Where to watch Life of Pi (2012)

Trivia & production notes

• M. Night Shyamalan was initially set to direct after completing The Village but ultimately declined, citing concern that his name attached to a film with a twist ending would spoil the experience for audiences.
• Alfonso Cuarón turned down the director role to make Children of Men instead.
• Ang Lee decided to shoot the film in 3D specifically to showcase water's transparency and reflections, conceiving the idea roughly six months before Avatar premiered.
• The studio initially balked at the proposed $120 million budget in 2010, temporarily halting the project's development.
• Over 3,000 young men auditioned for the role of Pi before Ang Lee cast 17-year-old newcomer Suraj Sharma in October 2010.
• Suraj Sharma underwent extensive training in ocean survival, yoga, and meditation to prepare for his role as Pi.
• Tobey Maguire was cast as a reporter but was cut from the film in September 2012 because Ang Lee wanted an entirely international cast and found Maguire too recognizable.
• The ocean scenes were filmed in a custom-built wave tank at an abandoned airport in Taiwan that holds 1.7 million imperial gallons and is considered the world's largest self-generating wave tank.
• Cinematographer Claudio Miranda helped design the massive wave tank to allow complete control over lighting, including the ability to create artificial storm clouds and nightfall.
• Rhythm Hues Studios spent a year on research and development to create the digital tiger, building on techniques from previous films like Narnia, Cats & Dogs, and Yogi Bear.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Life of Pi (film), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Rewritten for StreamShack; errors are ours — tell us about them.