This month we’re asking questions of self-described Online guy at Weta Workshop and all round top bloke, Magnus Hjert.

Kelvarhin: Thanks for joining us this month Magnus, as always we’ll start with grammas favourite question…

What was your favourite cartoon when you were growing up?

Magnus: I grew up in Sweden on a rich and varied comics diet consisting of Tintin, Asterix, The Phantom, Spirou et Fantasio, its spin-off Marsupilami, Iznogoud… but my all-time favourite (that I still read) is Tintin.

Kelvarhin: What was your favourite toy as a kid?

Magnus: My Märklin train set… it initially provided much entertainment for my father and uncle, as I believe I was about three when I got it for Christmas. But it was awesome when I was older and could build model buildings etc.

Kelvarhin: Some of the  TORNfolk (Tehanu, Garfeimao, deej and entmaiden) were in attendance to help Weta and the Neonatal Trust break the Guinness Record for most sandcastles built in an hour. They know that they built enough, but Guinness requires a lot of documentation and time to certify the results, and they’re wondering if you’ve gotten the official results from the world record Sandcastle Build last November?

Magnus: I don’t actually know the answer, but I promise I will find out from Martin Baynton, who is the main link between Adventure Wellington and Weta Workshop. I was on that beach myself, covering it on behalf of Weta. The event was organised by Adventure Wellington and Weta Workshop helped out with buckets and quite a few crew, including Richard, Tania and many others.

Kelvarhin: What is your favourite location in NZ?

Magnus: I’ve lived here now for 10 years and I have many favourites. But that’s a bit of a cop-out, so I will try to pick one.  To narrow it down little by little, the region called the Wairarapa is about 90 minutes’ drive away from Wellington and is predominantly a rural area, but with a twist – it’s one of New Zealand’s premier wine regions. Small towns that 50 years ago were as rural as rural can be have blossomed with the increased interest the wine has brought to the region. On the way to my favourite place, you pass through several of these, Featherston, Greytown, Carterton. When you get to Masterton, you take a right and head for the coast. And after driving through orchards and sheep stations, you get to Castlepoint. A Pacific beach community with a spectacular lighthouse and rock formations, a fantastic beach and a camping ground. And very little else. The weather is often unforgiving, but lying in a tent, listening to the ocean… it doesn’t get much better. Oh – I just realised you probably meant shooting location? Well, other than Hobbiton which is truly AWESOME, a favourite is the Dimholt Road/Paths of the Dead at Putangirua Pinnacles in… you guessed it: The Wairarapa.

Kelvarhin: What are your most favourite places, of all the places you’ve been to in the world?

Magnus: Monterey, California. Montpellier, France. London, England (lived there for 7 years). Copenhagen, Denmark (being from Malmo in Sweden, Copenhagen is a natural place to hang out – back then it was a 45 minute boat trip away. Now there’s a bridge…). And Wellington – on a good day…

Kelvarhin: What movies or television shows are you into right now, apart from The Hobbit?

Magnus: Star Trek: Into Darkness was awesome – I went with a band of colleagues and everyone was pretty much in agreement it was a great film. With two kids of 6 and 10 years, I watch a LOT of ‘children’s’ flicks – like Wall-e, How to train your Dragon (and Riders of Berk) and love it, but Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire, House MD, Doctor Who, Sherlock and even the occasional UK detective show/murder mystery re-run like Midsomer Murders, Morse, Miss Marple, Hercules Poirot… I’m easy to entertain…

Kelvarhin: I’m a child of migrants, and I know you’re originally from Sweden, so I was wondering what inspired your move to New Zealand?

Magnus: I was dragged here kicking and screaming by my Kiwi wife… nah, it was actually the other way around. I get itchy feet staying in one place for too long and when we were living in London (where we met and wed) and expected our first child, we decided there were healthier places to bring up children than south London, so we chose New Zealand. Thinking we’d only be here for 4-5 years and then perhaps go to Sweden (where all my family is). But then I got my job at Weta – as close to my dream job as I’m ever likely to get – and we’ve now decided not to up-root the kids, but stay here for at least as long as they want to stay. Then we’ll see.

Kelvarhin: What was the most difficult thing about organising Wetas surprise for TORn’s 10th Anniversary?

Magnus: Getting everyone to the same courtyard at the same time. Gino from Weta Digital down the road, Richard Taylor from somewhere in the building, Guillermo del Toro from 3 Foot 7 and then getting the crew to pick up some props and waving them around. We had many false starts on different occasions, but in the end we got it together. Woohoo! Man, that seems like a long time ago now… I was very nervous directing Guillermo del Toro, but he was very good about it.

TORn 10th Anniversary Weta Video

Kelvarhin: How long have you been working for Weta Workshop and how did you come to be involved with them?

Magnus: I’ve been here since 2008 and I owe it to my sister-in-law who found the ad in the paper…

Kelvarhin:  Working for Weta sounds great, but being a marketing manager sounds like hard work… is the line between being on the job and dreaming sharp or fuzzy? Is there even a line?

Magnus: That’s a great question… I’m gonna have to think about that one… Right – I’m back after having answered a few other questions in the meantime. The answer is – there is no line… my job is a constant intertwinement of fantasy, fans, fiction, collectors, artists, logistics, writing and just saying ‘awesome’ a lot. Weta is not a normal workplace – we who work there tend to forget.

Kelvarhin: Within your position at Weta, you must have been involved with some very surreal situations (perhaps meeting certain people, taken part in certain events and so on). What is your most memorable moment?

Magnus: There are many… in my first week, one of the Workshop technicians, Jordan, drove up and down the road outside on his rocket powered bicycle. A few months later I was recording a sound bite with Bill Farmer (Goofy since 1986) on a podcast and suddenly Michael Winslow (officer Larvell Jones in Police Academy) chips in with a Mickey Mouse impersonation… And meeting Sir Ian McKellen – again for a podcast interview… it’s all a bit surreal in hindsight, but while you’re doing it… it’s fantastic.

Kelvarhin: What item do you like the most of all the items made by Weta? And why?

Magnus: Ooooooh – that’s a tough one. The Minas Tirith shooting miniature – I have never seen it in real life, but the impact it had on me in LOTR when I first saw it on screen… man! Barad-dûr and Orthanc likewise – I’ve seen both of them outside David Tremont’s workshop while he was working away on the collectible models. Of the things you can take home… Peter Lyon’s swords… probably Andúril… words cannot describe how epic they are and how powerful you feel with one in your hand.

Kelvarhin:  I have heard workers from Weta get a chance to buy the things they make (the collectibles). Have you ever not bought an item and later regretted that you didn’t get it? If yes, what was it, and why do you regret not getting it?

Magnus: Yes – I admit to being a complete sucker for Greg Broadmore’s rayguns… and my favourite is the Goliathon 83, which is now sold out. While it was still in stock, I couldn’t afford it. But if I ever get a chance to buy one…

Kelvarhin: What is it like seeing all these cool Collectibles before the fans get to see them? Also, how hard is it to hold that from the world?

Magnus: A) Orgasmic. B) Extremely.

Kelvarhin: If you were making a car commercial, what Weta Workshop items would you include?

Magnus: Rayguns – ‘Vorsprung Durch Technik’. It’s a mantra in Ingolstadt as well as at Grordbort Industries. Although it would be in English undoubtedly. ‘Advantage through Technology’.

Kelvarhin: And lastly, if you were a dwarf in Thorin’s Company, which one would you be?

Magnus: Easy – Bombur. A little known fact is that I have “arse-modelled” for our Bombur collectible, showing the sculptors what it looks like when a fat guy runs… up and down the Weta Workshop car park. And Leaflock from The Shadow and Flame’s Weta collectors’ forum actually turned me into Bombur in the S&F Christmas card for Weta. So I feel a strong affinity with the guy. I have included the image Leaflock made.

As always thanks to all our message board regulars, DanielLB, SirDennisC, Ataahua, Elessar, Brethil, elaen32, entmaiden, dernwyn, Kaede, grammaboodawg and Rosie-with-the-ribbons, for this month’s questions.

If you would like to ask any questions yourself, just head over to our Message Boards, the sign up process is pretty painless. A lead post for questions is made at the beginning of each month on the Main board. Or you can just check Main for each months interviewee and email me your questions at kelvarhin@theonering.net.

Till next time from TORn’s resident Tiger.

Kelvarhin

In this week’s issue of Entertainment Weekly, The Hobbit director Peter Jackson, a digital effects pioneer who co-founded the F/X company Weta Digital, says studios are taking advantage of an oversupply of F/X houses to drive down prices. “Competition between VFX houses, which the studios obviously use to their advantage, has resulted in VFX houses operating on tiny profit margins,” Jackson says. “And when we talk ‘profit,’ it’s not about the owners buying a Porsche at the end of a big movie — it’s about having a nest egg to ride out the slow periods.”

To read the full story and see links to other stories about the VFX crisis, head on over to EW.com

APRIL FOOLS

From Weta Digital, comes this exciting press release about a certain something all fans of Sir Peter Jackson have missed…

Wellington, NZ (April 1st, 2013)–

In response to the lukewarm critical reception of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”, Peter Jackson has announced that he will begin wearing his eyeglasses again.

“It was a public image decision,” Jackson says. “Fran and Philippa and I sat down and brainstormed, trying to figure out why the critics had panned the first ‘Hobbit’ film, despite its commercial success. And then we suddenly realized it wasn’t the film at all! The critics weren’t saying it out loud, but subconsciously they missed the ‘old’ Peter Jackson. And that means they wanted to see the eyeglasses.”

While Jackson hasn’t worn glasses for years and no longer uses his old prescription, he has planned a workaround to the problem. “I can simply pop the lenses out of my old frames, and we’ll be good to go– that is, if I can find them!” he laughs.

But putting the glasses back on is only the first step. Plans are also underway to add glasses back on to all of the behind-the-scenes footage of Peter that has been shot for the Extended Edition DVDs.

Since Weta Digital is already too busy working on effects shots for films two and three, Richard Taylor and Weta Workshop have been placed in charge of the eyeglass project.

“We want fans to feel like they’ve returned to the film-making world they have become acquainted with,” Taylor says. “Realistically inserting eyeglasses into Peter’s interview shots and B-roll footage will add that final crucial element of familiarity that will make this a truly nostalgic behind-the-scenes experience for the extended DVDs.”

Using a recently perfected technique combining advanced facial-recognition software with a slave-motion camera rig, the glasses will be added to Peter’s face using green screens and carefully crafted models.

Taylor has already commissioned a special 18-inch wide “bigature” of Peter’s glasses to be used in the project. “The miniatures department had felt a bit neglected lately, and they were overjoyed to take this on. One has to appreciate the exquisite craftsmanship that is going into this model. Every screw and hinge, every curve of the frame is faithfully reproduced in larger-than-life detail.”

Weta Limited Edition replicas of the glasses will be available as a Comic Con Exclusive in July 2013.

Early fan reaction to the news so far has been positive, and representatives from Warner Bros. were optimistic as well, and in a statement have expressed confidence that the reintroduction of spectacles to Jackson’s image is the right way to go towards making up for the box office disappointment of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”.

Will the glasses really make a difference? What do you think? Sound off!

But it proved a challenge of Silmarillion proportions for the visual effects team at Weta Digital charged with bringing Tolkien’s fantastical romp to life. The first blockbuster to combine the dimensional hurdles of 3D and pioneering 48fps HFR technology, it’s arguably the most daunting special effects movie ever attempted.

“Yes, there was a lot of work involved,” says senior visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri, with alarming understatement. “We did around 22,000 FX shots for The Hobbit. That compares to 18,000 for LOTR: Return of the King. The scale of these films has evolved considerably…”

[Read More]

Supanova attendees will get the chance to see and listen to:

Graham McTavish – Dwalin. Graham McTavish (born in 1961) is a Scottish actor who has played an impressive array of characters in a slew of Pop cultural franchises. He played the character Warden Ackerman in Red Dwarf in five episodes of series 8. McTavish has also had many supporting roles in British dramas and films such as Casualty, Jekyll, The Bill, Taggart and Sisterhood. Recently, McTavish appeared in the 2011 film The Wicker Tree, Robin Hardy’s sequel to his 1973 film, The Wicker Man. He has had an “Unexpected Journey” to International stardom playing Dwalin (Brother of Balin) the Dwarf in Sir Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit films.

Stephen Hunter – Bombur. Stephen is a New Zealand actor and voice over artist, currently based in Sydney, Australia. His film and Television career started with Ladies Night in 1995 and has continued to include stints on All Saints, Love My Way, Spirited and Rescue: Special Ops. It was announced in 2011 that Stephen was to play the role of Bombur: brother of Bofur and one of the company of 13 dwarves who retake the Lonely Mountain in Sir Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy. He has since filmed Field Punishment No.1 in the Role of Aussie Bill which will be released in 2013.

Dean O’Gorman – Fili. Dean O’Gorman is a photographer and artist based in New Zealand. He got his start in the television movie, The Rogue Stallion at the age of fourteen, and Raider of the South Seas, both of which were released in 1990. He then won the role of Nurse Harry Martin in the New Zealand soap opera, Shortland Street and has appeared in both Hercules and Xena multiple times. In April 2011 he was cast as Fili the Dwarf in Sir Peter Jackson’s three-part film adaptation of The Hobbit. Kili and his Brother Fili are the youngest dwarves of the 13 and are Thorin Oakenshield’s nephews!

Sylvester McCoy – Radagast (as a Gold Coast exclusive guest). McCoy was starring at the National Theatre in “The Pied Piper”, a musical play written especially for him, when he learned that the BBC was looking for a new lead actor to replace Colin Baker in “Doctor Who” (1963). He later won the role as the seventh Doctor. Following “Doctor Who,” McCoy continues to work extensively in theatre, radio, opera, television and films. McCoy can be seen in the latest blockbuster film The Hobbit (as Radagast the Brown) and can still be heard playing the Doctor in the Big Finish audio productions of Doctor Who.

The dates for Supanova are:

• Melbourne – April 12-14 at Melbourne Showgrounds
• Gold Coast – April 19-21 at Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre

You can find out more and buy tickets here.

Last weekend, TheOneRing.net hosted a celebration of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey‘s Academy Award nominations by throwing The One Expected Party just down the road from where The Oscars were held in Los Angeles, California.  This is following our tradition of honoring Peter Jackson’s productions of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy.  Now, after years of assisting Jackson in his effort to Make The Hobbit Happen, we’re thrilled to gear up for 3 Oscar Parties following the 3 installments of The Hobbit.  Here are a gathering of the various discussions on the TORn Message Boards for the first Party… with 2 more to go!  Start saving and planning, folks… and join us in LA next year and The One after that!

The One Expected Party posts on The Boards:

The One Expected Party: the set-up   

Photos from The One Expected Party

Happy Hobbit Goes to Hollywood: The Unexpected Art Show

Beecake at The One Expected Party

Monaghan and Boyd at The One Expected Party

Oscars tonight!  post by Bombadil

Weta team will party, but where?

Raffle and Auction Items Announced for ‘The One Expected Party’

The One Expected Party Ebay Auctions

A Recording of The One Expected Party

PS: Keep an eye on the Boards for more pictures from this year’s Party.

After a month-long absence while TORn poster DanielLB has been out of town, he’s returning with a 2-week update on Hobbit Discussion Board Movie News found right here.  Welcome back, DanielLB!

We’ll share more topics next week and hope you can join in on the conversation!  Don’t forget, TheOneRing.net’s Message Boards have over 9,400 registered Tolkien fans, just like you.  Let your voice be heard!

It is a little difficult to imagine what event might have had more geek credibility on Oscar night than our own One Expected Party. GeekExchange.com certainly managed a solid report complete with the YouTube video above that shows highlights from many of the events that took the stage. They also managed a photo gallery that is definitely worth a look. You can read the entire report if you click this simple link.

One of the six showcases on YouTube, “VFX of The Hobbit: Fantastical Creatures & Lands of Epic Beauty & Darkness,” something of a highlight of all the videos, has been watched more than the rest but for anybody who loves cinema, loves the Hobbit film, technology or visual effects, the whole collection is outstanding. And so, we present them all below, embedded in one place for your viewing pleasure.

VFX OF THE HOBBIT: FANTASTICAL CREATURES & LANDS OF EPIC BEAUTY & DARKNESS

WETA DIGITAL’S ARTISTRY BEHIND GOLLUM

WETA DIGITAL’S ARTISTRY BEHIND THE GOBLIN CAVERNS

WETA DIGITAL’S ARTISTRY BEHIND RIVENDELL

WETA DIGITAL’S ARTISTRY BEHIND THE GOBLIN KING

WETA DIGITAL’S ARTISTRY BEHIND AZOG

In the first entry I recalled getting the permission to interview the filmmakers and going down to start my work, back in September-October of 2003. The second one dealt with my first interview and tours of the Three Foot Six office building and the Stone Street Studios. Now, more of the facilities I visited.

The Film Unit

My third full day in Wellington was Wednesday, October 1. Melissa Booth called and said I could come to the new Film Unit building to meet Barrie Osborne. He, as I cannot stress often enough, was the one responsible for getting me New Line’s permission to interview the filmmakers for my book. This meeting, though, wouldn’t be for an interview. (I interviewed Barrie twice for the book, first a couple of weeks later and again during my third Wellington visit in December, 2004.) He was driving out to the old Film Unit facility that afternoon to give the people working there, sound mixers, editors, and other post-production crew members, a pep talk.

As most readers know, the race to finish The Return of the King was on by that point, and a lot of people were working long hours. I was told that Barrie often gave these pep talks, and the filmmakers really appreciated them; it was part of what gave the production that feeling of being one big family. I could at least introduce myself to Barrie and ride with him to the Film Unit; the half-hour drives there and back would allow us time to talk about my project.

The Film Unit was a government-owned post-production facility that Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh bought in 1998 to keep it from being sold and probably closed down. As the only post-production house on that scale in New Zealand, it was vital to making LotR. When I arrived, the new Film Unit building (now Park Road Post) was being built in Miramar, a few blocks from the Weta building in one direction and the Stone Street Studios in the other. An old building that would eventually be replaced was still acting as a reception area (above, right). The three new sound-editing rooms that can be seen in the RotK supplement “The End of All Things” had been completed, as had some offices and a long corridor to the left as one entered the building.

I met Barrie in one of those offices, that of Rosemary Dority (left), familiar to fans of the supplements as the Post Production Supervisor of LotR. She was incredibly friendly and let me stash all the stuff I had to lug around behind her desk when I was in the building. Barrie used her office when he had meetings in the new Film Unit.

Barrie was wolfing down lunch, a sandwich, at about 2:30 in the afternoon before heading for Lower Hutt. As we headed out he gave me a quick tour of the new sound-editing rooms. I met Christopher Boyce and saw my first (unfinished) footage from RotK. It was a scene of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum in a desolate landscape, I think from their first scene in the film, before they get to Ithilien.

Then Barrie and I were off to the old Film Unit. Once inside, we entered a small auditorium where many members of the post-production team were gathered. Barrie thanked them all for their hard work and sprang a surprise on all of us. He was going to show us a brand-new 35mm copy of the first RotK trailer. Coincidentally, that trailer had premiered in American theaters the day I left for Wellington, so I hadn’t seen it.

More importantly, the team in that room hadn’t seen any finished footage from the film, despite having worked on it for so long. The trailer started on the big screen. You probably remember that trailer, which basically ended with you thinking, “I want to see that film, and I want to see it NOW!” The room went crazy, with people cheering and some even crying. It was an amazing moment and gave me a vivid sense of how dedicated these people were to this huge film project.

Afterwards Barrie introduced me to Sue Thompson, CEO of The Film Unit, who still had tears in her eyes. She agreed to let me interview her. My only other visit to the old Film Unit facility was two weeks later, on October 15, when I talked to her and then immediately afterward to costume designer Ngila Dickson.

I’ve looked for a photo of that building online, but no one ever seems to have been tempted to take a picture of it. It was austere, bland, and, as Peter described it to me when I later interviewed him, “a very government sort of ‘Soviet bloc’ feeling place.” It was already clear, however, that the new Film Unit in Miramar, in contrast, would be modern and gorgeous.

The PostHouse

On October 1, when Barrie and I returned to the new Film Unit building, I met Peter Doyle, the Supervising Digital Colorist for LotR (and many other films thereafter, including King Kong and six of the Harry Potter films). He agreed to let me come to The PostHouse the next day. It was housed in a warehouse across the street from the new Film Unit.

Peter had helped invent a new digital process called selective digital grading specifically for LotR. It allows a colorist to change the visual qualities (altering colors and changing light levels) for individual portions of a shot without changing the other portions. It was a revolutionary technology and has been adopted almost universally in the international film industry.

Unfortunately I had no idea that I was going to have this opportunity to talk with Peter, so I wasn’t prepared to interview him. Indeed, at that point there wasn’t much information on the new technique available. But Peter took me into a big dark room where dozens of experts were working at rows of computers, grading shots from the film. We sat down at a monitor, and he very generously gave me a 25-minute demonstration of how selective digital grading is done.

He used two main examples: a close-up of Denethor’s face and the distant view of Gandalf’s cart going along a road between some fields on the way to the Grey Havens. The tiny tweaks he was able to make on very limited parts of the image were wonderful. He could dial up a brighter patch of sunlight in one of the fields in the cart shot, subtly changing the tone of the image. It’s a beautiful process to watch, and even though I have very limited computer expertise, I thought it would be a very rewarding thing to do.

Peter can be seen at work in the all-too-brief supplement “Digital Grading” on the Fellowship of the Ring extended DVD/Blu-ray (right, with cinematographer Andrew Lesnie looking on). I think it’s a pity that none of the other supplements dealt with this technique.

Weta Workshop and Digital

About a week into my visit, on Tuesday, October 7, I went to the Weta Ltd. building for the first time for an interview with Richard Taylor. In order to get in, I was handed the only legal document I ever ended up signing during the whole project: an agreement not to bring a camera into Weta Workshop. I could see why. There were design drawings and models all over the place. Naturally I signed, since, as I’ve pointed out in previous entries, I wasn’t able to take photographs inside any of the filmmaking facilities. Hence the fact that most of my illustrations for this series either show the outsides of buildings or are frames from the DVD supplements.

Richard is absolutely as nice as he seems in the many interviews he has done over the years. To my surprise, he had invited two of his top designers, Daniel Falconer and Ben Wooten, to join us. It was a terrific interview, and we talked for about 85 minutes.

Afterward Daniel gave me a tour of Weta Workshop. Of course there were displays of all sorts of models and designs, including early conception images of Gollum. We saw the forge area, where the swords and other metal items are made. At one point we were in a big studio where the full-size version of the upper half of Treebeard was standing. That’s the one where Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan could actually sit on his hands.

I had read somewhere that there was a big snail, native to New Zealand, stuck in Treebeard’s twiggy beard. Sure enough, there it was. I commented to Daniel that I had known about the snail but, try as I might, during screenings I was never able to spot it. He replied, “Neither can I—and I put it there!” (That was another of those moments when it really struck me that I was right there in Wellington, talking to people who were still making LotR. How in the world had I actually gotten there?!)

Afterwards, as I left Weta Workshop, through an open door I spotted the giant model of the three trolls, turned to stone, which I had earlier seen inside the studio near Treebeard. Since they were visible from the public sidewalk, I allowed myself to take out a camera and photograph them (left). I trust that was not a violation of the legal agreement I had signed.

About two weeks later, Barrie suggested that I interview Matt Aitken of Weta Digital. Matt is another face familiar to fans as a talking head in the supplements (right). He’s in charge of scanning models for the digital effects. He didn’t work at the main Weta Digital headquarters on Manuka Street but at another facility further south on the Miramar peninsula. When I entered the building, I saw a bulletin board on the wall, with the number of shots remaining to have special-effects added. It was a reminder of the race to finish the film (again, documented in “The End of All Things,” see below).

Matt gave me a lot of specific information on the build-up of computing power at Weta, which grew hugely between The Frighteners and the end of the work on RotK. After that appointment, someone was supposed to pick me up and drive me to Manuka Street for a tour of the main Weta facility. Unfortunately, that person apparently never got the word. So Matt, busy though he was, drove me over himself and showed me around.

There was a big room full of animators working on various scenes, with full suits of the Elvish armor from the prologue of FotR hanging on the walls above them. (Another one hung on a stand just inside the main Manuka Street entrance. I must say I coveted that armor.) There was a series of rooms full of racks of 3000 hard drives laboring away at rendering and other tasks, accompanied by the roar of huge air-conditioning units. I also was introduced to the heart of the whole enterprise: the surprisingly small scanning room. There on one side were three big machines, all named after dragons and all scanning negatives straight out of the camera into digital files, to be color graded and to have their special effects done, among other procedures. On the other side of the room were two ArriLaser scanners putting the resulting frames back onto raw negative film. Back in the 1990s it took 45 seconds per frame to do that. By 2003 it took more like 2.5 seconds. Peter reportedly would not OK any special-effects shot until he saw it projected on a screen in 35mm, so there was a lot of footage to be scanned back onto negative film.

The Miniatures Unit

For some reason, on my first visit, I never asked to tour the miniatures department. I guess I was too busy. On my second visit, in June, 2004, I requested permission through Peter Jackson’s assistant, but was told I couldn’t see it. By that time, King Kong was well into production, and the facility was full of miniatures for that film. Secret stuff.

I interviewed Peter himself on the last day of that second visit. In December I returned and tried again, asking Peter’s assistant if he could get me permission to tour the miniatures department. Five minutes later I was given the name of a person to call and set up an appointment. I assume my interview with Peter reassured him that I was a serious and trustworthy person.

When I arrived at the miniatures unit, in yet another big building somewhere on the Miramar Peninsula, two other people and I got a tour from a pleasant young man who showed us such things as the model of the King Kong ship and lots of tiny jungles. Afterwards I went in to thank the woman who had arranged the appointment for me. She asked if I wanted to talk to Alex.

The name Alex didn’t ring a bell at that moment, I must admit. Still, I was willing to talk to anyone who was willing to talk to me, so I said yes. Luckily I had brought my recorder along. I was ushered into a conference room, and a few minutes later in walked Alex Funke. Oh, that Alex, the one who had worked on groundbreaking digital effects films such as The Abyss, Total Recall, and Starship Troopers. The Visual Effects Director of Photography for the miniatures unit and winner of two Oscars for LotR. (He’s now the motion-control supervisor for The Hobbit. That’s the technique that allows different elements of the same shot to be filmed at different times and/or places and joined smoothly together.)

That was the only interview I ever went into absolutely cold, with no advance notice or preparation. Fortunately Alex was a pro at interviews and basically just launched in, with me interjecting the occasional question. Apart from the technical information he gave me, he also conveyed a powerful sense of how congenial a working environment Peter had built up for his employees. Alex has enormous respect for the decent way in which people are treated. He himself, though having worked for years in the Hollywood film industry, had moved permanently to New Zealand to work with Peter—as Joe Letteri and others have.

Overall, the facilities built up for LotR make up the equivalent of a big Hollywood studio back in the golden days of the industry. A major, special-effects-heavy film can be made there, from script to screen. I feel enormously privileged to have seen so much of it.

We’ll encounter these places again in future entries.

Weta Digital’s Simon Clutterbuck, James Jacobs, Dr. Richard Dorling won Oscars Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013.

The new tech makes Gollum appear more lifelike in an approach the team calls “Tissue: A Physically-Based Character Simulation Framework.”

“The framework is used to construct and simulate the anatomical components of our digital creatures and characters,” Jacobs, a supervisor for creature special-effects told NBC. (Read the whole article right here.)

Reuters also has a story with details about the Weta Digital winners and others recognized Sunday night.

Congrats to those gentlemen and all of Weta Digital for its mastery of converting Andy Serkis’ performance to screen. TheOneRing.net will celebrate the Oscars, including other nominees for work on The Hobbit, in two weeks featuring on stage Beecake with Billy Boyd. Details to buy tickets are right here.

Software brought Gollum’s skin to life for “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” earning it an Oscar for technology and science

The Goblin King from “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” Image by Warner Bros. Pictures

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” earned the top nomination for visual effects and six others nominations at the 11th annual Visual Effects Society Awards, set for Feb. 5 at the Beverly Hilton. “The Avengers,” and “The Life of Pi,” are close behind with six nominations each and are also in the top category.

The awards recognize special effect driven films such as those mentioned above in a different category from those features where effects play a secondary role. It recognizes work in animated films, broadcast, commercials, video games and student work. Weta Digital is represented with “The Hobbit” and a work on a few others films as well.

It also recognizes special effect characters pitting Gollum against the Goblin King, Hulk and the tiger from “Life of Pi,” named Richard Parker. There are currently 10 films on the Academy Award list for Best Visual Effects with the official nominations expected January 10. “The Hobbit,” is very likely to be on the final ballot. TheOneRing.net is hosting an awards-night celebration in Hollywood on the nights of the awards. Some tickets remain available.

Nominations for The Hobbit are as follows:

1. Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Joe Letteri
Eileen Moran
Eric Saindon
Kevin L. Sherwood

2 & 3. Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: Goblin King
Jung Min Chan
James Jacobs
David Clayton
Guillaume Francois

The Hobbit: Gollum
Gino Acevedo
Alessandro Bonora
Jeff Capogreco
Kevin Estey

4. Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: Goblin Caverns
Ryan Arcus
Simon Jung
Alastair Maher
Anthony M. Patti

5. Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Matt Aitken
Victor Huang
R. Christopher White

6. Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Areito Echevarria
Garry Runke
Francois Sugny

7. Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Jean-Luc Azzis
Steven Mcgillen
Christoph Salzmann
Charles Tait

For a full story and the complete list of nominations please see The Hollywood Reporter’s story.