Getting to know Xoanon
Welcome to this months “Getting to know you” Q&A, this month we’re talking to one of TORns Four Founders, Xoanon.
Archive for the ‘New Zealand’ Category
Ten ways TORn serves Tolkien and Lord of the Rings fandom
Beginning last Saturday and running through to September 4, TheOneRing.net is hosting a Pledge Drive (see the banner at the top) as well as a bunch of auctions for some really cool memorabilia and collectibles.
The day-to-day operation of the website, and the events we host, require a lot more resources than when we first started nearly 15 years ago. We sometimes find it hard to ask our readers for the help we need to keep running, so we began discussing what it is that makes TheOneRing.net worth helping out. It started out as a search for the Top Ten Moments of TORn, but the list got so long because each staff member had their own idea of important moments in TORn history. Here, instead, is something more encompassing: Ten Ways TORn helps serve Tolkien and Lord of the Rings fandom (listed in no specific order).
And, if you enjoy what we do, consider a donation (no amount too small, because every bit does help!) to keep us running!
If you can’t, that’s fine as well — keep reading, commenting and contributing. Because TORn is as much you as it is us!
If you’ve ever sent in an article, submitted a photo or report, posted on our messageboards, visited our chat, or commented on our twitter, facebook or g+, you’re the reason TheOneRing.net is among the largest and most-respected pillars of the Tolkien community on the web.
Posted in Barliman News, Barlimans, Cannes 2001, Casting Rumors, ComicCon, Conventions, Costuming, Crew News, Director Rumors, DragonCon, Events, Fans, Fellowship of the Ring, Film Screenings, Green Books, Hall of Fire, Hobbit Book, Hobbit Cast News, Hobbit Movie, Hobbit Movie Rumors, J.R.R. Tolkien, Lectures & Education, Locations Sets, Lord of the Rings, LotR Books, LotR Cast News, LotR Movies, Make the Hobbit Happen, Meet Ups, Movie Fellowship of the Ring, Movie Return of the King, Movie The Two Towers, MrCere in New Zealand, New Zealand, Old Cannes News, Old ComicCon News, Old DragonCon News, Old Main News, Old Oscar Party News, Old Spy Reports, Original TORn, Oscar Parties, Other Events, Other Merchandise, Other Tolkien books, Peter Jackson, PJ New Line, PJ's Other Films, Production, Return of the King, Rumors Spy News, Rumours Spy News, Studios, The Hobbit, The Two Towers, Tolkien, Tolkien Reading Day, Trailer, WellingtonTe Puia features in latest NZ tourism Hobbit campaign
Iconic Rotorua visitor attraction, Te Puia, features in the latest Tourism New Zealand 100% Middle-earth, 100% Pure New Zealand campaign, with new 60 and 90 second commercials that include Te Puia’s geothermal, Māori culture and cuisine highlights.
The campaign’s new 60 second advertisement is set to run in cinemas, print, online and outdoor advertising across Tourism New Zealand’s key target markets. The campaign commenced last week in Germany. The campaign is designed to align with the release of the second instalment of the Hobbit movie trilogy, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, which will open worldwide at the beginning of December. The movie is due to open in New Zealand on December 12. (more…)
Posted in Hobbit Movie, New Zealand, The HobbitLA mayor declares state of emergency, blames NZ
The mayor of Los Angeles says New Zealand and other countries are taking film and television work from Hollywood, prompting him to declare a “state of emergency”.
Eric Garcetti was elected in May and says the city’s pre-eminence in the entertainment industry is under pressure from other US cities as well New Zealand, the UK, Australia and Canada. (more…)
Posted in Hobbit Movie, New Zealand, Peter Jackson, Studios, The HobbitTORn & Fictional Frontiers talks Comic Con
TheOneRing.net had a chance to talk about Comic-Con this week as the world’s biggest popular culture event opens in San Diego. On the eve of proper Comic-Con staffer MrCere talks Hobbit, Extended Editions, LOTR with lots of juicy opinions from host Sohaib Awan.
A brief version of the conversation appeared on radio but the extended cut can now be found right here. It also features Chris Ryall, creative officer at IDW publishing, a big presence at the convention. Have a listen to what can be titled for the CCon, the Extended Exclusive Edition!
Posted in Blu-Ray, Collectibles, ComicCon, Conventions, DragonCon, DVDs, Fans, Hobbit Movie, Lord of the Rings, LotR Movies, Merchandise, New Zealand, The Hobbit, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Hobbit: There and Back AgainNo Wellington premiere for Desolation of Smaug
Hot on the heels of the poster release and trailer news, we’ve received word via Stuff.co.nz that Wellington will not host the premiere of the second Hobbit movie.
Posted in Headlines, Hobbit Movie, MGM, New Zealand, Peter Jackson, Premieres, Studios, The Hobbit, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Warner Bros., WellingtonPart of a deal signed with Warner Bros and New Line Cinema said at least one of the world premieres had to be held in New Zealand.
Jackson’s spokesman Matt Dravitzki this morning confirmed the second premiere would not be held in New Zealand this year.
Viggo ‘Turned Down’ Role as Aragorn? Not so fast…
Reports are everywhere today that Viggo Mortensen turned down a role in Peter Jackson’s ‘The Hobbit.’ The headline implication being he was specifically asked to reprise the role and turned it down. The reports are wrong (in fact, most are removing a critical word in the quote). Here’s the exact excerpt from The Guardian’s interview with Viggo Mortensen:
In Peter Jackson’s Hobbit film, several of the Rings cast reprised their roles. Was he asked to take part? “No. Before they started shooting, back in 2008, one of the producers did ask if I would be interested. I said, ‘You do know, don’t you, that Aragorn isn’t in The Hobbit? That there is a 60-year gap between the books?’”
Viggo’s immediate answer to the question is ‘No.’ He was NOT asked to take part. Secondly, he was asked in 2008, when The Hobbit screenplay and pre-production was in its most early stages. The producer who asked the question probably asked the same to every single LOTR cast member to gage the writing team’s options for the script.
Posted in Director news, Hobbit Movie, Lord of the Rings, LotR Cast News, LotR Movies, New Zealand, Peter Jackson, The Hobbit, Viggo MortensenHobbit tours build on a decade of successful adventure
Red Carpet’s Premiere Tour group dressed up for their Hobbiton visit
Red Carpet is steadily adding new locations into its tours in the light of the new Hobbit movie, says director Vic James.
“We’re pretty excited because since the Unexpected Journey came out, we’ve been able to add new sites and new people,” James says. “We visit landowners and check out new locations on a regular basis, as information and invitations come to hand.
“The Premiere Tour last November was the first to visit some of the new places and when the time is right for further landowners to allow visits, we will add them in.”
The north island leg of the tour includes, as before, Hobbiton and the central volcanic plateau that served as Mt Doom. A new feature are some rapids where the dwarves’ more hair-raising barrel-riding scenes were filmed.
The ‘top’ of the South Island is a beautiful addition to the tour, James says. Nelson, with its sunny bay ringed by mountains, is reached by a ferry cruise through the beautiful fjords of Marlborough Sounds. There’s a stop along the way at Pelorus Bridge, scene of Bilbo and the dwarves’ barrel-riding adventures.
Red Carpet’s LOTR tours always include visits to extras, artisans, actors and crew members for the films. Halfdan Hansen, son of the real-life Ringmaker for LOTR, has his studio in Nelson and has created a new version of the Ring, invisibly weighted with some denser metal so that it lies strangely heavy on the palm of the hand.
In Nelson there is also the option to take a two-and-a-half hour helicopter flight to Dimrill Dale and South of Rivendell. The flights have been a huge success with tour guests.
Olympus Rocks – a place to hide from the spies of Saruman
To accommodate the extra locations, tours are now 14 days duration. People can also choose to join the North Island 6 day or the South Island 10 day options. “It’s a long way to come to not see it all,” James says.
Posted in Events, Fans, Locations Sets, New Zealand, TheOneRing.net Community, ToursOur Own Documentary RINGERS: Lord of the Fans Now on iTunes!
In 2005 we premiered our very own documentary feature film RINGERS: Lord of the Fans at the Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, where it was quickly snapped up by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment for worldwide distribution on DVD and cable! It is finally available on iTunes after 7 years of hopeful waiting… you can also find it on Amazon Instant and on VUDU.
What a fun movie! Dominic Monaghan (Meriadoc Brandybuck) came on board to be our wonderful narrator! Actually this film is a time capsule of many decades of pop culture history — giving us the full story on how the world has embraced Tolkien’s masterpiece THE LORD OF THE RINGS over 50 years and more!
Winner of the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival, RINGERS was produced in association with TheOneRing.net — this remarkable little film was forged BY fans and FOR fans, just like our website, with the production/writing talent of Clifford “Quickbeam” Broadway (who hosts TORn TUESDAY every week), Jeff Marchelletta, and supercool director Carlene Cordova. It was executive produced by X-Men/Transformers guru Tom DeSanto.
With a wonderful rock-driven score and detailing all the outpouring of love bestowed on Tolkien over many generations, this film is a must-have for your digital collection! Get it on iTunes now for only $9.99!
From the original Sony Press Release:
“RINGERS is comprehensive, entertaining and informative pop culture history.”
– The Toronto Star
“…Will always be a salient part of ‘LORD OF THE RINGS’ history…
See it, absorb it, love it.” – FilmThreat
Winner of “Outstanding Achievement” Award at the
Newport Beach Film Festival
FASCINATING DOCUMENTARY CAPTURES THE HISTORY, INFLUENCE AND PHENOMENON THAT IS LORD OF THE RINGS
CULVER CITY, Calif. (September 12, 2005) – Sony invites you to return to the Shire with the release of the feature-length documentary RINGERS: LORD OF THE FANS, direct to DVD. In association with the popular fan-site TheOneRing.net, Carlene Cordova produced, directed and wrote this award-winning film with executive producer Tom DeSanto(X-Men, X2: X-Men United and Transformers), which charts the incredible influence and ripple-effect that Lord of the Rings has had on worldwide pop culture over the past five decades. Whether you are a fan or first timer, critics agree, RINGERS, stands as the most comprehensive film documenting the ongoing impact of J.R.R. Tolkien’s literary achievement.
Dominic Monaghan (star of ABC’s Lost and the Academy Award® winning Lord of the Rings trilogy) narrates the documentary as it looks behind the curtain between Lord of the Rings and how it inspired so many artists of different mediums. The film moves beyond “cult classic” and through different generations unearthing the way legendary rock musicians, filmmakers, professors, actors and authors all unite under the banner of ‘Ringer.’ Interviewees included in the film are Lord of the Rings trilogy filmmaker Peter Jackson as well as Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Sean Astin and David Carradine. Infused with a dynamic rock-driven score, irreverent cut-out animation (á la Terry Gilliam), and a centerpiece audience sing-a-long, RINGERS is a genre-busting documentary that shows how a single literary work continues to spark the minds and hearts of millions.
RINGERS continues the momentum of the motion picture trilogy Lord of the Rings, a winner of 17 Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director for Peter Jackson, who made history as the first person to direct three major feature films simultaneously.
From the official synopsis:
Ringers: Lord of the Fans is a feature-length documentary that reveals the ongoing cultural phenomenon created by The Lord of the Rings. Very funny and often moving, Ringers shows the hidden power behind Tolkien’s books — and how after 50 years a single literary work continues to spark the minds and hearts of millions, across cultures and across time.
Shot with groundbreaking new digital technology in 24P, Ringers explores the real foundations of Middle-earth; a community of true fans who share a common bond. Moving beyond “cult classic” and over several different generations, the film unearths academics, musicians, authors, filmmakers, and a plethora of pop junkies — the people gathered under the banner of ‘Ringer.’ From the hippie counter-culture to the electronic age; from the Bakshi animated film to Jackson’s epic trilogy; this documentary brings together extensive footage from across the globe. With units in Los Angeles, San Diego, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Bonn, Germany, Wellington, New Zealand, and Oxford, England, our cameras capture the most fascinating “Ringers” and Lord of the Rings events.
What began as the private amusement of a tweedy Oxford professor has now become a new mythology for the 21st century. Ringers: Lord of the Fans shows how an adventure story published in 1954 has had dynamic ripple-effects through Western pop-culture. Ringers carefully pulls away the veil between Tolkien’s book and the creations of art, music, and community that have been inspired by it.
Check out the official trailer here:
Posted in Andy Serkis, Barrie Osborne, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, DVDs, Elijah Wood, Fans, Headlines, Ian McKellen, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Noble, John Rhys-Davies, Liv Tyler, Locations Sets, Lord of the Rings, LotR Movies, Media Reviews, Merchandise, Miscellaneous, Movie Fellowship of the Ring, Movie Return of the King, Movie The Two Towers, New Zealand, Orlando Bloom, Other Merchandise, Other Tolkien books, Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens, Sean Astin, TheOneRing.net Announcements, TheOneRing.net Community, Tolkien, Viggo MortensenGetting to know Magnus Hjert
Welcome to the latest “Getting to know” – questions that need answering. It’s based on the old Getting to know you threads that I occasionally post on the message boards here on TORn, so those familiar with them will know that the questions can be a little crazy and the answers even crazier.
This month we’re asking questions of self-described Online guy at Weta Workshop and all round top bloke, Magnus Hjert.
Posted in Collectibles, Events, Guillermo Del Toro, Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Locations Sets, Locations Sets, LotR Production, New Zealand, Other Crew, Premieres, Props, Richard Taylor, The Hobbit, Wellington, WETA Cave, Weta Collectibles, WETA Digital, WETA Workshop‘Rings’ association taken from peak
From Otago Daily Times: In 1974, the name Aragorn Peak appeared on a Fiordland topographic map published by the Department of Lands and Survey, but by 1980 the mountain had been stripped of the name.
The New Zealand Geographic Board has decided to keep the mountainous area Tolkien-free after declining a proposal to name a nearby peak Tolkien Mountain.
Manapouri man Aaron Nicholson had applied to have an unnamed 1757m peak at the northern end of the Earl Mountains in Fiordland National Park, named Tolkien Mountain but the New Zealand Geographic Board has declined the application.
New Zealand Geographic Board secretary Wendy Shaw said the board’s naming policy had not been met and it was not convinced the peak needed a name.
”The proposal would have had to have provided a strong association between the person being honoured/commemorated, and the area where the feature is located.
Posted in Lord of the Rings, Miscellaneous, New Zealand, Production, The HobbitFilm laboratory that processed LOTR trilogy to close
TV3 reports that Park Road Post’s film laboratory
is closing, after more than 70 years of processing New Zealand made films and playing a part in many of the country’s most successful movies. The lab, which processes stock 35mm film, was purchased by Sir Peter Jackson and partner Fran Walsh in 1999 from the government-owned national film unit, and became part of Park Road’s Post Production facilities. The Lord of The Rings trilogy was processed for a total of $7 million, at the expensive rate of a dollar per foot of 35mm film stock – a price which few filmmakers nowadays can afford.
“If you’re shooting digitally…once you’ve got your camera, once you’ve got your memory card or memory stick then really there’s no cost, or very little, and that’s one thing that’s driving people away from film and more toward digital,” says laboratory employee Brian Scadden.
The article goes on to say, ‘Kodak and Fuji are the world’s largest producers of film stock, but because filmmakers are using digital more and more, Fuji’s already stopped and Kodak’s future is in doubt.’ [Read More]
Posted in Lord of the Rings, LotR Movies, Movie Fellowship of the Ring, Movie Return of the King, Movie The Two Towers, New Zealand