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Start: Wellington
Finish: Christchurch
Mileage: 150K / 93 Miles (estimate, not counting flight from Wellington to Christchurch)
Sites: Lothlorien, Isengard Gardens, Minas Tirith/Helm’s Deep, and the elven cloak factory
Stansborough Fibres Ltd. (the elven cloak factory)
Our first stop was the Stansborough Fibres shop in Wellington. Stansborough manufactured the Elven cloaks used in Lord of the Rings and has the license to sell them, but their story is much bigger than that.
Everyone’s heard about all the sheep in New Zealand, but Cheryl and Barry Eldridge’s are very special. Starting with Gotland sheep, they have used embryo transfer and other breeding techniques for ten years to evolve a unique breed, called Stansborough Greys. Bred to provide high quality wool for worsted fabric, they are raised on the 3000 acre Stansborough Farm in the Wairarapa Valley.
What is fascinating about Stansborough is that their use of high technology is in the agriculture, not the manufacture. They may use embryo transfer to develop a unique breed, but the fabric is woven on two rare antique looms from the 1890s in a manufacturing area behind the shop. The Eldridges are involved in every aspect of the wool business from breeding the sheep to selling the products online. After shearing, the wool is hand sorted by color and texture, carded (combed out), dyed with natural color fast dyes, and then spun into fiber. Cheryl explained that the same color dye will yield a different result, depending on the natural color of the wool. Finished products are then sewn and tailored from the spun fabric.
Lord of the Rings costume designers saw samples of their fabric in New York, loved the “silky, soft, and lustrous” wool and tracked them down. They wove over 3200 yards of fabric for the elven cloaks used in the films. Stansborough fabric was also used in Gimli’s tunic, numerous soldier’s mantles, the Ring Wraiths’ robes, and some of the hobbits’ pintuck jackets. Several members of our fellowship purchased elven cloaks or scarves, wraps, and throws made from this unique fabric.
Barry and Cheryl’s business continues to diversify. It’s possible to stay at the farm in the Wairarapa. They design fabrics for architects, boutique hotels, interior designers, and offer baby goods, corporate gifts, and other lines. They sell fabric to designers and raw wool to spinners and weavers. They are now also breeding alpacas for wool.
And the film work has also continued: They have designed fabric for The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe and plan to obtain a license for Narnia fabric products. More on Stansborough, including their online store, at stansborough.co.nz.
Fernside
From Stansborough we drove to Fernside, in the Wairarapa region about an hour northwest of Wellington. This estate was used for the Leaving Lothlorian and Deagol and Smeagol/Gladden Fields locations.
Fernside is a lovely Georgian English country house dating from the 1920s, complete with a large English garden and a lake. Our Lothlorien guide Mike, who works as the gardener on the property, met us in full Middle Earth costume. He told us he attended the Wellington Return of the King premiere and had his sword signed by Orlando Bloom and Andy Serkis, though drawing the sword in the crowd also got security’s attention at first. (not to worry, it’s not live steel.)
The scenes of the Fellowship leaving Lothlorien, saying farewell to the elves and floating down the Celebrant to where it joins the Anduin, were filmed here in winter, in early 2000. More than 200 people were on site, and the house itself was used for editing. The original bridge on the lake was embellished with Elvish motifs and details, and a large Lothlorien mallorn tree was built on the side of the lake that served as the river. The mallorn and the Elvish motifs are gone, but Fernside still looks and feels like Lothlorien. The bridge, trees, and lake are still there, and it is very easy to imagine that Galadriel’s farewell and the departure of the elven boats took place not long ago (see gallery).
Mike explained that in October 2000 cast and crew returned to film the Deagol and Smeagol scenes that open The Return of the King, noting that visitors enjoyed re-enacting both the finding of the ring and Deagol’s murder.
After Fernside, we had lunch in Martinborough, the center of the Wairarapa wine region, known for its Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir. Here I learned the location of Peter Jackson’s new house in Masterton, when I mentioned to a bank teller that I was on a Lord of the Rings tour. I didn’t ask for the information; she volunteered it and told me exactly how to get there to see the turrets from the road. Alas, there was no time, though it would have been lovely to see The Bag End set in its new home. Read more about the Wairarapa and its attractions at wairarapanz.com.
Harcourt Park – The Gardens of Isengard
Heading back toward Wellington, we stopped at Harcourt Park in Upper Hutt, site of the Isengard Gardens where Gandalf and Saruman walked, where Gandalf arrived in Isengard, and where the orcs cut down the trees that fell into the underground factories. (The trees used were not from this park. Location Guide author Ian Brodie explains that the trees used were harvested elsewhere, cut into pieces, and re-assembled on set so they could survive repeated falls, calling them “the famous hinged trees of Isengard.”)
Both the garden path where Saruman and Gandalf walked, and the path between the two trees where Gandalf rose into Isengard, are very easy to recognize.
Winstone Aggregates – Helm’s Deep and Minas Tirith
The Helm’s Deep and Minas Tirith sets were built in the Winstone Aggregates quarry in Lower Hutt, close to Wellington. The sets are gone, but from the road outside the quarry and from the other side of the highway you can get a good picture clearly showing the outlines of the hills behind Minas Tirith.
We returned to Wellington and flew to Christchurch, saying goodbye to our hosts Vic and Raewyn James. Our South Island guides Anwen Carver and Bruce Holtshousen met us at Christchurch. Our flight was late due to fog, so we didn’t arrive at the hotel until around midnight, and leaving no chance to see any locations from Peter Jackson’s “Heavenly Creatures.” We consoled ourselves by thinking of the next day….
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Tomorrow: Edoras
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“Desperate Housewives,” a dark satire about suburbia that became an instant hit in its debut season, was among the top Emmy nominees announced Thursday. The ABC series, competing in the comedy category, received 15 nominations, sharing status as series front-runner with the NBC sitcom “Will & Grace,” which also got 15. “Lost,” a freshman drama about air crash survivors stranded on a mysterious island, got 12. [More]
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A Star-Studded world premiere of Richard E Grant’s directorial debut will mark the start of this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival. The British star, perhaps still best known for his role in the classic comedy Withnail and I, will be joined by cast members Emily Watson, Gabriel Byrne and Julie Walters for the screening of his film Wah Wah…the organisers have arranged one of the strongest line-ups in recent years, with more British and international premieres, the hottest British talent, some unique screenings and appearances by stars such as Elijah Wood, Jason Biggs and cinema legend Paul Schrader. [More]
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LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–July 13, 2005–Academy Award-winning Production Designer Grant Major, whose latest production designs will be seen later this year in Universal Pictures’ “King Kong,” will receive the Hollywood Film Festival’s Hollywood Production Designer of the Year Award at the Festival’s October 24 awards ceremony. His selection was determined for his “distinguished body of work” by a recommendation of the Council of the Art Directors Guild (ADG). Major won his Oscar® in 2004 for his work in “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.” He was also nominated for two additional Art Direction Academy Awards: for “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” (2003) and “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” (2002). [More]
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Ringer Celebriel just returned from an LOTR locations tour in New Zealand, this is her Day Four report: Our day started with a visit from Daniel Reeve, mapmaker and calligrapher. Daniel is another extraordinary person involved in the production whom we would not have met outside the Red Carpet Tour, and another one whose life and work have gone in a different direction because of working on The Lord of the Rings. [More]
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Start: Wellington
Finish: Wellington
Mileage: 49K / 30 Miles
Weather: Glorious
Sites: Production facilities in Miramar, The Shire, The Chocolate Fish Café, and the Embassy Theatre
Special Guest: Daniel Reeve
Daniel Reeve, Calligrapher and Mapmaker
Our day started with a visit from Daniel Reeve, mapmaker and calligrapher. Daniel is another extraordinary person involved in the production whom we would not have met outside the Red Carpet Tour, and another one whose life and work have gone in a different direction because of working on The Lord of the Rings.
After reading the trilogy as a teenager, he started working in elvish scripts and creating maps. When he learned about the about the production, Daniel was working in the IT department of a bank and creating watercolors on the side. He sent samples of his calligraphy to Peter Jackson, and the studio called almost immediately.
Like Chris Rutten’s, Daniel’s involvement expanded over time, especially as the films moved from production to distribution and merchandising. The labels for Gandalf’s fireworks, made in two sizes, were his first prop. Think of the many scrolls, letters, books, and maps in the trilogy: Bilbo’s party invitations, the scroll of Isildur, Bilbo’s and Frodo’s manuscript, shire calendars, scrolls for Rivendell and the Houses of Healing, orcish graffiti in Cirith Ungol, Saruman’s journal, the dwarves’ history found on Balin’s Tomb in Moria – Daniel created them all. As he spread out all these original works on the table, we were just in awe at the quality of each piece and the scope of the work.
Daniel explained that he distressed paper with coffee and tea to make it look old, and made his own quills from bird feathers. Wrapping paper and watercolor paper were two types he used frequently.
Daniel created different styles of handwriting, paper, and even alphabets to reflect the different regions and peoples of Middle Earth. For example, even though Frodo and Bilbo use the same alphabet, their handwriting is quite different (Bilbo’s has more flourishes). He also became artist in residence for all crew gift-giving occasions, designing jackets and t-shirts, even a tattoo design of the ring inscription, and creating in calligraphy the personal notes Elijah Wood wrote to each fellowship member. He also taught Elijah calligraphy (see photo of Elijah’s practice sheets), and served as Frodo’s calligraphy hand double.
One of his biggest projects was the massive licensee style guide created for New Line Cinema, covering all three films, involving a huge range of scripts, name treatments, borders, and maps for all characters and locations, and including font, size, color, and spacing. Licensees have to follow the style guide to ensure their presentation matches that of the film. (This was the one thing of Daniel’s I’d have given anything to have as a reference, but I guess you have to be a licensee to get one.) He created the theatrical and DVD titles for the films in all languages, including the DVD menu options.
Then there are all the maps used in the films and related merchandise. Daniel told us a secret about the Middle Earth map: Look closely at the harbor by the Grey Havens– it’s Wellington Harbor, complete with the peninsulas where Miramar and the airport are located. He also created the map of New Zealand as Middle Earth commissioned by the Tourist Board and maps for Electronic Arts’ computer games and the Hasbro/Parker Brothers’ Risk and Monopoly games.
Calligraphy and mapmaking are now a full time job, as Daniel is working on both King Kong and The Chronicles of Narnia. When you see King Kong, look for the 1930s newspapers, marine charts, maps, and the captain’s log – more of Daniel’s work.
In addition to sharing with us so much of his original art, Daniel had items for sale and was also kind enough to create a personal inscription for each of us. See more of his work at http://www.danielreeve.co.nz/.
Tour of Miramar (aka Wellywood)
After the meeting with Daniel, we boarded our bus for Miramar, where most of Peter Jackson’s production and editing facilities are located. On many tours, the Red Carpet group has been able to meet Richard Taylor, visit WETA’s board room, and actually hold some of their Oscars. This time Richard was unable to meet us due to heavy commitments on King Kong. However, Kathy (TORn’s own Garfeimao) called Dan Falconer, and he came out to speak to us. Dan told us a bit about the newest division, WETA Productions, which is producing a computer animated series for New Zealand children’s television titled Jane and the Dragon. It’s pushing motion capture even further, with the ability to mocap 6 performers at once.
We drove by Stone Street Studios, Park Road Post, and other facilities, many of which are adaptive reuse buildings, including a former paint factory and a cookie factory.
As a side note, on Shelley Bay Road headed into Miramar, we could see The Venture (King Kong) tied up a public pier. And just down the road is a lot with discarded foam-carved and painted trees from King Kong jungle scenes (you can see them in the trailer).
Lunch at The Chocolate Fish Café
If I lived in Wellington, I’d have lunch at the Chocolate Fish every day! Cast members ate here regularly, and the café is justly famous for its food and harbor views. A special surprise was seeing producer Barrie Osborne at the next table, lunching with “The Lovely Bones” author Alice Seybold. We all managed to contain our enthusiasm, and no one took a picture or interrupted their meeting. Strolling down the beach, one of our fellowship encountered a huge weta in the women’s rest room, which we all rushed to photograph, taking it as a favorable omen. We also drove past Peter Jackson’s house in Seatoun, located somewhere along the beach road going toward the Chocolate Fish Café. I will speak no more of this.
Mount Victoria
After lunch, we returned to Wellington for the views from Mt. Victoria and to visit the site where production began, back on October 11, 1999. Mount Victoria has thick forests and lovely walking trails. Downtown Wellington is just a few blocks below – hard to believe because the locations look so secluded and remote in the film. The most easily recognized locations are the “Get off the road!” site, where even after nearly six years the trees still frame the path where Frodo stood, and the large tree root where the four hobbits hid from the Black Rider. The tree and its root are easy to spot, although it’s more barren in real life without the plants added during filming. Also here is the ridge where they slid down, into the mushrooms.
Embassy Theatre
As all Ringers know, the Embassy theatre was the site of the Australasian premieres of The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, and the world premiere of The Return of the King. The restored Embassy is a real jewel, its restoration being a condition from New Line for having the last world premiere there. The tilework and glass absolutely glow. Upstairs is Blondini’s jazz lounge and café where you can have a drink, meal, or specialty coffee, and you don’t even have to have a ticket. There’s a photo mural about the ROTK premiere on one wall. Learn about the Embassy’s history and restoration at http://www.theembassytheatretrust.org.nz.
We had dinner near the Embassy at Strawberry Fare Dessert Restaurant (http://www.strawberryfare.co.nz), where the main courses were good but paled before massive dessert choices like chocolate madness, white chocolate cheesecake, and the triple chocolate brownie, to name a few.
Tomorrow: Lothlorien, Isengard Gardens, Minas Tirith/Helm’s Deep, and the elven cloak factory
Celebriel
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