
We hear of arguments and walk outs, but also the work of consummate professionals working together.

Producer: Sara Jane Hall.

Available now

30 minutes

Last on

Sat 24 Feb 2018 10:30

Broadcast

  • Sat 24 Feb 2018 10:30

The Business of Film

The Business of Film

Mark Kermode reveals the economic realities behind the film industry.