forest_river_aerialIt’s
undoubtedly the dream of many a Tolkien fan to set foot in Hobbiton – or, really, any of the countless other locales you will find in The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films.
Many have, in fact, traveled to the beautiful country of New Zealand to do just that. However, not all of us have had the opportunity (or means) to travel and see Middle-earth for ourselves. To illustrate just what awaits us across the globe, NewZealand.com has just the solution. Continue reading “‘Take a Flight’ through the filming locations of Middle-earth”

100_percent_middle_earthA very unique art installation is about to open in LA, brought to you by Whybin/TBWA, Tourism New Zealand and 3 Foot 7 Ltd. The concept is that of a Pop-up book that shows four different New Zealand filming locations, along with the four corresponding actual film sets from the upcoming film ‘The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug”. This event is mostly by invitation only, with a big Press Opening on Saturday, November 30 and running for 5 days. Luckily, on Wednesday, December 4 there will be a Public Day for fans to see. The point of the whole art installation is to show off the beauty of New Zealand, the fun to be found in New Zealand, and on occasion, the Middle-earthness of New Zealand. To see more details regarding this event, you can read more about it at: Yahoo NZ

So far, the only way to get into that public day appears to be by heading over to the TCL Chinese theater box office and uttering the ‘secret password’. This will get you an entry to win a pass to the event. Make sure to head over this weekend because they will do the drawing on Monday and contact winners then. See the image below for details.

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Fiveish DoctorsThis video will most definitely appeal to those of you who are big
Doctor Who fans, but I’d wager the rest of you will find this immensely entertaining as well.

The short film – titled The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot – was shot to coincide with the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special – The Day of the Doctor. It involves former “Doctors” Peter Davison, Colin Baker,
and Sylvester McCoy doing anything and everything Continue reading “Sylvester McCoy appears in ‘Doctor Who’ Short Film, with Peter Jackson and Ian McKellen cameos”

Jude Fisher HeadshotFor those of us who have made a habit out of collecting the various tie-in books that have been released alongside Peter Jackson’s Tolkien adaptations – Jude Fisher is a name that springs instantly to mind. She is the author of the Visual Companion books that have come out with each Continue reading “Creating a Visual Companion: Jude Fisher talks about her life in Middle-earth”

live event To wrap up the week that saw an unprecedented live fan event where fans gathered in theaters around the world with cast and crew, here is a list of things that stood out for TORn staff.

During the event, fans were treated to costume displays, live Q&As, a preview of the end credit music video, and most importantly, 20 minutes of nearly complete, previously unseen footage. As stated in previous posts, this means movie spoilers are coming, so feel free to stop reading now if you wish to spend the next four weeks without knowing what’s to come. Continue reading “Thirteen things we love about The Desolation of Smaug footage”

Jed-Brophy01Welcome to this months “Getting to know you” Q&A, this month we’re talking to the one and only, amazingly talented, and all round great guy, Jed Brophy.

Continue reading “Getting to know Jed Brophy”