Oblivion, although equally striking in terms of visuals, is a rather more personal film for Kosinski.

I liked the way you kept the sense of mystery going all the way through.

But thats quite unusual for a multiplex film, isnt it?

A lot of twists and turns.

Its a film where you have to pay attention, you have to listen.

I always love movies where you watch them and you learn something else.

Its actually quite an intimate film.

It is, it is.

But Im proud that the story of Jack Harper is still the same one I wrote.

How would your approach to it have changed?

They always somehow felt bigger than they were.

I detected a small hint ofSolarisin here, too.

I thinkSolarisis the epitome of 70s heavy sci-fi.

It must have been very difficult to put a trailer together without spoiling the plot.

Marketings been a challenge.

You want the promise of something.

They want to know theres a story, and they want to know that theres a pay-off.

There are so many reasons not to go to the cinema, you know?

you could watch movies on your phone or your iPad, or get anything you want on your television.

Has it been difficult to keep the project under wraps?

We saw recently that some plot details leaked forStar Trek Into Darkness… My attitude is, once Ive made a decision to see a movie, I cut myself off.

I love preserving the surprise for a theatre.

You werent at home, constantly watching and pausing.

Id have thought getting Tom Cruise involved was a big moment for this movie.

It is, absolutely.

Particularly with an original story.

Hes a big movie star, and I think people forget what a great actor he is.

He is that guy.

Did have input into developing the character?

He worked with guys I admire, so I learned a lot from him through this project.

What about the design angle of the film, which is obviously an important element.

How did that come together?

The look of this movie I had in my head from the very beginning.

I wanted something that was desolate but beautiful.

Id seen images of Iceland and I thought it was the perfect reference.

That part of the process, for me, was a lot of fun.

I love building stuff practically, from the sky tower to the bubble ship to the motorbike.

The drones, you built those physically as well?

We built the drones, we built the bubble ship, we built the sky tower.

Basically everything we could, we built it.

And it actually saves money, believe it or not, to build practically.

You shot Tron: Legacyin 3D, and thenOblivionsin IMAX.

What made you choose IMAX over 3D?

Its the palette and the brightness of the world.

In 3D, even in the best theatres, youll get four foot-lamberts.

Youre talking about something thats four to five times dimmer.

So it felt like, going with an ultra-high-resolution format in 2D forOblivionmade more sense than 3D.

And Iceland provided those naturally bright environments…

Yeah.

We shot in the summer, so it was 22 hours of daylight, so I could shoot forever.

We had fun, but it was tough, because youre in the middle of nowhere.

But I feel the resulting image was worth it its caught in-camera, its not on a stage.

Actors perform differently when theyre there.

Then you have Claudio Miranda, who recently got the Oscar forLife Of Pi.

Im so proud and happy for him.

Ive worked with him for seven or eight years now, from my early commercials throughTron: Legacyto this.

I was really happy to see him get some recognition.

Hes clearly good at knowing how to integrate a shot with special effects.

He understands the process, and I dont think people give DPs who can do that enough credit.

Its not about lighting a blue screen and sticking someone in front of it.

So forLife Of Pi, all that outdoor lighting was shot in a tank.

And they placed all the lighting on the actors, and thats so key to making the image believable.

I was so glad when he got recognition for that.

Theres an art to it, and its very difficult.

You have to be technically savvy and an artist, and he really is both.

Thats almost a new breed of cinematographer.

He creates that reality because he knows the process.

He knows what itll become.

Whats next for you?

I literally finishedObliviona few days ago.

So Im enjoying finally getting it out there and talking to people about it.

Ive been developing a few things in the background, at the script stage.

People know about theTronsequel andThe Black Hole[remake].

Ive got a couple of other things Im excited about, not all science fiction.

So now I finally get to sit down and read, and decide what the next thing is.

Joseph Kosinski, thank you very much.

Oblivionis out now in UK cinemas.