Hey all, MrCere here. We have a friend in Italy who has been great at promoting some J.R.R. Tolkien related stuff and has been also providing TheOneRing content and ways to reach readers and Tolkienites in Europe.
Gabriele Marconi sent in the following info, I think, with the idea that I could shape a post for TORn from it. Instead, I love his energy and style so and am presenting the info as he provided. It is long compared to many posts, but there is a lot of useful info. And, if this doesn’t want to make you go to Milan, you might not be a Tolkien fan. This is an astounding collection of art with all the names you hope might be included. Anyway, go read!:
Marconi said: Continue reading “Astounding Tolkien-themed art collection now open in Milan”
An anonymous benefactor has offered to give $5k to this campaign, IF we increase our total by $5k by 12noon EST TOMORROW, Jan 9th.
That means we have 27 hours to go from our current total ($123,470) to $128,470 – if we make it, we’ll get a matching donation of $5k from our generous supporter!
If you’ve been pondering getting that amazing Movie Guide signed by SIX cast members (Thrain perk), or snapping up the last Mirkwood Elves VIP ticket, or snagging the poster with TWELVE signatures (and which INCLUDES a VIP ticket – Gimli perk), then now is the moment!
(And of course, every pledge received will be entered in the draw to win the amazing Dragon Bodice – see below!) Continue reading “Super Awesome Benefactor Matching Donations for 24 Hours! The One Last Party”
There are just 12 days left in our Indiegogo campaign and we have passed the 60% funded mark and are very pleased at this point. We know our goal really is within reach, meaning we will get to throw a Party of Special Magnificence for this wonderful fan community. Here are a few little updates, with more to come in the next couple of days.
1) We are very proud to debut the design for The One Last Party attendee shirt. This shirt will specifically be for everyone pledging for one of the ticketed perk levels. This joins the supporter shirt we debuted two weeks ago, designed exclusively for the 4 T-Shirt pledge levels. The final version of these shirts might look a wee bit different, the design is being finessed in order to print properly, but this is pretty much what you are going to get.
2) The very happy winner of the ‘Children of Hurin’ book signed by Christopher Tolkien and Alan Lee goes to Patricia M. up in Northern California. Our thanks to everyone who participated in the lottery by pledging during J.R.R. Tolkien’s Birthday celebration this past weekend. Please look for a new Prize draw starting very soon.
3) The ‘Mirkwood Elves’ VIP ticket perk is back on the list, but just a few of them, we are trying to keep the VIP perk as exclusive as possible. Also, the ‘Gimli, Son of Gloin’ perk with the signed DOS poster does include the ‘Mirkwood Elves’ VIP ticket as part of the perk. So there are currently 5 tickets at this level available, and then 2 more ultra VIP tickets available at the ‘TORn Star’ level, which includes VIP tickets and Sponsor status at the party. 
And finally, we really do want to thank everyone who has pledged at any and all levels for your support. We know not everyone can attend and we truly do hope that you value some of the other perks we have been offering, and will continue to offer. There are some exciting new items coming down the pike in the next few days, so keep your eyes on our website and social media channels and maybe you can take advantage of some awesome opportunities.
One Last Party fundraiser passes the 60% mark!
Our One Last Party fundraiser on Indiegogo has just passed the 60% funded mark and we’re pretty stoked!
If you’d like to join us as a Party of Special Magnificence in Hollywood in February — a toast to all SIX Middle-earth movies, then now is the time to throw in your support! Even if you can’t make it to Hollywood (or if you’ve already contributed), you can help out by retweeting or sharing our fundraiser across social media to get the word out. And there is some cool swag you can get if you are unable to attend.
Visit our campaign page to see how you can help — so we can all celebrate Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth movies together!
MIRAMAR, New Zealand — The director’s tent.
Inside a sound stage, or outside on location, it is a constant and central fixture on a movie shoot. It is home base for Peter Jackson and his team.
It is sacred ground — more or less.
The decisions made inside it, by the team, under Jackson’s direction, are crucial to the project where it is determined what will later happen in front of the camera.
So every day, whatever happens to a set or a sound stage overnight, the tent is there set up and waiting for the core of the shooting unit.
Editor Jabez Olssen, Script Supervisor Victoria Sullivan and First Assistant Director Carolynne Cunningham call it home during the shoot. Cunningham is outside of the director’s tent a lot, Olssen and Sullivan less so and Producer Zane Weiner is always near. Jackson’s assistant Sebastian Meek is in and out at all times, bringing badly needed tea and watching the door from outside to eliminate distractions inside.
Jackson lives on tea and Meek has a talent for having it handy at the perfect moment.
SETTING THE SCENE
In April, 2012, as a representative of fandom via TheOneRing.net, I was invited to be on set during five weeks of the filming of the Hobbit films. At the time, it was still scheduled to be two movies and the production had just settled in to shoot in studio instead of on location. Much was unknown then, that now is completely familiar to fans.
When I first arrived at Stone Street Studios, the publicity team took me to set, showed me the ropes and left me to my own devices during the rest of my stay to meet folks and get interviews, which was great — no time and no need for babysitting.
I was there to be a good guest and to observe. Two weeks later I was definitely convinced I had no chance of talking to Peter Jackson, except for an occasional, “Hello, how are you getting on?” from him during my time there.
Fans world-wide know from production diaries, how exhausted Jackson gets during the shooting phase of filmmaking. It is important to really understand why.
Peter Jackson is a busy guy. Particularly when he is shooting, there is a lot to do in a day and a lot of people that need to understand his vision in order to do their jobs well; he is the hub of the great spinning wheel.
He is the director, a writer and a producer — each a big job on its own. Many films have one of each of those, or several of some, all working together. But Jackson was all of them at once and combining titles didn’t mean there was less work to be done. Just because he was reviewing shots didn’t mean the script didn’t need his touch or that the art department didn’t need his input or the next day’s schedule didn’t need approval. Others were partners on all of these roles but they also required Jackson.
In a day he might need to meet with the effects supervisor, set designers, concept designers, costume designers, the composer or see actual costumes for approval, or changes, to name just a few of the many things that require his time. He will confirm the schedule with his Assistant Director, producers and spend time with the Second Unit Director Andy Serkis, to make sure all is to his liking. They need sets built, greens grown, existing sets decorated, concept guys working ahead, materials guys building everything, maximizing actors’ time, feeding all of those people, screening extras, bringing in the right number of prosthetic artists for the day’s schedule of actors and extras and on and on. In short, there is never a shortage of people who need Jackson’s input to work on his vision and it takes the logistics of — dare I say — planning a battle with five armies.
In short, everything goes through Peter Jackson.
Those are the reasons “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” and his other Hobbit movies are genuinely Peter Jackson movies. It also means he is booked.
Solid.
THE FINAL HOURS
And so it was, the last day of my time on The Hobbit set, after several assurances that my interview with Peter Jackson would happen — it did.
Lunch happened and on the location set of Dale, up on a hill overlooking Evans Bay to Wellington, I was invited to that nearly sacred director’s tent to sit and talk with PJ — just the two of us alone. (One editor asked me if we ate together in the tent but I don’t think so, but why many memories are crystal clear of that meeting, anything we ate or didn’t eat isn’t clear. I just have no idea.)
I had been inside before, but not often. The day I shadowed him, I spent several hours, trying to melt into the background. This was his sanctuary and office.
In this feature Ringer TheHutt, who runs Russian Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit site Henneth-Annun.ru, delves into the different varieties used in Peter Jackson’s movies of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.
The Lord of the Fonts
A Lord of the Rings and Hobbit Font Guide
by TheHutt (Peter Klassen)
What would the Lord of the Rings trilogy be without its iconic logo? The chiseled yellow letters are pretty close to perfection where movie logos are concerned. But that’s not the only instance of certain characteristic typefaces used throughout the trilogy and its marketing. Most of them have recurred in the new Hobbit films – but what exactly are they and where can they be obtained? Continue reading “The Lord of the Fonts: a guide to fonts in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings”
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
August is a busy month for birthdays in the LOTR/Hobbit movie-verse. So from all of us here at theonering.net, we’d like to wish everyone a very Happy Birthday.