While our intrepid reporter MrCere is currently in New Zealand — back in the States a very big surprise was revealed to audiences at the Butt-Numb-A-Thon geek film festival (held in Texas by AICN founder Harry Knowles). That’s right, THE HOBBIT teaser trailer was unspooled less than 24 hours ago and quickly the Twitterverse began sparkling with reactions. Comments included such tweets as:
- “Is it a spoiler to tweet that Gandalf magically sent @EricVespe to us with THE HOBBIT trailer and @woodelijah was the trailer bearer? :)”
Ringer fans were waiting (im)patiently for the footage to arrive in U.S. theaters this Christmas, but lo and behold! Elijah Wood was there to help present as Mr. Vespe (“Quint”) brought the most anticipated footage in all geekdom back to Austin. Mr. Wood himself tweeted today:
- “Didn’t that trailer kill? So excited to see it…”
More than the opening few minutes of DARK KNIGHT RISES, and much more than any AVENGERS tidbit, this teaser trailer is pretty much the Holy Grail for HOBBIT fans who have waited a decade to see a first glimpse of Peter Jackson’s return to Middle-earth. We will post more info and share reactions as they come in. But the wait is finally over (for those who were there)!
UPDATE: Nordling, AICN staff, writes:
Yes, we saw THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY trailer thanks to Gandalf The Grey magically transporting Quint from the beautiful landscapes of Middle-Earth to the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas. No, I can’t talk about any specifics except to say that something I always treasured from the original book is in the trailer in a big way and I was very happy to hear it. The trailer will play in front of THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN and it’s simply sublime. It’s more character-based than epic, but it’s like slipping into a warm embrace from a very old friend that you haven’t seen in many years. Truly wonderful.
Update #2: Tolkienbritta
While writing, TolkienBritta quotes Jordan Hoffman of IFC News by stating: “Hoffman also added that, “Hearing the music and seeing The Shire I was surprised at the flood of emotions that hit me. It was like seeing old friends. (And something to look out for: a band of Dwarves sing. It’s a thing of beauty.)””
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Sir Peter Jackson has saved Wellington’s Bats Theatre from eviction, buying the theatre company’s building for $1.1 million. The non-profit, charitable company that runs the 84-seat theatre had a month left to move out of its home of 22 years, come up with funds to buy the building or close, after its long-term landlord decided to sell. The theatre has fostered such talents as Bret McKenzie, Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Robyn Malcolm and Tim Balme. More..
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Message board member geordie alerted us to this unique item to be auctioned by Bonhams on December 15, 2011 in Los Angeles. It’s a copy of “The Lord of the Rings” signed by various members of the cast and crew of the movies including Peter Jackson, Ian McKellan, Cate Blanchett, Viggo Mortensen, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, Sean Astin, Sala Baker, Liv Tyler and other principle actors and crew. Online bidding is welcome, so have a look. More..
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Sir Peter Jackson says the sunshine, mountains and fresh air of Arcadia Station, near Queenstown, have raised both his spirits and those of his 450 cast and crew.
Sir Peter spoke in between scenes where Sir Ian McKellan (SIC) as Gandalf the Grey, Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins and dwarves arrive at the house of Beorn (Mikael Persbrandt).
Tuesday was their third and final day of shooting on a giant set, which took eight weeks to build and was based on more than eight months of design – all for one scene of about three minutes of screen time. More..
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Kiwi filmmaking is at an all-time high thanks to the “Lord of the Rings” director, who, 12 years ago, boosted the country’s Hollywood stock. Peter Jackson is walking down the familiar twisting lanes of the picture-perfect village of Hobbiton. Discussing the next day’s shoot with the cast and crew of The Hobbit, he gazes up at the setting sun and appears overcome by a strange sense of deja vu. “I did this on this street 12 years ago, and it’s exactly the same,” says Jackson. “I don’t feel the same, though.”
Jackson pauses to survey the village in Waikato that’s familiar to millions of fans of the director’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. Before Jackson and his crew transformed it into a little piece of Middle Earth, this was a simple New Zealand sheep farm. Now it’s become a J.R.R. Tolkien tourist mecca, and five days into location shooting for Jackson’s two Hobbit movies, it has been transformed again into a bustling film set. More..
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The beautiful and varied landscapes of New Zealand provided the setting for Peter Jackson’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, one of the most successful film ventures of all time. From the peaceful Shire to the fires of Mordor, locations were found for the magical world of Middle-earth where hobbits, elves, dwarves and wizards live.
When Peter Jackson was 18, he took a train ride across New Zealand’s North Island – one of the two islands that comprise the country. On the trip he read The Lord of the Rings, the great J R R Tolkien saga. The now famous film director tells how he was fascinated to see how the landscape he could see from the train window was exactly like the mythical Middle Earth imagined by the British author some 30 years earlier. More..
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