One of the most read members of TORn’s message boards dropped by to update us on “The Hobbit”. How reliable is this guy? Well, since he happens to be directing the two-movie adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s first published book in Middle-earth and is living in New Zealand to do so, we think trusting Guillermo del Toro’s information is rock solid. But, we are going to make you click inside to see what he had to say. (It was a lot) You can also follow the link to his post on our message boards and join in the conversation. Read the rest of this entry »
Jack over at the Noldor Blog is reporting rumours about a film location in Upper Hutt’s Harcourt Park, possibly near the old Isengard location. This is just outside of Wellington. Read More
It is confirmed, casting is under way on the Hobbit and that is news enough. There have been rumors but now we have confirmation from a source that told us other details about casting as well. In addition to all of that, we have this juicy bombshell: They are casting one female role! Read the rest of this entry »
The regular Weta newsletter talks about the restoration of Hobbiton as well. The team at Weta including Daniel Falconer are happily involved in modelling a collectible sculpture of Bag End at them moment, which should be ready for purchase in 2010. “>Read Weta’s “News from the Shire”.
Tourists at Matamata’s Hobbiton will soon see Middle Earth come to life before their eyes, according to a recent report on Stuff.co.nz. Vic James of Red Carpet Tours says he is “delighted” by confirmation that Lord of the Rings tourists will continue to be able to visit the site of Hobbiton as filming approaches.
An apparent slip by Dept. of Conservation staff seems to confirm what we pretty much expected, that some of The Hobbit would be filmed around the same Queenstown/Lakes area as The Lord of the Rings. Lake Wakatipu is the Z-shaped lake that Queenstown sits beside. Thanks to Muz for the link! More
What exactly is going on with the two-part adaptation of The Hobbit? The world seems to be holding its breath in anticipation, including us, but as the calendar turned to November, we turned to a trusted rock-solid inside source and found a dragon’s treasure of updates. Read the rest of this entry »
The Noldor Blog reports some big changes around Jackson’s Stone St Studios, with what looks like the beginnings of a huge new structure to replace one of the existing sheds. Read More
Mormegil: Clip from Australian travel show Getaway showing some of the work currently going on at the Hobbiton set. From the site: Back in 1998, sheep farmer Dean Alexander was enjoying a quiet day on his farm on New Zealand’s North Island when a visitor changed his and his family’s lives forever. Jules Lund travelled across the Tasman to see just why. It seems the makers of the film trilogy Lord of the Rings needed the perfect place to build the Hobbiton village. Peter Jackson, the award-winning New Zealand filmmaker, spotted Alexander Farm during an aerial location search. The Alexander family knew nothing about Lord of the Rings but they soon learnt. Their property has the three main elements the makers were searching for: a lake, a big tree and a field. More..
It’s great news that New Line and the Tolkien Estate have settled their lawsuit, but looking at the amount of work going on at the Hobbiton set in the past month, it seems as though the outcome was never in doubt. Here’s images from Holly, who saw this during her Red Carpet Tour through Hobbiton in August.
What exactly is going on with the two-part adaptation of The Hobbit? The world seems to be holding its breath in anticipation, including us, but as the calendar turned to November, we turned to a trusted rock-solid inside source and found a dragon’s treasure of updates. 
