From Mountain Scene Thursday May 11<\/p>\n
RETURN OF THE BLOCK BUSTER<\/p>\n
Exclusive: Queenstown is still in the picture for the $360million mega-movie Lord of the Rings, Writes Philip Chandler.<\/p>\n
Shooting on the Peter Jackson trilogy will resume in the Southern Lakes either late winter or early spring.<\/p>\n
The producers have also asked at least one local hotel to quote on 30 rooms for two weeks next month.<\/p>\n
“They need to do some stuff and they’ve got rooms on hold in various different places in the South Island,” publicist Claire Raskind told Mountain Scene yesterday (Wednesday).<\/p>\n
But nothing has been confirmed, she said.<\/p>\n
Over 200 Lord of the Rings crew — including all the major stars — filmed around Queenstown for about six weeks at the end of last year.<\/p>\n
Top secret sets were located at Closeburn, Glenorchy, Arthurs Point, Te Anau, Tarras and alongside the Kawarau River — until wiped out by The Flood Of’ 99.<\/p>\n
Assistant publicist Melissa Booth says though dates haven’t scheduled, she believes Rings will return to Queenstown around August\/September.<\/p>\n
Ms Booth: “They’re definately going into the bottom areas of the South Island. Most of the Production will be travelling down there.”<\/p>\n
Rings super-snoop Erica Challis of Auckland believes Southern winter conditions will suit the Misty Mountain scene — in which the main characters traverse a snowy mountain range, only to be driven back by snowstorms.<\/p>\n
At present Rings is back in Wellington aftera huge shoot at Ruapehu.<\/p>\n
Following a break in July, there’ll be “another Wellington stint before we go down south,” says Ms Booth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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