If the spirit of Stanley Kubrick stills lives in Hollywood, it’s possible that his celestial form split in two and found home in two of our favorite filmmakers. Nolan seems to be covering the large-scale studio mindbending side of things while Paul Thomas Anderson covers the deliberately paced high-art films produced in glacial intervals. When we finally get PTA’s next film though, it may be in a format Kubrick loved- the director was apparently spotted playing with a classic 65mm camera used to shoot 2001: A Space Odyssey. This throwback to the old school joins this morning’s news of further marches in very modern camera systems care of James Cameron, which is just the kind of zag to everyone else’s zig that PTA specializes in.

It’s always possible this isn’t a camera test for anything official –maybe just some kind of special occasion or event– but a very serious Anderson fan site called Cigarrettes and Red Vines received a photo (that they can’t currently publish) showing the director sporting a shaved head (something he often does before a production) and operating the camera on the backlot of an undisclosed location. Unfortunately this photo also came with the bad news that Robert Elswit, who has shot every one of PTA’s movies and won an Oscar for There Will Be Blood, will apparently not join Anderson on any 65mm adventures.

One presumes that if PTA is considering a 65mm shoot, it would be for his passion project The Master, rather than his more mainstream-friendly Inherent Vice. Surprisingly, after the investment of billionaire Megan Ellison, it seems to be The Master that is moving faster between the two films, with casting possibilities involving Joaquin Phoenix floating around and these new rumors emerging. I know I cross my fingers each day that official word will pour out, and this goddamn thing will start.

(via JoBlo)

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