From the New Zealand Herald: Animation technology used in blockbuster movies such as Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings is now helping children to walk. The Gait Laboratory at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Brisbane uses animation technology developed at Weta Digital in Wellington to see why some children, as young as 3, have trouble walking. Gait Laboratory director Dr Robyn Grote said the technology was reducing the number of times children had to undergo surgery because of its precision in mapping a child’s motion. Read More
Month: June 2008
We’re getting lots of emails about what Guillermo Del Toro said at the Saturn Awards. This one, from Collider.com, seems to be the interview everyone else is quoting. The best thing about it is that you can see the questions being answered by the Hobbit director himself. Thanks to message board member PWOKristy for posting it. Watch the interview Here
diedye sends along word that Guillermo del Toro will be a guest on ABC’s ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!‘ tomorrow (Friday, June 27th) and then as a repeat on Thursday July 3rd. He is no doubt there to talk about ‘Hellboy II: The Golden Army’, but Jimmy will undoubtedly ask him about ‘The Hobbit’. ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ airs on ABC weeknights at 12:05AM/11:05PMc.
The Moria Orc Premium Format figure is now available for pre-order at the Sideshow Collectibles.com website. More importantly, the EXCLUSIVE edition of this piece is available for pre-order and it features a interchangeable extra head with helmet for alternate display. That piece is only available via the SideshowCollectibles.com website and they usually sell out pretty fast. Here’s a brief description of the piece from their website:
The Moria Orc Premium Format figure is a stunning 1:4 scale reproduction. Standing 20 inches tall atop the display base, the Moria Orc posed in the heat of the battle, ready to attack any man, hobbit, or wizard foolish enough to enter Moria. Each figure is hand-painted and hand-finished, and individually hand-numbered for authenticity.
If you collect the Sideshow Premium Format line-up, you won’t want to miss this one! Perfect to display with Frodo or Lurtz. [Pre-Order]
Sideshow Collectibles has launched a giveaway for the exclusive editions of their Frodo and Sam sixth-scale figures. Jump on over to SideshowCollectibles.com to particpate – the contest ends on Monday. [Enter]
Message board member FarFromHome alerted us to this interview with Andy Serkis by BBC Radio 5 Live. During the seventeen minute interview, Andy answers questions about the challenges of motion-capture acting, his role in Tintin, his portrayal of Gollum in “The Lord of the Rings” and, yes, the prospect of reprising that role in “The Hobbit.” Read More (scroll down to Andy Serkis)