Weta Workshop will be hosting an exclusive screening of “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” in Auckland on December 5 as part of its celebration of the 20th anniversary of the film’s release.
Co-fouders Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger will be there to offer live alternative commentary and behind-the-scenes tales. There are also a limited number of VIP tickets for a 45-minute pre-movie Q&A session with the pair. The screening will be at Level 5, 88 Federal St (opposite the Auckland SkyTower).
Apparently tickets are already selling fast despite the slightly eye-watering $NZ 109 price so if this is your thing maybe best to not delay. You can pick up yours on the Weta Worshop site.
UPDATE: some readers asked us whether the screning is of the theatrical release or the extended edition. We reached out to find out and Weta tells us that they are screning the theatrical release so that there is more time for people to enjoy festivities before the movie begins. Also there’s only a few tickets left for the VIP Q&A. Best hurry if you want one of those.
Below is the statement just released by Sir Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger over at wetanz.com:
On behalf of all our friends and colleagues at Weta Workshop, we send our heartfelt thanks and appreciation to all of the people from around New Zealand and the world who have sent us their messages of support.
Everyone here has tried to stay optimistic for a positive outcome but in the darkest days of the past week it has been the amazing support from the fans of LOTR and our family and friends which has given us the resolve to stay cheerful and positive about the outcome for these films.
It is a fantastic result reported tonight by our Prime Minister, the Honourable John Key, and we are grateful for the support of our Government in recognising the challenges our film industry was facing.
We are also very pleased that Warner Bros are happy to continue to see these films made in New Zealand – and thank them for their efforts.
Most importantly our thanks go out to Peter, Fran and Philippa, for their unrelenting efforts to see these films made in our country. We are very lucky to work with such passionate film makers.
All our best and cheers to you all.
Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger
I might add we’re lucky to have such passionate people as our friends at WETA working on these beloved stories too. Our very best wishes are with you as you embark on your journey into Middle-earth once again!
The folks from WIFI, a network of independent film artists based in Wellington New Zealand, send this in: We recently did an interview with Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger from WETA and we thought you may or may not be interested in sharing it with the TORN community. Continue reading “Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger Interview”
The March 20th edition of the WETA Newsletter mentions TORN and our ‘Cruise to Middle-earth’ vacation we posted about earlier in the year. Ringers on the cruise stopped by the WETA Cave for a very special treat. From the newsletter: “Our friends from T.O.R.N visit the Weta Cave – On a Cruise To Middle-Earth, a large group of Tolkien fans from TheOneRing.Net came to visit us. It was a real pleasure to have you here and to show you around. It takes a special kind of fan to travel all the way to little New Zealand. In the photo you also see Richard Taylor, Tania Rodger and Daniel Falconer who hosted the group on their visit.” >wetanz.com
