With the success of James Cameron’s sci-fi extravaganza ‘Avatar’, local residents in central China are urging to rename their mountains after the floating rocks in the movie, “the Hallelujah Mountains.”

On Monday, hundreds of locals in ethnic Tujia costumes launched an “official ceremony” to rename the Qiankunzhu mountains, prototypes for “the Hallelujah Mountains,” reports The China Daily.

The peak is 1,074 meters above the sea level and one of more than 3,000 mountains in the Yuanjiajie Scenic Spot- the core area of the World Natural Heritage Wulingyuan Scenic Zone in Zhangjiajie City, Hunan Province.

Hollywood photographers spent four days shooting there in 2008 and the pictures became the prototypes for many elements in “Avatar”, said Song Zhiguang, director of the Yuanjiajie Scenic Spot Administration.

The photos inspired the movie director Cameron to feature the floating “Mt. Hallelujah” in the world of “Pandora,” he said.

Li Ping, an official with the Zhangjiajie branch of the China International Travel Service, revealed that about 25 minutes of “Avatar” were shot in Zhangjiajie, and the “Qiankunzhu mountains” appeared for several times.

“Pandora is far but Zhangjiajie is near. Tourists are welcome to the ‘Miracle tour to Avatar’s floating mountains,” said Song.

~ANI