Kate Rockwood writes: For this winter’s blockbuster The Day the Earth Stood Still, two dozen Weta Digital designers spent six months sculpting the film’s real star (sorry, Keanu): the spaceship. Joe Letteri, senior visual effects supervisor for the four-time Academy Award-winning digital shop, walked us through the process. Inside Weta Digital’s Spaceship
Category: Production
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ — Veteran interactive marketing and integrated promotions executive Gordon Paddison today announced the launch of his new global marketing firm Stradella Road, which will provide entertainment, and corporate clients a wide range of innovative marketing solutions targeting consumers and communities of influencers worldwide. Stradella Road has signed a multi-year pact with Peter Jackson’s Wingnut Films for digital brand strategy on all Wingnut entertainment products. Outreach on behalf of Wingnut titles will maximize the social dialogue while creating innovative new media opportunities to incubate licensing, merchandising and digital extensions from early awareness campaigns through ancillary windows. The unique relationship was structured by Paddison with Jackson’s manager Ken Kamins. “This partnership is based on mutual respect,” states Jackson. “Gordon’s stewardship of the online social dialogue and new media campaign for The Lord of the Rings trilogy was very impressive and contributed to the movie’s eventual success. He has the utmost respect for our fans and I’m looking forward to continuing that relationship on our future projects.” More…
As secret agent James Bond, British actor Daniel Craig is used to exotic locations but this year he may find himself in Wellington. Craig has been cast as the evil pirate Red Rackham in the first Tintin movie from Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg. Variety magazine reported that The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn has begun shooting in Los Angeles. Spielberg is directing the first movie, and Jackson, who is also producing, will direct the second of three. Shooting for the first film will take place in Wellington later this year, which means that Craig, seen recently in the Bond adventure Quantum of Solace, may be in the capital, along with other cast members and Spielberg. James Bond star cast in Tintin movie
LOS ANGELES — Members of “Lord of the Rings” creator J.R.R. Tolkien’s charitable trust won two victories in court Friday in their lawsuit against New Line Cinema claiming it is entitled to profits from the blockbuster trilogy. Trust officials allege the film company cheated them out of at least $150 million from the blockbuster movie trilogy based on the late British author’s books. The London-based Tolkien Trust filed its lawsuit Feb. 11, 2008. The most significant ruling for the Tolkien heirs during Friday’s status conference came when Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ann I. Jones set a March 3 deadline for both sides to exchange documents. Deadline Issued to Produce Documents for LOTR Lawsuit
Gary Hunt writes: I worked on the trilogy and am still at Weta Workshop. I also have my own Pewter miniatures business, www.garyhuntminiatures.com. I’m just dropping you a note that your readers might be interested in: The Weta cave, (Weta Workshop) Miramar, Wellington, NZ now have a selection of my Pewter miniature kits for sale and on display. There are two ranges, my recently released 21st Century Amazons… Sci-fi Fantasy figures in the wargaming 28mm scale, (Girls with guns, and strange insect crosses, Zombies and Feathered Raptors etc) and a collectors scale, 54mm range that encompasses sci-fi and Historical characters and the Duke of Wellington mounted at Waterloo. The figures, as well as looking cool on your mantelpiece or part of a mass battle against aliens can provide some basic modelmaking skills that can lead to converting and sculpting your own characters (this is in fact how I learned to sculpt and gave me the desire to work in film). If you happen to be a long way from New Zealand you can view my Sci-fi, Fantasy and Historical ranges on my Website www.garyhuntminiatures.com and progress photo’s of new sculpts, hopefully i’ll have some of a dragon i’ve started going up soon on www.myspace.com/garyhuntportfolio
Doug has announced that John Howe is creating an original illustration for Doug’s upcoming book, “The Music of the LOTR Films“. Doug writes that Howe’s “Melkor’s Theme”…
(is) a stunning work — a vortex of detail that exposes layers of details and nuance with each viewing. Here Howe has depicted…the face of Melkor and the fury of his contact with a dawning world.
Doug also added that another guest contributor would be announced in the next few weeks. “The Music of the LOTR Films” will be released in conjunction with “The Rarities Archive”, a collection of music that was composed for the LOTR films, but not used.