The Waikato Times reports a flurry of activity that began yesterday on a property at Wharepapa South, Waikato, in the North Island, where filming for The Hobbit began last week.
An excerpt follows:
A farm in Wharepapa South, an area renowned for its rock climbing, was packed with vehicles and tents, but apart from the security guards on the gate and the odd person alighting from one of the two helicopters that were flying in the area, few people could be seen on the set.
From across the valley, the property, believed to be owned by Graeme and Karen Saunders, looked suitable for Middle Earth territory, with numerous rocks jutting out of the green rolling hills.
Public Road access to The Hobbit set on the South Island.
Ringer Spy Glow sends us this EXCLUSIVE follow-up set of pictures from the mysterious Hobbit set on the South Island of New Zealand.
What’s there to see? Well, we close get a look at the set itself, and some fascinating detail work that has already gone the construction, plus some stunning wide shots. But what do they look like and what does it all mean? Is it Radagast’s Rhosgobel, or Beorn’s Hall?
To find out you’ll have to join us beyond the cut in SPOILER COUNTRY!
Ringer Spy Glow sends us this fantastic close-up of what we believe to be Beorn’s Hall. Is this the first close-up we’ve seen? Could it be Radagast’s home in Rhosgobel which was said to be built “under the eaves of Mirkwood”?
It’s obviously still under construction, but the one-level nature and sharply pitched roof is very reminiscent of Tolkien’s own sketch of Beorn’s Hall that was published in the book…
From stuff.co.nz: The latest phase of filming for Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has kicked off with the arrival of several Kiwi stars to the King Country. But there were no international stars – Orlando Bloom, Cate Blanchett or Elijah Wood – to be seen. Crews have spent many weeks filming in Matamata and are expected to finish this week and it’s the small King Country town of Piopio that the multimillion-dollar movie will now focus on. Yesterday, more than a dozen Kiwi actors and extras flew in to Hamilton International Airport on their way to Te Kuiti.
They included former Shortland St actor Dean O’Gorman and comedian Mark Hadlow, who also starred in King Kong and Meet the Feebles. Hadlow, who is starring as a dwarf in The Hobbit, said the crew were looking forward to their time in the area. “It’s a great place to come. I come here an awful lot with my shows, too. They’re fabulous people.” Hadlow was looking forward to a round of golf yesterday before an unrelenting schedule of filming, which will continue in various locations around the country over the next seven weeks. The premiere of the first movie, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, will be in Wellington before its general release on December 14 next year.
I’ll be kicking off a new, temporary, regular column that I’m calling An Unexpected Journey because that’s exactly what it is.
A little over a month ago an email arrived asking of my interest in embedding myself on the set of The Hobbit for the entirety of their location shoot, spending over 2 months in New Zealand rolled in with the crew and writing up their adventures, hassles, triumphs and tribulations as they traveled all over the country shooting bits and pieces from the upcoming two-parter (sic) prequel to Lord of the Rings.“
There were all manner of animals on the set ranging from goats to roosters, pigs, oxen, horses and all of them had handlers there to make sure they were fed, watered and safely munching on the lush green grass of Matamata. They would quickly duck out of frame whenever shots would go up.
If you’ve watched the appendices on the Extended Editions of the Lord of the Rings films you should recognize Kiran [Shah]’s name. He’s a much loved character around the set. He’s an actor, stunt man and scale double. On Rings he doubled Elijah Wood. [In The Hobbit, Shah will be Martin Freeman’s double.]
[Kiran] Shah will also be a Goblin in the film.
So what do you all think? Share your thoughts and speculations on our message boards.
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The Waikato Times reports a flurry of activity that began yesterday on a property at Wharepapa South, Waikato, in the North Island, where filming for The Hobbit began last week.
