Amber writes to let us know that UW History Professor Dr. Robin Stacey is presenting a 5 part lecture series examining the life and works of J.R.R. Tolkien. The series is set to start on January 15, and more information will be posted on Dec 1 to the UW Alumni Website.
Category: Lectures & Education
Jo writes: The White Tree Fund is hosting a Tolkien lecture in Toronto next Thursday, September 27 at 7.00 pm. It will be held at Hart House, University of Toronto. Dr. John Browne is speaking on “Tolkien as Wordsmith: One Reader’s Journey Through the Lord of the Rings”. Tickets are $10 if you’re a member of the Toronto smial or $15 for non-members. Please bring along any old children’s books or magazines to be donated to the Parkdale Project Read, a local literacy group. For more info and to get tickets see: www.whitetreeefund.org.
Udi writes:
“For the third year in a row, Mythopia is one of the most prominent literary conventions in the Israeli landscape. Starting off with academic lectures on the works of J. R. R. Tolkien and J. K. Rowling, it began to house other literary endeavours such as those of Philip Pullman’s “His Dark Materials”, G. R. R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” and C. S. Lewis’s “Narnia”.
The convention attracts a wide range of audiences, from early teens to mature adults, all interested in fannish delving or academic exploration, with no correlation to the age of the audience, who enjoys the stage of Israel’s top academic lecturers concerning literary works in the fantastic genre, producing a fantastic convention.
One of the lectures about Tolkien’s work is
Túrin and Frodo: A Fate Too Similarly Different / Ran Bar-Zik
Túrin, the hero of “The Children of Húrin”, seems vastly different than Frodo, the hero of “Lord of the Rings”. A closer inspection
reveals that the similarities outnumber the differences, and sometime Frodo mirrors Túrin to extremes.
The lecture shall examine the similarities and difference and will attempt to reach a conclusion on Tolkien’s storybuilding and the eternal element of the dance between myth and modern.”
I can’t read a word of it but Udi tells us the official site can be found right here
Iain writes: Spotted an article in my local paper (Evening Advertiser) that caught my eye immediately:
“A top scientist is to reveal the secrets behind the magic of Harry Potter. At the Cheltenham Science Festival;, in June, fans of both Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings will have the opportunity to find out how computer technology created the films’ special efforts.
At the festival presentation, sponsored by the Swindon-based British Computer Society, Andrew Fitzgibbon, the winner of the 2006 BCS Needham Award, will present Screen Magic, about the use of computer vision in creating 3D special effects for the film industry. He will illustrate how he uses technology to bend the audiences’ perception of what they are watching.
He is a senior researcher at the Microsoft Research, Cambridge, UK and researches the intersection of computer vision and computer graphics, with excursions into neuroscience, which have allowed him to work on the special effects for Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings among other films.
He will be joined by Andrew Daffy, who will explain the secrets behind the magic of his work which includes the James Bond opening titles and BBC2 tags.”
Link to specific event: cheltenhamfestivals.com
Irascian writes: Joe Letteri, visual effects supervisor on King Kong, will be speaking in The Starr Auditorium at The Tate Modern in London (UK) as part of a series of lectures on digital art. Joe’s lecture will be at 6.30pm on Monday, 25th September. He will be discussing the creation of the Visual FX for Peter Jackson’s King Kong. Joe will show how Weta built 1933 New York City, grew the lush jungles of Skull Island, and brought King Kong to life. Joe has received two academy awards for the visual effects on The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers in 2002, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in 2003. Tickets are £10 (£8 for children and senior citizens) and can be ordered from the Tate ticket office on 020 7887 8888 or online here.
Folks from The Tolkien Society writes: The 2006 Tolkien Society Seminar will be held on Saturday 22nd July in the Pierce room at the Assembly House, Norwich, England.
Provisional Programme:
“Tolkien as a right-wing icon: The Strange case of Italy” Raffaella Benvenuto
“Join the Tolkien Party”. An exploration of how both Tolkien’s work and adaptations of his work relate to real life politics, left, right and centre. Lynn Whittaker
“Metaphysics, mythology, and the politics of the ‘fantastic’ in J R R Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring and Ben Okri’s The Famished Road” Rosetta Sirico-Codling
“The Purging of the Shire” An examination of the chapter “The Scouring of the Shire”. David Doughan
If you are interested in giving a paper please contact Trevor Reynolds, the seminar organiser (see below) as we still have room for one or two additional presentations.
Registration
The cost of places at the seminar are £18.00 for Tolkien Society members or £20.00 for non-members. Places can be paid for on-line (see above) or by use of booking forms circulated within the Society magazine Amon Hen, downloadable from the website, available by post from the seminar organiser, or you can simply send your payment together with your name, address and any dietary or access requirements to the seminar organiser:
Trevor Reynolds, 65 Wentworth Crescent, Ash Vale, Aldershot, GU12 5LF, UK
Lunch and refreshments are included in the registration fee. The venue is wheelchair accessible. The closing date for registration is 14th July 2006, however spaces are limited so to secure your place please book early.
More information about the venue can be found at assemblyhousenorwich.co.uk Information about accommodation in Norwich can be obtained from the Tourist Information Centre: email, tourism@norwich.gov.uk; telephone, 01603 727927 or www.visitnorwich.co.uk
On Sunday, should enough people wish there will be an expedition to the wilds of the Norfolk Broads, to Berney Arms to look round the Windmill and visit the pub. More details will be sent when bookings are made, or see the website.