Phillipa Boyens gave an interview to New Zealand’s National Radio’s Nine to Noon show today. In it, she said other countries, including Canada, Scotland, Ireland and Australia are throwing in their hats to be considered as the filming location for “The Hobbit,” some offering big government rebates. According to Phillipa, the employment of thousands of New Zealanders has been put in jeopardy. “Actors should have begun work a fortnight ago,” she said.
You can listen to the entire interview here, and read about it in a stuff.co.nz article here. Thanks to message board member cameragod for posting this on our message boards. Join in the discussion using the “Discuss” link below.
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Government ministers are happy to play a facilitation role between actors and Sir Peter Jackson to resolve their dispute over work on The Hobbit, Prime Minister John Key says.
Mr Key told Breakfast on TV One today that there had been “tentative discussions” with ministers, including Minister for Economic Development Gerry Brownlee. Read more
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A group of New Zealand film industry workers has petitioned to have the boycott against “The Hobbit” dropped. TheOneRing.net went one-on-one with one filmmakers behind its formation, Chaz Harris, to get the viewpoint of somebody involved on the ground in what is becoming a heated atmosphere that is the latest in a long line of obstacles to ‘The Hobbit’. Read on for questions and thoughtful answers: Continue reading “TORn interviews NZ filmmaker as Kiwi film industry petitions to have ‘Hobbit’ boycott dropped”
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The LA Times is reporting news we’ve all been waiting to hear: “The Hobbit” is finally close, maybe just days away, from getting a greenlight!
“The studios have nearly finalized a deal with director, producer and co-writer Peter Jackson to make the two movies and have resolved most other key issues that have long held up the project, including those related to underlying rights from the estate of author J.R.R. Tolkien. The one remaining hurdle is getting an official go-ahead from MGM, which is set to co-finance the movies because under a long-standing agreement it owns half the rights and controls international distribution.”
The story goes on to report that recent issues with various actors’ unions are also close to being resolved. An imminent green light would pave the way for filming to begin in January, keeping the targeted opening date of December, 2012 for the first movie doable. Interestingly, the story lists Peter Jackson as director, something that has yet to be confirmed. Stay tuned here for more on that, and the impending green light! … (Read More)
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Sir Peter Jackson offered to go to an actors’ union meeting last night called over the Hobbit dispute, but was turned down. Spada had attempted to meet with the MEAA to discuss actors’ terms and conditions for over 18 months, without success, he said. The Hobbit’s producers – including Sir Peter – contacted the MEAA and NZ Actors Equity yesterday morning with an offer to attend the Wellington meeting in the hope of finding a solution to the dispute.
After sending several requests asking for a response, the producers were finally told “no” shortly before the meeting started. “It is pity we were not given the chance to have a discussion with the actors, who are the party most affected by the MEAA’s actions,” Sir Peter said. [Read More]
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WELLINGTON – Friday, 1 October 2010 An Australian trade union, the MEAA, has generated a world wide actor boycott on The Hobbit, to bolster their demand that producers on the film enter into collective bargaining with the NZ Equity/MEAA. The MEAA has now admitted that their collective bargaining proposal is in fact, illegal, under New Zealand law. In Sir Peter Jackson’s opinion “The Hobbit is being punished with a boycott which is endangering thousands of NZ jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars of foreign income, for no good reason.”
The attack on The Hobbit by NZ Actors Equity and the MEAA has resulted in a very public dispute, between NZ Equity and the producers of The Hobbit. The actors are claiming they are underpaid and do not enjoy the same working conditons as their overseas counterparts. This accusation that has been levelled specifically at The Hobbit, but Sir Peter Jackson says it has no basis in fact. Continue reading “Media Release – Peter Jackson Speaks on Actor Boycott of “The Hobbit””
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