Red carpet, green dress

Reuters

BIG DECISION: Most women attending the Academy Awards choose their dress weeks in advance and keep it a secret until the big day.

Most women attending the Academy Awards choose their dress weeks in advance and keep it a secret until the big day.

James Cameron's wife, Suzy Amis Cameron, started looking for her dress more than a year ago and she showed it off on a mannequin at a party Wednesday night.

Suzy Cameron held an eco-dress design contest to raise funds for Muse Elementary, the eco-friendly school she founded in Los Angeles. She unveiled the winning dress and its designer, 21-year-old Michigan State senior Jillian Granz, at environmental organisation Global Green USA's seventh annual pre-Oscar party.

The long, flowing gown is made almost entirely from sustainable materials. It's one shouldered, with a big slit up the side, and it's ''Avatar'' blue.

''Suzy likes blue,'' said James Cameron, an Oscar nominee for best director and best picture for ''Avatar,'' which features a blue humanoid species living on a faraway moon called Pandora.

Cameron said it was just a coincidence that the eco-friendly message of his film echoes the message of his wife's gown and the eco-friendly school it's supporting.

''We have the same value system,'' he said. ''We believe that it's absolutely critical for us to live sustainably.''

Other celebrities attending Global Green's annual pre-Oscar call for increased environmental awareness included David Duchovny and Jessica Alba.

- AP