A horizon tank is a large tank built on the coast and used in filmmaking. They allow filmmakers to film an ocean horizon without having to be in the middle of the ocean.
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History
The first horizon tank was constructed in Malta in 1964 by special effects technician Benjamin Hole, who later formed Mediterranean Film Studios. Popular films shot there include U-571 and Ridley Scott's White Squall. The studio's tanks are also regularly used for filming TV commercials.
In 1996 20th Century Fox acquired 40 acres of waterfront south of Playas de Rosarito in Baja California, Mexico, and built a seventeen-million-gallon tank for the film Titanic, a co-production with Paramount Pictures. 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:
There are proposals to build new tanks in New Zealand, and at Docklands Studios Melbourne, Australia.