Billie Eilish brought some pop star power to CinemaCon on Thursday, as she and James Cameron were on hand to promote their concert doc Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D).
During Paramount’s Las Vegas presentation for theater owners and distributors, Cameron emphasized that this was “not a concert movie for streaming” and when he saw how Eilish connects with her audience, he saw “the chance to do something really and special.”
That included creating a “new generation of 3D camera systems never been used before, including on Avatar films” with super long lenses that allowed him to shoot from the back of stadiums, he explained. Eilish added that she saw it at the “final stop on the tour, for everyone who went and those who couldn’t,” as the “fans all deserve a VIP experience.”
They then encouraged the crowd to throw on their 3D glasses that were given upon arrival, and showed off some footage from the doc of both Eilish performing her hits on stage and in the moments of downtime in between. “Her vision, her words, her world,” a message promised.
The pair co-direct the documentary, which follows Eilish on her seventh headlining concert tour, Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour in Manchester, England.
Cameron had discussed how the unlikely duo came to collaborate, as he connected with her mother Maggie Baird, over their passion for sustainability issues and the environmental initiatives on Eilish’s tour. And of course the Avatar director can never do anything without some technological innovation, so the production utilized virtual reality 3D technology, via a partnership with Meta Platforms and Cameron’s Lightstorm Vision. The film is set for a theatrical release on May 8.
Eilish first teased the project over the summer following her sold-out Manchester show. “So you may have noticed that there are more cameras than usual in here,” she told the crowd at the time. “Basically, I can’t say much about it, but what I can say is that I’m working on something very, very special with somebody named James Cameron, and it’s going to be in 3D. So, take that as you will and these four shows here in Manchester, you and me are part of a thing that I am making with him. He’s in this audience somewhere, just saying. So don’t mind that, and also I’ll probably be wearing this exact outfit for like four days in a row.”
The superstar is no stranger to the documentary game, having previously done Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry, directed by R.J. Cutler, and the concert movie Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles. Eilish wrapped her Hit Me Hard and Soft tour in November.
