CANBERRA – Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson is to produce a new sound and light show on World War I aviation for the Australian War Memorial. Jackson, who won three Academy Awards for the film trilogy, will produce a 10-minute big-screen extravaganza to help visitors experience the risks, action and drama of First World War aerial battles. “It is very exciting for the memorial to have Peter Jackson involved in the creation of the multimedia for Over the Front,” assistant director for public programs Helen Withnell said. Presented on a large screen – measuring 21m by 3.5m – a 6:1 aspect ratio – the 10-minute sound and light show will be screened each hour. Peter Jackson to produce short WW1 film
Nathaniel Amroth writes: Hello TORn! Long fan of the site, and I’m hoping to get as many Boston Ringers together as possible for this awesome engagement, especially the triple feature on October 12th! Here’s the schedule!
Universal LogoNikki Finke writes: I just heard that Universal has declined to exercise an option to co-finance DreamWorks’ Tintin with Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson set to begin filming in October. The decision was quietly made a few weeks ago. So now DreamWorks will look only to owner Paramount for the rest of the moolah in the same way the two shared financing on Dreamgirls and Transformers. Unfortunately, Paramount is presently without an overall financing deal to mitigate risk, but is arranging it on a film-by-film basis. I say Tintin — to be played by Love Actually’s Thomas Sangster — sounds like an expensive but safe bet, considering that the beloved Belgian boy is a worldwide phenomenon, and that the two great filmmakers are directing and producing even though also participating as huge first-dollar-gross players. This latest wrinkle would be more interesting if, say, Uni’s decision hurt its about-to-become-closer relationship with DreamWorks. But it didn’t. As I already reported, GE’s Jeff Immelt and Uni’s Ron Meyer dined with Spielberg and Stacey Snider Thursday night while NBC Uni’s Jeff Zucker spent the better part of that afternoon with Steven planning out the rebuild of the fire-ravaged backlot.
Last year, “Lord of the Rings” star Viggo Mortensen told MTV News that he was game for a chance to return to Middle-earth, and would welcome the opportunity to portray Aragorn in a “Hobbit” bridge film. So why hasn’t director Guillermo del Toro called him yet? “I haven’t heard anything,” the once and future king of Men said of news about the movie. “I met [Guillermo] once years ago,” but haven’t talked to him since. Viggo Mortensen Still Waiting For Guillermo Del Toro’s ‘Hobbit’ Call
Hobbit House Tony Wrench was toasting victory over the planners yesterday with a glass of wine made from the vines that grow on the turf roof of his wooden roundhouse. After ten years of planning battles, during which he and his partner, Jane Faith, faced having to demolish the home they had built themselves, they have finally won the right to stay. The roundhouse, known officially as “That Roundhouse”, was built in a hidden corner of a farm in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. It has a grass roof and walls built from cob – a combination of mud, straw, sand and water – and 16in (40cm) logs. A skylight was salvaged from an old coach and a milk churn is used as a stove. Hobbit House Saved from Demolition
From message board member Isildur’s heir: I just received an email from The New Yorker magazine. It seems Guillermo del Toro will be speaking at the Director’s Guild of America, as part of the New Yorker Festival, on October 4 at 7:30 p.m. at The Directors Guild of America; 110 West 57th Street. Tickets go on sale Wednesday, so be ready!
Guillermo del Toro talks with Daniel Zalewski on monsters: Guillermo del Toro wrote, directed, and produced the 2006 film “Pan’s Labyrinth,” which won three Academy Awards and became the highest-grossing Spanish-language film in U.S. box-office history. His other films include “Cronos,” “The Devil’s Backbone,” “Blade II,” “Hellboy,” and “Hellboy II: The Golden Army.” His next project will be a two-film adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit,” to be released in 2011 and 2012.
Tickets ($35) available Wednesday, September 17th, at 12 noon E.T., at festival.newyorker.com or by calling 800-440-6974. Tickets will also be sold during Festival weekend at Festival HQ, at Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18th Street, and at the door. Send in your reports if you’re lucky enough to go!