Andy Serkis has admitted that he is frustrated performance-capture is not taken as seriously as conventional acting. The actor is currently reprising his role as Gollum in The Hobbit, the prequel to the fantasy franchise Lord of the Rings. He told The Daily Telegraph: “I am a bit evangelical, I know, but performance-capture is still misunderstood. “Ten years down the line, people say, ‘Oh, so you did the voice of Gollum?’ Or people go, ‘You did the movements for Kong?’ It’s frustrating, because I play Gollum and I play Kong. It is acting.” More..
Category: Characters
An official casting call for Elves in the upcoming Hobbit films has been posted at TradeMe.co.nz.
The production is looking for “slim” people to play Elf extras. Details can be found over at the link provided above, but the basic brief is as follows:
- Men must be aged 17 – 30 with a height of 165 cm – 178 cm.
- Women must be aged 17 – 30 with a height of 165cm – 173cm.
The advert states that filming is due in Wellington in September.
If you happen to attend the casting call (or the film shoot) and have any stories to share, please feel free to write us. You can do so either by clicking the “Got news?” link at the top-right of the home page or by sending an email directly to spymaster@theonering.net.
Thanks to message board member Bilbo Bling Just One Ring for the heads-up!
Hollywood star Orlando Bloom has been seen out and about in Wellington, joining a growing number of Hobbit actors arriving in the city as production resumes after a three-month hiatus.
Wellingtonians Miranda Webster, Aggie Galloway, Kayla Carruthers, Sam Walton and Hannah Robson met Bloom yesterday when they saw him shopping in the central city.
Ms Carruthers, 19, said she and her friends were on Vivian St when they saw Bloom go into a photography store.
“We weren’t sure at first if it was him or not, so we waited around casually outside the stop, and then when he came out we saw it was definitely him.” [Read more]
On this episode of Hobbit in 5, we tell you about the upcoming live chat with TORn staffer Quickbeam, Stephen Fry and Luke Evans tweet on their way to NZ, announce the launch date for The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, and Peter Jackson offers Andy Serkis some advice! We also discuss Thror in this week’s character study.
Thanks to our executive producer: Andrew Blocher
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Fans of The Lord of the Rings films already know that Andy Serkis can act his face off and act without ever showing his face. He first proved it with his landmark performance of Gollum in The Two Towers. Film making and acting without a net, portions of the film hinged on Serkis’ performance of a creature and Weta Digital’s ability to put the emotion on screen digitally. It worked. Beyond all expectations, it soared.
When the screenwriters threw in some character twists of the twisted character for Return of the King (for good or for ill, but don’t blame the actor) Serkis did it again. And of course his return as the same character to The Hobbit is as essential a tie between the films as any character. He went from Middle-earth to Monster Island with King Kong and even got to die a horrible death in his own skin on screen.
Weta went on to create Pandora and its blue skinned inhabitants with James Cameron in Avatar then teamed up again on Tintin with Serkis playing a human in the hilarious Captain Haddock.
But his role as Caesar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, just about to open in theaters everywhere, is his greatest performance yet. He moves from being a central character in a big movie to being the center of the film and stealing the show from the actors who get flesh and blood on screen. Continue reading “Exclusive: Andy Serkis talks ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes,’ ‘Hobbit’ with TORn”
Veteran actor Stephen Fry has arrived in Wellington to begin filming his part in The Hobbit.
Fry, a prolific tweeter, touched down in the capital a few hours ago, telling his Twitter followers it was “brightish but not freezing”.
After announcing he was going for “a little explore”, he posted a photo of Max Patte’s Solace in the Wind sculpture on the waterfront, prompting Wellington fans to head to the water. [Read More]