Monday afternoon New Zealand time, a severe earthquake hit the North Island of New Zealand, with its center in the Palmerston North area. The 6.3 (or 6.2, according to some reports) magnitude earthquake caused damage to roads and buildings, creating rockfalls and bringing down chimneys and power lines. The quake was felt in Wellington, where one of the giant eagles displayed at the airport, to promote The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, became detached from the ceiling. You can read a full report of the quake, and the extent of the damage which is known so far, here. Fortunately it seems that no one was seriously hurt. We are thinking of all our friends in New Zealand and hoping that all are ok! [New Zealand Herald report]
Category: Hobbit Movie
One
of the very best aspects of the Academy Awards is the ability of the nominations and forthcoming telecast to shine a light on smaller films
that would perhaps otherwise go unnoticed by the general public. Such is the case with a film that Martin Freeman shot a couple of years ago
called The Voorman Problem. Directed by Mark Gill and also starring
Tom Hollander, Simon Griffiths and Elisabeth Gray, the film has been nominated for Best Live Action Short at the 86th Annual Academy Awards. We would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations to Mr. Gill and his cast and crew.
The film will be touring in cinemas with the Oscar Shorts starting January 31st, and will appear on iTunes on February 28th. Visit the official site for the film by clicking here. Continue reading “Short Film ‘The Voorman Problem’ starring Martin Freeman nominated for Academy Award”
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced their nominations
for the 86th Annual Academy Awards this morning, and The Desolation of Smaug received 3 nods.
Congratulations to the nominees! The ceremony will be held on March 2nd. Continue reading “‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’ nominated for 3 Oscars”
We all know, of course, that Tolkien’s characters and locations spring vividly to life in the imagination, whenever his books are read. One artist, however, has taken that a step further, and created a sculpture of Smaug from the pages of a copy of The Hobbit. The scaly, menacing dragon leers around the cover of the book, seeking a tiny Bilbo, who cowers under his searching gaze. See more pictures and read about this amazing art work here – it’s really stunning.
Tonight, via their Facebook page, Gentle Giant have released details of the next bust in their The Hobbit Trilogy bust line and the first one from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. The next character being created is none other than Legolas Greenleaf wearing his very cool Elven Armor. That’s not all, we get to see Legolas holding the severed Orc head from the interrogation scene after Thranduil separated the head from the Orc body. Legolas is up for Pre-Order right now for $75 with an estimated shipping date of the fourth quarter of this year.
Full details aren’t ready for full disclosure just yet, but should be available very soon. Just crossing the Ts and dotting the Is on booking a venue. We wanted to make sure you knew this was happening today, just as the Oscar Nominations are announced so you can ‘Save the Date’. Here is what we can tell you.
The Oscar party will be held on Sunday, March 2, but then, that date was chosen by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
This will be a viewing party, with dinner, games, auction and raffles, and some geeky fun. That also means it will start in the mid to late afternoon as the Red Carpet telecast gets underway.
Rather than a big fancy party as in years past, we’ve decided to go more casual this year. This is more of an Oscar Moot, a gathering of friends and fans for food, Fellowship and fun. No need for fancy dress, although costumes are always welcome.
The cost will be much more within reach, basically just covering the meal, tax and gratuities.
We are endeavoring to make this family friendly, all ages welcome, so feel free to bring the younglings.
Look for more details in the coming weeks when we issue the formal invite.