Dozens of small-statured folk are ready to dance their way onto the Shire next month, but even Matamata accommodation providers are in the dark as to exactly when the big influx of little extras will hit the region.
Publicist for 3 Foot 7 Ceris Price said 90 people were selected late last year from the 1200-odd who applied to be Matamata-based hobbit extras in The Hobbit, but because people turned up “from all over” for the auditions, she did not know how many were from Waikato. But like everyone else involved in the making of Peter Jackson’s latest film, if there was hobbits grooming their toe-hairs in the Waikato, they were doing it with their lips firmly sealed. Ian Brodie, media and communications manager for Hobbiton Movie Set and Farm Tours, said confidentiality contracts meant anyone involved in The Hobbit in any capacity was bound to silence. More..
Related: Take a look at our exclusive collection of Hobbiton set photos, going all the way back to 1999! [TORN Scrapbook]
The Lord of the Rings Location Race took place 13th August 2011 at the WETA Cave in Wellington. Author Ian Brodie was there to judge the photos of the locations around Wellington and to sign collectibles.
This Sunday, at 2pm PST, the new Orthanc Environment from the artists at Weta Workshop will go up for Pre-Order. As, I told you the other day, Weta wants your help to name this piece. Starting today and running through August 5th at 5pm PST, we will be helping them collect name suggestions through the link below. The winners will be chosen by none other than Orthanc model makers David Tremont and Daniel Falconer! The winner of the contest not only gets their name chosen for Orthanc but they will also receive a collectors edition of Bag End, and two runners up will receive a very cool Sauron T-Shirt. Good Luck!!! [Orthanc Naming Competition]
For the folks at Weta to be successful they need super talented people to help bring the world of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit to life. These folks are responsible for making the award-winning armor, weapons, costumes, and, of course, digital effects that have gained them so much acclaim. I thought for you all it would be great if we could sit down with one of these amazing individuals to find out what it’s like to help bring these worlds to life.
Well, Daniel Falconer one of the key artists at Weta has been kind enough to sit down and answer a few questions for everyone. As many of you may know Daniel been apart of amazing pieces like Bag End, Rivendell, Treebeard’s bust, and books like The Art of District 9. Having had a chance to own or see many of these pieces I was quite eager to sit down with Daniel and get his thoughts on being apart of helping Weta create these amazing things. After, reading this Q&A I would suggest to all the readers to get one of these great collectibles Daniel and Weta have created. (more…)
All right ringers, I told you a couple weeks ago, when profiling Weta Workshop, that the most impressive environment was going to be justaround the corner. Well, we’ve rounded the corner, and Rivendell is ready to be pre-ordered. If there was ever a must have environment this would be it!
Rivendell, the home of Elrond Half-Elven was found in 1697 of the second age where all the light of Middle Earth could go to have counsel during the darkness brought on by Sauron. Many of the most important characters of both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings would take refuge here to rest their weary minds and bodies. Then in 2001 Sir Peter Jackson and the amazing crew at Weta brought this critical place in Middle Earth to life. Follow the break for more images and details! (more…)
Peter Jackson has posted another note on his official Facebook wall. In it he talks about the three phases of filming, a few stories from FOTR filming and a hint at what will be filming next:
Just arrived at our four-day Easter break, which will be a nice time to recharge batteries and do a few script tweaks for future scenes.
We always find there are three distinct phases in the life of a film script. First, it exists before the film starts shooting. In this period, which can last from months to years, the script is a theoretical docum…
Been to Wellington? Couldn’t get that perfect memento of your visit? Daniel Reeve has filled a gap spotted by local tour company Rover Tours and Jack of the Noldor Blog, and created a Tolkien-inspired map of Wellington’s film sites. It’s in that authentic quill-pen, parchment style Reeve does so well. You can have fun translating the Reeves’ runes into real place names. No doubt there’ll be a mountain of Tolkien-themed goodies available when The Hobbit comes out, but in the meantime, there are a few of these available to buy right now. [See More]
TheOneRing.net is proud to team up with WETA Workshop to celebrate the start of production on ‘The Hobbit’ with a The Bag End Giveaway!
One lucky fan will walk away with this exquisite collectible replica of Bag End created by the renowned artists at Weta Workshop! Perfect for an office desk or at home, Bag End is a small scale reproduction of the best Hobbit hole in Hobbiton. It is sure to be the highlight of any The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit fan’s collection. Follow the link for entry details. [Learn More]
9 February, 2011, Wellington – Sir Peter Jackson’s Wingnut Films Productions Limited and Rings Scenic Tours Limited are pleased to announce that they have entered into a joint venture arrangement to allow movie fans to visit the newly reconstructed film set which is located near Matamata. The new venture will be known as Shire Tours. The companies have been working towards this agreement for some time, and the joint venture came into effect on January 24th, 2011.
The set, originally designed by the Art Department of THE LORD OF THE RINGS films, has recently been rebuilt at the original location on the Alexander Farm on Buckland Road, Matamata. It will be used again for the filming of the two films based on THE HOBBIT late in 2011, during which time the location will be closed to the public. (more…)
From stuff.co.nz: Brett Hodge, owner of Matamata Post and Rails, which has supplied the timber for The Hobbit duology since construction began in February, told the Waikato Times that Sir Peter Jackson’s company Three Foot Six was building the home of the Hobbits to last.
What they did last time was build a temporary set, but now it’s a permanent set.
It will begin a perpetual celebration around the party tree, on the set, where The Fellowship of the Ring began with Bilbo’s disappearance.
The Green Dragon, where the dwarf Thorin Oakenshield awaits Bilbo Baggins ahead of their quest, will include a real thatched roof and the nearby Bywater bridge, made from polystyrene blocks resembling stone for The Lord of the Rings, is being rebuilt in permanent stone.
Read more of the article over at stuff.co.nz that ends with quotes from none other than members from our very own message boards.
Bruce Hopkins writes: I am just letting you know I have posted to my radio web page the chat I had with photographer Ian Brodie. We talk for 13 minutes, he is such an amazing guy, really enjoy any time I get to talk with or spend in his company. You can check it out here, if that doesn’t work then try this.
Hi! My friend Melissa, whose family introduced me to all things Tolkien, made a birthday cake for her 14 year old brother Jonathan. He requested that it be the Rohan Longhouse on top of Edoras. Melissa is not formally trained as a cake artist & I think she did an awesome job! Thanks! ~Rachel
Rachel, we agree! We’ve seen some impressive creations in our 10 years online, and this one definitely takes the…err…cake? Jonathan has a great Mom! Click on the image to see a larger version.
