See collectors’ own photos of Smaug the Golden: Smaug the Golden is now shipping in the US (and will be shortly in the rest of the world – see bottom of this email). The Weta Collectors on the forum (our most discerning customers) have some very nice things to say about it. Start reading at about page 25 (23 July) when the first few were opened by expectant fans. Like the one on the right, by N2Darkness on the forum. Continue reading “Latest WETA Newsletter: It’s all about the fans!”

This comes to us from Fragland.com via a Gamasutra job posting. Warner Brothers is hiring a director for future gaming development and they specific mention ‘Hobbit’ games. Here’s the posting from Gamasutra:

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. seeks a Director, Marketing for the Marketing department. Position will be responsible for brand development and product marketing activities for the entire portfolio of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit games at Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Position manages high-level cross-company & external partnerships relative to the assigned franchises.

This is obviously good news for the gaming community, but could it also mean that WB is a bit more confident in The Hobbit films happening soon? If you are interested in the position, check out the full job listing at Gamasutra. [WB Job Listing]

(July, 28, 2010—New York, NY) Carpentier and Alfred Music Publishing are pleased to announce the release of The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films, a comprehensive account of Howard Shore’s score for the trilogy, by Doug Adams. The book will be available in the European Union on September 28 and in the U.S. and worldwide on October 5, 2010.

The culmination of almost a decade of writing and research, The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films is an unprecedented look at Howard Shore’s Academy Award®-winning score, with extensive music examples, original manuscript scores, a rarities CD, and glimpses into the creative process from the composer, himself. Continue reading “Doug Adams’ “The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films” This Fall”

Guillermo del Toro is on record saying he would love to someday make H.P. Lovecraft’s “At The Mountains of Madness,” but that no studio was about to give him money for that project. But he happened to be living in New Zealand for a while during James Cameron’s work there on big 3D project “Avatar.” (You might have heard of it.) It is pretty easy to imagine the two of them sitting around with Peter Jackson discussing dream projects and things that are difficult to get studio approval for. Cameron has faced that prospect himself a time or two. Deadline.com is reporting that the pair will now be working together on GDT’s dream project, with Cameron lending his name and clout to the project as a producer. Continue reading “Guillermo and Cameron go ‘Mountain’ climbing?”

From firstshowing.net: On Sunday at Comic-Con, Golden Briefcase host Tim Buel and I caught up with Weta Workshop’s creative genius Richard Taylor. If you don’t know who he is, Taylor is one of the top designers and executives from Weta Workshop, the studio that designed all of the creatures, costumes, armor and weapons from Lord of the Rings as well as King Kong, Chronicles of Narnia and District 9. Taylor has won five Oscars in various categories like Costume Design, Makeup and Visual Effects, and is an amazing behind-the-scenes cinematic legend. It was an honor to speak with him and a fun interview to conduct right on the Comic-Con showfloor. More..

As Peter Jackson makes progress — in theory — on getting “The Hobbit” moving forward again, Guillermo del Toro has a few things to say about the movie he spent two years developing. The genre auteur says he has no regrets about departing the New Zealand production, but says that anyone who think that MGM’s financial mess was the main culprit for his departure is oversimplifying the issue. “People kept misconstruing that it was MGM. It came from many factors,” Del Toro told 24 Frames in an interview at Comic-Con. “It wasn’t just MGM. These are very complicated movies, economically and politically. You have to get the blessing from three studios.” More..