September 5, 2008 — Digital visual effects studio Weta Digital (wetadigital.com) announced on Friday it has completed building its new extreme density data center in Miramar, New Zealand. Founded in 1993 by Peter Jackson, Joe Letteri, Eileen Moran, the Wellington, New Zealand-based visual effects company is responsible for producing Hollywood blockbusters like The Lord of the Rings series and 2005’s King Kong. Designed and built to accomodate current and future technological demands, the energy efficient facility is unique in that if features frame rendering capabilities but also balancing the investment in floor space, power, cooling, and associated technology. Weta Digital will be the first in the world to use Hewlett-Packard’s (hp.com) new Double Density server blades, which uniquely combine two independent servers in a single blade. Weta Digital Builds NZ Facility
Category: Production
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, there is still some discussion about whether “The Hobbit” should be one long movie (in two parts) or two self-contained movies, though there are no direct quotes on the subject. However, comments regarding the collaboration between Del Toro and Jackson seem very positive:
“We’ve had a perfectly beautiful relationship so far where we understand each other’s role – I am the director and he is the producer,” he says. “He’s been incredibly supportive. I think that he understands that with a director comes a point of view. As long as those basics are understood, I think things are going to continue to be perfect.”
You can read the entire article here: Sydney Morning Herald
While some of us worry about making plans for the weekend, Guillermo Del Toro has enough projects lined up for the next decade! A new article in Variety lists some potential post-“Hobbit” films he’d like to direct including Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Slaughterhouse-Five, and Hellboy 3. Variety article
To celebrate the appearance of Alan Lee as the Guest of Honor at FaerieCon International on October 10 – 12 in Philadelphia, PA, FaerieCon is offering a special 50% Discount off any FaerieCon ticket for The One Ring Community. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to meet Alan Lee and get your favorite Tolkien book signed. To order your ticket and get your discount, please visit our special discount section of the FaerieCon website via the following link. [FaerieCon.com]
“I have been under the spell of the faeries for most of my life. The pictures and stories that move me most are those that expose the thinness of the veil that separates us from the Otherworld, and if my own drawings do not feel animated by some unquiet presence I soon lose interest in them. For me, faeries are the creative spark in nature, the tricksters who beguile and confuse us and then point out the path that leads to further adventure, and who provoke the desire to explore and connect with processes we don’t understand.” – Alan Lee
International best-selling illustrator and Oscar winning Conceptual Designer Alan Lee is the Guest of Honor at FaerieCon International, October 10-12 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. Continue reading “Alan Lee Makes First US Convention Appearence at FaerieCon International”
Nickey writes in: Dear TORn Friends, My friend and extraordinary artist, Peter Lyon, will be making his way to the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds as of a flight this evening. He is very excited about the trip. If you are in Leeds, please stop by and see the exhibit while he is there. Cheers!
A reminder: the “Arms and Armour from the Movies: The Wonderful World of Weta” exhibit runs until November 16 at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds. Read more in our previous article about the exhibition, or at the Exhibition Site.