A horizon tank is a large tank built on the coast and used in filmmaking

Filmmaking

Filmmaking is the process of making a film, from an initial story, idea, or commission, through scriptwriting, casting, shooting, directing, editing, and screening the finished product before an audience that may result in a theatrical release or television program...

. They allow filmmakers to film an ocean horizon without having to be in the middle of the ocean.

History

The first horizon tank was constructed in Malta

Malta

Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...

 in 1964 by special effect

Special effect

The illusions used in the film, television, theatre, or entertainment industries to simulate the imagined events in a story are traditionally called special effects ....

s technician Benjamin Hole, who later formed Mediterranean Film Studios. Popular films shot there include U-571

U-571 (film)

U-571 is a 2000 film directed by Jonathan Mostow, and starring Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel, Thomas Kretschmann, Jon Bon Jovi, Jack Noseworthy, Will Estes, and Tom Guiry...

 and Ridley Scott's

Ridley Scott

Sir Ridley Scott is an English film director and producer. His most famous films include The Duellists , Alien , Blade Runner , Legend , Thelma & Louise , G. I...

 White Squall

White Squall (film)

White Squall is a 1996 American drama feature film, directed by Ridley Scott.-Plot:The film is based on the fate of the brigantine Albatross, which sank on 2 May 1961, allegedly because of a white squall. The film relates the ill-fated school sailing trip led by Dr. Christopher B. Sheldon , whom...

. The studio's tanks are also regularly used for filming TV commercials.

In 1996 20th Century Fox

20th Century Fox

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...

 acquired 40 acres of waterfront south of Playas de Rosarito in Baja California

Baja California

Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...

, Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, and built a seventeen-million-gallon tank for the film Titanic

Titanic (1997 film)

Titanic is a 1997 American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. A fictionalized account of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson, Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater and Billy Zane as Rose's fiancé, Cal...

. The tank held a replica of the ship, and provided 270 degrees of ocean view.

List of horizon tanks

There are only three horizon tanks worldwide:

• Mediterranean Film Studios in Malta
• Fox Baja Studios in Playas de Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico
• Point Cook RAAF Base in Victoria
  Victoria (Australia)
  Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
  
  , Australia.

There are proposals to build new tanks in New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, and at Docklands Studios Melbourne

Docklands Studios Melbourne

Docklands Studios Melbourne is a major movie and film complex located in Melbourne’s redeveloped docklands precinct. The studios opened their doors in 2004 under the former name . The site is located approximately 1.5 km from the city of Melbourne’s Central Business District...

, Australia.

External links

• Mediterranean Film Studios website