District 9

2009-8-13

Yes

South Africa

[b]District 9[/b] is a 2009 science fiction thriller film directed by item:110109[Neill Blomkamp], written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, and produced by item:108388[Peter Jackson] and Carolynne Cunningham. The film stars item:110108[Sharlto Copley], Jason Cope, and David James. The film won the 2010 Saturn Award for Best International Film presented by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, and was nominated for four Academy Awards in 2009: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Visual Effects, and Best Editing. The story, adapted from Alive in Joburg, a 2005 short film directed by Blomkamp and produced by Sharlto Copley and Simon Hansen, depicts humanity, xenophobia, and social segregation. The title and premise of District 9 were inspired by events in District Six, Cape Town during the apartheid era. The film was produced for $30 million and shot on location in Chiawelo, Soweto, presenting fictional interviews, news footage, and video from surveillance cameras in a found footage format. A viral marketing campaign began in 2008, at the San Diego Comic-Con, while the theatrical trailer appeared in July 2009. Released by TriStar Pictures, the film opened on August 14, 2009, in North America and earned $37 million in its opening weekend.