Gallic cinephiles gave James Cameron a hero’s welcome at a Paris masterclass on Thursday, ushering the action auteur onstage with a reception so thunderous that it shook the filmmaker’s oft-unflappable public demeanor.
“That’s the record,” he said in between laughs and in a show of uncommon giddiness. “That’s the record for the longest applause I’ve ever had in my life. Thank you. This is a high point of my career!”
The event kicked off a new exhibition at Paris’ Cinematheque Française that positions Cameron as a graphic artist who draws inspiration from his own subconscious. Running until January 2025, “The Art of James Cameron” showcases more then 300 paintings, etchings and production designs pulled from Cameron’s private collection, signed by the filmmaker’s own hand, and exhibited as a kind of career retrospective.
