HobbitCon 2 hosts spectacular European fan weekend
April 23, 2014 at 5:52 am -Those of you who were in Bonn, Germany for HobbitCon 2 already know what a spectacular weekend it was. Those of you who didn’t attend (a much bigger group) may be wondering what all the fuss is about. Well, TheOneRing.net staff who did attend and lecture and photograph, will have a roundup and collection of…
A [Middle-] Earth Day Tribute
April 22, 2014 at 2:15 pm -In celebration of Earth Day, here is a collection of Middle-earth moments in a special BS (Book Spoiler) post in the Main Discussion Board… for a moment of Tolkien-zen. [TIME and BS entries are maintained and updated by fans of The Lord of the Rings, and are in no way affiliated with Tolkien Enterprises…
Check out Bombur being carried in Mirkwood
April 21, 2014 at 11:45 pm -Ringers MrBeorn and Eol sent us in the following heads up about a couple of scenes in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, where you can see the company carrying Bombur through Mirkwood on a makeshift stretcher. I’m not sure if any of you have noticed before, but about 23 minutes into the DOS film,…
TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup – April 21, 2014
April 21, 2014 at 5:28 am -Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the week ending February 23, 2014. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch up on the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the link to some…
Happy Birthday to Andy Serkis!
April 20, 2014 at 8:19 am -Today, our favorite master of motion capture performance – Andy Serkis – turns 50! Born on April 20, 1964, Mr. Serkis has long held a special place in all our hearts. The extraordinarily talented actor was originally brought in to supply the voice of Gollum in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. However,…
Another thirteen possible titles for The Hobbit: There And Back Again
April 20, 2014 at 7:21 am -Our earlier post suggesting a baker’s dozen of alternative titles for The Hobbit: There And Back Again proved quite the hit. And because so many of you tossed in even more brilliant suggestions, we thought we might as well do a sequel. Studios do it, so why not us? So without further ado, here are…
Explore this great interactive map of lost Beleriand
April 19, 2014 at 11:32 pm -A couple of weeks ago we revealed LOTRProject’s new interactive map of Middle-earth — complete with key dates, events and character movements for events of the Second Age and Third Age. Now Emil Johannson has reached back into the events of the Elder Days of Middle-earth’s history, creating a similar interactive map that depicts the…
Richard Armitage, Sean Bean and Andy Serkis at Wondercon
April 19, 2014 at 1:28 am -And so is TORn. Wondercon runs all three days of the Easter weekend here in Anaheim, California, just across the street from Disneyland. In fact, everyone outside was treated to Disneyland’s nightly fireworks celebration, Gandalf would have been proud. If you are coming to Anaheim this weekend for Wondercon, please remember to stop by our…
Thirteen alternative titles PJ should consider for The Hobbit: There And Back Again
April 18, 2014 at 11:02 pm -It may be that Warner Bros., New Line and MGM are currently reconsidering exactly what they should call the final film of Peter Jackson trilogy of Hobbit films. Or maybe they’re not. Maybe it’s for some related thing (a video game tie-in, perchance?). We’re still not quite sure. However, IF a title change is in…
Clock is ticking on the start of HobbitCon 2 in Europe
April 18, 2014 at 10:55 pm -BONN — HobbitCon 2, in Bonn, Germany is just hours away from starting with a hotel packed full of special guests, lecturers, and fans from around the world. The Maritim Hotel in Bonn hosts the entire event, which takes over the whole property for the weekend. A full slate of lectures and presentations are scheduled…
Experiencing the Music of the Ainur
April 18, 2014 at 10:20 pm -As soon as you open your copy of The Silmarillion, you are faced with what is perhaps the most difficult chapter in all of the book. Have you ever tried to image how the scene of the Music of the Ainur and the vision of the world, would unfold? How is Tolkien’s highly-complex imagination perceived…
Watch Luke Evans — aka Bard — play The Hobbit Lego video game
April 18, 2014 at 9:58 pm -Here, Luke Evans chats with IGN about The Hobbit while playing the new Lego Hobbit video game as his own character — Bard. IGN does make it awful hard by firing questions at him about the films and his character while he’s playing! He does mention that Bard’s over-riding motivation is his family, then adds:…
Video: virtual cinematography in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
April 18, 2014 at 9:07 pm -Here’s a really interesting behind-the-scenes clip from the folks at Weta Digital that delves into the virtual cinematography of The Desolation of Smaug. Apparently, fully a quarter of the film is made of all-CG shots, and this clip describes the typical workflow of developing the camerawork, keyframe refinement and how lighting choices were dictated by…
EXCLUSIVE – Peter Hambleton (Gloin) chats with TheOneRing.net
April 18, 2014 at 7:50 am -TORn staffer greendragon says: Continuing my ‘Inside the Middle-earth Actor’s Studio’ series of interviews, I recently had the great pleasure of a phone conversation with Peter Hambleton, who plays Gloin in The Hobbit movies. What a charming, erudite, intelligent and modest chap he is! He has nothing but praise for his fellow cast members, and for…
Oakentoon #52 – His Grandfathers Bearing, Oakentoon #53 – The Desolation of Thranduil, Oakentoon #54 – More Desperate Measures
April 16, 2014 at 8:11 pm -Welcome to this weeks episodes of the Oakentoons Don’t forget to check out the Oakenstills and Oakencrossovers while you’re there and to say hi to Peckish Owl. As always, just click the images to go to Peckish Owls site to see the full size images (you’ll also need to click on the longer ones once…
Happy Hobbit: Chicks (Easter Special) – Episode 39
April 16, 2014 at 7:07 pm -When Kili is excluded from Fili’s Easter party, she visits a friend to pick up a little revenge… in the form of a chick! Join the mischief and learn the basics of how to care for baby chickens. Also, while it took us a while… we finally got our Blu-ray copy of The Hobbit: The…
EXCLUSIVE – The Hobbit: There and Back Again may become The Hobbit: Into the Fire?
April 16, 2014 at 8:53 am -A little bird came knocking today, and whispered some intriguing — and slightly baffling — news into our ears. Ringer Spy The Knocking Thrush, who is a reliable source, dropped us a line to let us know that New Line have registered a new title: The Hobbit: Into the Fire. But for what? A quick…
Wondercon starts on Friday in Anaheim
April 16, 2014 at 4:06 am -Convention season is upon us, and the first big shindig on the TheOneRing.net Calendar is Wondercon in Anaheim. Tickets are still available if you find yourself in So Cal this weekend, so head on over to the Wondercon site and register to attend. There is a full schedule of panels, screenings, an artist alley to visit,…
Just how do you make the One Ring?
April 15, 2014 at 2:44 pm -Sauron created the One Ring in secrecy, so little is known of how he created it. Gandalf was able to do research in the libraries of Gondor to determine the nature and look of the One Ring, but not much more on it’s forging. Luckily, our good friends at Badali Jewelry are much more forthcoming in how they make this very…
Show us your passion for Smaug – contest WINNERS
April 14, 2014 at 8:04 pm -Smaug the Magnificent indeed! We had some incredible entries to our ‘Show us your passion for Smaug’ contest – it was as difficult to pick winners as we expected it to be. The panel of TORn staff judges really enjoyed seeing entries from all over the world; we received art work from countries such as Serbia,…