Part of the celebration of “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” is a new Google Chrome initiative that uses technology to lead users to a digital experience of J.R.R. Tolkien’s literary creation. You visit by clicking RIGHT HERE (http://middle-earth.thehobbit.com/) and trolling around the map with zoom features. Three locations are immediately available: The Trollshaw Forest, Rivendell and Dol Guldur. Others, like Thranduil’s Hall, are locked.
Below is a YouTube commercial for it and below that, the full press release.
PRESS RELEASE
“A JOURNEY THROUGH MIDDLE-EARTH”
PREMIERES ACROSS COMPUTERS, TABLETS AND PHONES
Burbank, CA, November 20, 2013—Inspired by the epic fantasy adventure “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” “A Journey Through Middle-earth,” is a new Chrome Experiment that brings the locations and characters from “The Hobbit” Trilogy to life with a mix of modern web technologies. The film, a production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, will be released worldwide December 13, 2013, from Warner Bros. Pictures and MGM.
The online experience, developed by North Kingdom in collaboration with the studios, takes fans through an adventure that unfolds across an interactive map of Middle-earth. Users can zoom in to explore Trollshaw Forest, Rivendell and Dol Guldur, with new locations set to be added in the weeks ahead. Each destination on the map gives the visitor access to its history and the characters who inhabit it, or presents unique survival challenges in which fans can test their wits.
With immersive 3D graphics built with CSS3 and WebGL, “Journey Through Middle-earth” is the first Chrome Experiment designed to bring this beautiful, 3D experience to mobile, with technology support for WebGL in Chrome for Android on devices with high-end graphics cards. Although WebGL isn’t supported on iOS, Chrome users can still experience most of “Journey Through Middle-earth” on their iPhones and iPads.
From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson, director of “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy, comes “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.” The screenplay for “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” is by Fran Walsh & Philippa Boyens & Peter Jackson & Guillermo del Toro, based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien. Jackson also produced the film, together with Carolynne Cunningham, Zane Weiner and Fran Walsh. The executive producers are Alan Horn, Toby Emmerich, Ken Kamins and Carolyn Blackwood, with Philippa Boyens and Eileen Moran serving as co-producers.
New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Present a Wingnut Films Production, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.” The film is a production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), with New Line managing production. Warner Bros. Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television distribution being handled by MGM.
Ringer Antonio has taken the sneak peek trailer (that’s trailer #3), and combined it with some snippets that we’ve heard so far of Howard Shore’s score. It’s not always a seamless experience, but it’s an interesting one that, perhaps, provides a better indication of how the finished product might look, sound and feel next month.
Moviegoers in the USA can buy advance tickets for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug online and in theatres from Thursday November 21 starting at 9am ET.
