As we told you about the other day, our friend and amazing artist, Jerry Vanderstelt’s new art print of Rivendell is now up for order. This is the first in a series of landscape series allowing fans to add to their collections images of many of the beautiful places that help create Middle-earth.
The Rivendell Art print can be had in two different formats as we’ve seen with other prints in a super nice Paper Giclee version and Canvas version. The Paper Giclee can be had starting at $80 with various options and the Canvas starts at $225 also with various options. This beautiful print is in-stock so order now and give that fan of Middle-earth this fantastic gift.
Join us in Los Angeles in February at The One Last Party
We’re hosting a Party of Special Magnificence next February — a final toast to all SIX movies, both The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit trilogy.
We’re inviting you to join us and make it happen through our Indiegogo campaign — so we can all celebrate Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth movies together!
Visit our campaign page and find out how you can help!
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MIRAMAR, New Zealand — The director’s tent.
Inside a sound stage, or outside on location, it is a constant and central fixture on a movie shoot. It is home base for Peter Jackson and his team.
It is sacred ground — more or less.
The decisions made inside it, by the team, under Jackson’s direction, are crucial to the project where it is determined what will later happen in front of the camera.
So every day, whatever happens to a set or a sound stage overnight, the tent is there set up and waiting for the core of the shooting unit.
Editor Jabez Olssen, Script Supervisor Victoria Sullivan and First Assistant Director Carolynne Cunningham call it home during the shoot. Cunningham is outside of the director’s tent a lot, Olssen and Sullivan less so and Producer Zane Weiner is always near. Jackson’s assistant Sebastian Meek is in and out at all times, bringing badly needed tea and watching the door from outside to eliminate distractions inside.
Jackson lives on tea and Meek has a talent for having it handy at the perfect moment.
SETTING THE SCENE
In April, 2012, as a representative of fandom via TheOneRing.net, I was invited to be on set during five weeks of the filming of the Hobbit films. At the time, it was still scheduled to be two movies and the production had just settled in to shoot in studio instead of on location. Much was unknown then, that now is completely familiar to fans.
When I first arrived at Stone Street Studios, the publicity team took me to set, showed me the ropes and left me to my own devices during the rest of my stay to meet folks and get interviews, which was great — no time and no need for babysitting.
I was there to be a good guest and to observe. Two weeks later I was definitely convinced I had no chance of talking to Peter Jackson, except for an occasional, “Hello, how are you getting on?” from him during my time there.
Fans world-wide know from production diaries, how exhausted Jackson gets during the shooting phase of filmmaking. It is important to really understand why.
Peter Jackson is a busy guy. Particularly when he is shooting, there is a lot to do in a day and a lot of people that need to understand his vision in order to do their jobs well; he is the hub of the great spinning wheel.
He is the director, a writer and a producer — each a big job on its own. Many films have one of each of those, or several of some, all working together. But Jackson was all of them at once and combining titles didn’t mean there was less work to be done. Just because he was reviewing shots didn’t mean the script didn’t need his touch or that the art department didn’t need his input or the next day’s schedule didn’t need approval. Others were partners on all of these roles but they also required Jackson.
In a day he might need to meet with the effects supervisor, set designers, concept designers, costume designers, the composer or see actual costumes for approval, or changes, to name just a few of the many things that require his time. He will confirm the schedule with his Assistant Director, producers and spend time with the Second Unit Director Andy Serkis, to make sure all is to his liking. They need sets built, greens grown, existing sets decorated, concept guys working ahead, materials guys building everything, maximizing actors’ time, feeding all of those people, screening extras, bringing in the right number of prosthetic artists for the day’s schedule of actors and extras and on and on. In short, there is never a shortage of people who need Jackson’s input to work on his vision and it takes the logistics of — dare I say — planning a battle with five armies.
In short, everything goes through Peter Jackson.
Those are the reasons “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” and his other Hobbit movies are genuinely Peter Jackson movies. It also means he is booked.
Solid.
THE FINAL HOURS
And so it was, the last day of my time on The Hobbit set, after several assurances that my interview with Peter Jackson would happen — it did.
Lunch happened and on the location set of Dale, up on a hill overlooking Evans Bay to Wellington, I was invited to that nearly sacred director’s tent to sit and talk with PJ — just the two of us alone. (One editor asked me if we ate together in the tent but I don’t think so, but why many memories are crystal clear of that meeting, anything we ate or didn’t eat isn’t clear. I just have no idea.)
I had been inside before, but not often. The day I shadowed him, I spent several hours, trying to melt into the background. This was his sanctuary and office.
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WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND — We talked to Orlando Bloom in a sound stage on set during filming of The Hobbit movies. Bloom is a massive movie star, more than he is an actor, he is a franchise actor in series of films that have grossed billions. Of all the folks we interviewed I knew him the least (not at all) and he was the most difficult to read.
I recall that he was nervous but reading through the transcription that doesn’t show up at all. We talked a lot about Rings vs. Hobbit a lot here and that wouldn’t have been my choice. But there are no bad questions, it just feels slightly repetitive. However, after seeing “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,” I do understand more clearly of what he was telling us. He was forthright and open.
It is worth a mention that Bloom is a physical actor who mixes it up with stuntees and action full bore. He doesn’t hold back.
If memory serves he was in at least partial Legolas clothes with some green pants and his legs were restless.
Other Q&A interviews about “The Hobbit:The Battle of the Five Armies,” include:
Martin Freeman
Dan Hennah
Ian McKellen
Graham McTavish
Lee Pace
ORLANDO BLOOM: Apologies for munching an apple.
MEDIA: That’s all right.
ORLANDO BLOOM: So, yeah, how’s everyone doing?
MEDIA: Great.
ORLANDO BLOOM: How long have you been here?
MEDIA: Yesterday. We got in yesterday.
ORLANDO BLOOM: How long for?
MEDIA: Saturday morning.
ORLANDO BLOOM: All from the States?
MEDIA: No. I’m from Sydney.
ORLANDO BLOOM: Sydney?
MEDIA: Yeah.
ORLANDO BLOOM: States. LA.
MEDIA: Austin.
ORLANDO BLOOM: Austin?
MEDIA: The One Ring. States.
ORLANDO BLOOM: Oh, yeah.
MEDIA: He exists entirely online.
MEDIA: The district of One Ring.
ORLANDO BLOOM: How is The One Ring?
MEDIA: Honestly, now we’re good. We’re still broke from our last party, actually. But otherwise we’re good.
MEDIA: So, now we’re seeing you out of the full hair and makeup and whatever. How does the process compare this time around, just in terms of duration and ease and whatever, to the first three movies?
ORLANDO BLOOM: To get made up?
MEDIA: Yeah. Have they refined the process so that it’s a breeze now?
ORLANDO BLOOM: It’s about the same for me. I think they simplified it for the hobbit, for Martin, because they came up with those boot ideas which– Actually, I think that was– A great idea by Viggo’s old makeup artist, somebody was telling me actually, funny enough. He came up with the idea for having the feet be boots.
Can you imagine how much time that would have saved? Because on Rings, they had the joint there and it was so visible that they had to– So, yeah, I think it’s– But for me, I just have my ears, and they just pop on and they seal them down in about an hour and fifteen minutes.
MEDIA: It takes that long just to do the ears?
ORLANDO BLOOM: Ears, wig, makeup, yeah.
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With “The Hobbit” movies before our eyes, either from home or at the movies, here is a fascinating look back at Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings,” films. This clever edit of the films might have been what King Theoden was yelling “Death! Death! Death!” about from his horse because this version features all the on-screening killing from the whole trilogy – extended edition.
It might bring differences between the two trilogies to mind, or it might not, but whatever it is, the folks at Digg have done themselves proud. ENJOY!
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The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies opens today in the UK! It’s been a epic journey for cast and crew (and fans!) to get to this point; in a video released by Warner Bros., Peter Jackson et al look back over those 17 years.
TheOneRing.net have been along for every step of that journey – and in the video, as the 2.17min mark, you can see images from our ‘Return of the One Party’, where PJ and crew celebrated their Oscar wins. Want to celebrate again, at a Party of Special Magnificence? Then join us at The One Last Party – tickets only available until December 31st! Don’t miss out – it will be a night to remember!
[Get tickets for The One Last Party here.]
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As you know, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies had its world premiere in London last week. Members of the cast and crew gathered in the city, with some of them seeing the film the night before the premiere, but many heading down the red carpet to experience the completed movie for the first time.
TORn Senior Staffer greendragon was there to catch up with the folks in Leicester Square that night. Amongst those who stopped by to chat with her were stars Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Orlando Bloom, Ian McKellen and others, as well as director Peter Jackson and screen writer Philippa Boyens. In addition to hearing what they thought of the film, and how it felt to be at the end of their (long expected? unexpected?) journey, greendragon made sure to invite them all to celebrate at The One Last Party in Los Angeles next February – which, of course, YOU can attend too. (Click here for more information.)
Enjoy this footage from that star-studded night in London:
[Special thanks to cameraman and editor Matthew Rodriguez; should you be looking for a film maker in London, you can reach him at rodriguezrmatthew at gmail.com]
[Buy tickets to The One Last Party here]
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As we told you about the other day, our friend and amazing artist, Jerry Vanderstelt’s new art print of Rivendell is now up for order. This is the first in a series of landscape series allowing fans to add to their collections images of many of the beautiful places that help create Middle-earth.
