Victoria University Hosting Series On Tolkien.
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From: John

Talking Tolkein

Hobbits, orcs, wizards and elves will come to 'life' in December this year with the first of Peter Jackson's and alumna Fran Walsh's much anticipated film trilogy The Lord of the Rings scheduled for release.

Directed and produced in Wellington, the trilogy is providing a major boost for the New Zealand film industry, and creating enormous interest nationally and internationally.

But what was it that inspired Tolkein to write The Lord of the Rings? And how is his work, one of the most widely read and influential of twentieth century romances, being portrayed in the film medium? These are the themes of a new evening lecture series being offered by the Centre for Continuing

Education Te Whare Pukenga in November, immediately prior to the film's release. Robert Easting and Christine Franzen, Reader and Senior Lecturer in English Language and Literature, will present the first three lectures. They explore the ways in which Tolkein's narrative invention was influenced by medieval literature and mythology, taking particular motifs such as 'quests' and 'monsters'. The fourth and final session, with Richard Taylor of Weta Workshop, is devoted to the visualising and filming of The Lord of the Rings. Weta Workshop is responsible for the special effects, costumes, make-up, minature sets and propos for the film. The series is being held on the Kelburn Campus on Wednesday evenings, 7 to 28 November.