Piranha 3D producer bites back at James Cameron over slur

As spats go, it could be seen as a little uneven. On one side, James Cameron, director of box-office behemoth Avatar, one of the most expensive films of all time. On the other, Mark Canton, producer of the rather less well-known Piranha 3D, which had a budget of just $24m (£16m). Last week, in an interview with Vanity Fair magazine, Cameron singled out the 3D work in the recently released comedy-horror film, calling it: "An example of what we should not be doing in 3D." He continued: "It just cheapens the medium and reminds you of the bad 3D horror films from the 1970s and 80s, like Friday the 13th 3D. When movies got to the bottom of the barrel of their creativity and at the last gasp of their financial lifespan, they did a 3D version to get the last few drops of blood out of the turnip." Having cut his teeth working on Piranha 2 (from which he was subsequently fired) and developed his own motion capture camera system to create the stunning CGI work on Avatar, Cameron might have thought he had the right to have his say on Piranha 3D. Canton, however, has hit back with an extended essay in which he labels Avatar's 3D work "inconsistent" and suggests the film's storytelling "might have been more original". In an email sent to reporters, Canton added: "Mr Cameron, who singles himself out to be a visionary of movie-making, seems to have a small vision regarding any motion pictures that are not his own. It is amazing that in the movie-making process – which is certainly a team sport – that Cameron consistently celebrates himself as though he is a team of one. His comments are ridiculous, self-serving and insulting to those of us who are not caught up in serving his ego and his rhetoric." Finally, Canton challenged Cameron to watch Piranha 3D on the big screen, claiming that it had been a hit with the critics. "On opening weekend, I was in a Los Angeles theatre with a number of today's great film-makers including JJ Abrams (Star Trek), who actually had nothing short of the fabulous, fun 3D experience that the movie provides," he said.