Two New Zealand projects are to benefit from an international fundraising project by fans of The Lord of the Rings (LOTR) films.
The fundraising has helped kick off Wellington City Council’s commemorative tree scheme, and will also provide more than US$800 to the organ donation awareness group GiveLife.
Coordinator Stephanie Blevins, in the United States, says the fundraising was a way for LOTR fans on the website TheOneRing.net (TORN) to say thank you to Peter Jackson for creating such a successful film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s book.
“We just wanted to thank Peter Jackson so much for making these films. The fans are such wonderful and giving people and they saw this as a great opportunity to show their appreciation in a tangible way.
“The response has been incredible. Fans from around the world have contributed to the fundraising, which shows you just how widely the films have touched people,” says Stephanie.
Wellington City Council’s commemorative tree scheme was chosen as one of the beneficiaries of the fundraising as a salute to Professor Tolkien, who was an avowed environmentalist. Eleven kauri trees will be planted in Willowbank Park in Tawa, at 2pm on September 2 – the 11 trees comprise nine for the ‘Fellowship of the cast and crew’ of the films, and one each for Peter Jackson and Professor Tolkien (while also honouring the 11-Oscar sweep of The Return of the King).
The GiveLife foundation was chosen as Peter Jackson has publicly supported the issue of organ donation in New Zealand.
Erica Challis, the Kiwi co-founder of TORN, says the fundraising is an example of how the Internet can enable people who are widely separated by distance to collaborate on projects that are dear to their hearts, and she congratulates the fans for their initiative.
“As a Tolkien website, we’re aware of the Professor’s love of trees and his distress at the way urban development comes so often at the expense of many beautiful old trees. So there’s no question he would have approved of a tree-planting effort in his honour.
“As for organ donation, Peter Jackson has known a number of people to whom this is a life or death issue, and we applaud his efforts to help publicise the problem with low donor rates in New Zealand. It’s a problem that doesn’t need to exist, and wouldn’t exist if there were more awareness of the organ donation process.”
Says Andy Tookey of GiveLife: “I’m extremely grateful for the support and generosity that LOTR fans have contributed to the cause of helping save lives in New Zealand. With their support we have been able to advance the cause quite significantly in recent times.”
Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast says she is delighted that Wellington City Council’s commemorative tree programme was chosen as a beneficiary of the LOTR international fundraising project.
“This is a very generous gesture and we thank the fans for it. As this is the very first commemorative tree planting it is very special. It is honouring one of Wellington’s most loved sons, Peter Jackson, while at the same time commemorating Professor Tolkien. We, in Wellington, are very proud of our association with the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The trees will be planted at Willowbank Park and I am sure this park will become another very popular LOTR site for tourists and residents to visit,” she says.
Since the release of the LOTR movies, fans have travelled to New Zealand to see for themselves the places where key scenes were filmed. Both Stephanie and Erica expect the kauri trees in Willowbank Park to attract fans from TORN who wish to see what their fundraising efforts have achieved.
Says Erica: “The way Tolkien wrote, the way Peter Jackson’s team made the movies, the way Lord of the Rings fandom developed, and the way TheOneRing.net was developed by enthusiasts: these are all things that were done out of a sense of fun and sheer delight in being creative. All things that people did from following their own inclinations – and yet they’ve given an enormous amount of benefit and pleasure to millions of people. One should never underestimate the power of creative joy.”
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Anyone wanting to support the commemorative tree scheme should contact WCC’s Visitor Services and Events Coordinator for Parks and Gardens, Amanda White, on +64 4 472 5684 or amanda.white@wcc.govt.nz. Donations to GiveLife can be made via the website www.givelife.org.nz
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OOooooh, so many have written in about the “LOTR turnoff for girls” post, I thought it worth a second post. First of all, I’m a girl and I *love* LOTR, so don’t yell at me for Penguin’s poll 🙂 — maegwen
To speak for all of us out there, here is another point of view: “Hello, this is Araeph, reporting to you from the Protectors of the Plot Continuum message board, which promotes the respectful treatment of the LotR plot and characters in fanfiction. The article I’m sending you contrasts directly with the “LotR a Turn-Off to Girls?” article posted recently on theonering.net. “Errr, I don’t think so” was an apt comment.
“This was published awhile ago, but I think that it may be worth a look. It stemmed from an erroneous Lord of the Rings quiz in YM. The quiz riled several of our board members when the highest quiz score meant you were branded a “fangirl.” One of the magazine’s writers responded, asking for input from more of us, and we did our best to explain our non-Lego-lusting love for LotR. The article you see is the result.” [More]
So, there!
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Ringer Spy Frodosam wrote in to remind us that the 2004 DVD Awards are scheduled to take place on Monday, August 30th. To refresh your memory, the TT:EE is up for a number of awards, including “Blockbuster Theatrical.” [More]
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Ringer Spy BalrogWithWings writes: Greater Union is holding a competition to win tickets to the FSF Convention on September 11th in Sydney. The convention includes talks by the special guests, question and answer times, autograph sessions, a charity auction of LOTR items and a huge range of merchandise and collectibles. [More]
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Thanks to everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) who sent in the link to today’s ‘Get Fuzzy’ cartoon. As Ringer Spy Namarie says, “It involves a Gollum figurine and Bucky the cat’s delusions of grandeur.” [More]
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This weekend all things LOTR will gather around Alexandra Palace in London, UK for what promises to be a weekend of great fun and exciting events. If you haven’t done so already: get your tickets now! If you need some more convincing, check out the latest update from the organisers and head over to www.aaaevents.co.uk! See you there!
There are only two days to go to The Fellowship Festival and while it is pretty hectic here at Festival Towers, we just wanted to give you a quick update.
We have just been informed by Karl Urban’s agent that Karl has recently won a new film role which means that Karl will only be appearing at The Fellowship Festival this year so alongside Bernard Hill, Karl is now a worldwide event exclusive. We are very honoured to have both gentlemen join us at the show both have told us that they can’t wait to meet you all.
The event schedule has now been finalised. Due to last minute changes the full programme will be available when you arrive. We have organised question and answer sessions with the cast and crew that are held throughout the day and are repeated every day so you won’t miss out on a thing.
Some of the cast will be showcasing their special talents, check the schedule for times. Come and watch them strut their stuff; they have worked really hard to offer you a really new experience, a chance for you to see them in a new light.
The Tolkien Society have worked incredibly hard to give us many workshops and seminars where you can appreciate the works of Tolkien and Peter Jackson, huge thanks go to Ian and the team for all their hard work.
We are honoured to announce that Sarah McLeod will be singing “Into the West” exclusively at The Fellowship Feast. If you haven’t already got your ticket for the most memorable night of the year, you can buy it at the show from our stand.
Gino Acevedo from Weta Workshop will be transforming a lucky visitor into an orc before your very eyes every single day. We can’t wait to see the results.
The final touches to Mark Ferguson’s new comedy play “The Lord of The Rings 4: Return of The Towering Fellowship” have been finalised and we are looking forward to seeing Mark and some of the other cast members have us in fits of laughter.
EA GAMES are bringing one of their producers to The Festival who will talk to you about how they went about making the films into a game. Essential attendance for those of you who enjoy gaming. Don’t forget that they will also be demonstrating for the very first time, their brand new LOTR games, which are not being released until November.
For those of you who enjoy collecting, you can purchase exclusive items only available at the show and no-where else in the world brought to you by our friends at Cards Inc. You can also purchase official merchandise from our many exhibitors onsite.
Don’t forget, every Festival Ticket holder will be entered into a prize draw to win a holiday for two to New Zealand courtesy of our friends at Red Carpet Tours.
There is so much more that you can do at The Fellowship Festival, we sincerely hope that you make the most of the weekend, you enjoy all the activities that have been organised and have a wonderful time. We are very proud to be involved in such an amazing experience and look forward to seeing you all.
That’s not all folks, we still have some surprises up our sleeves…
Warmest wishes
The Fellowship Festival Team
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