To celebrate the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in Australia on May 1st, Popcorn Taxi had a special showing of the film with a Q&A session with Richard Armitage. \u00a0RingerSpy and long time message board member, Deleece Cook aka Elven, was lucky enough to attend and sent us the following report on the night.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cremorne Orpheum Theatre, Sydney Australia \u2013 Wednesday 1st May, 2013
\nIntroduced by: Chris Murray (Creative Director Popcorn Taxi)
\nHosted by: Oscar Hillerstrom from Popcorn Taxi
\nby: Deleece Cook on behalf of theOneRing.net<\/p>\n
![\"010520137021\"](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/010520137021.jpg\")
The cheering began as soon as Popcorn Taxi\u2019s Chris Murray walked out on stage to open the event. There wasn\u2019t a spare seat to be had at The Orpheum Theatre at Cremorne for the exclusive screening of The Hobbit and the live on Stage Q&A appearance with Richard Armitage.<\/p>\n
700 smiling excited Thorin Fans were in the audience \u2013 and they had come from all over Australia for the event – this is what they had been waiting for hours to see. And it didn\u2019t disappoint. It was a wonderful night of entertainment and surprises \u2013 Richard was a talkative guest; relaxed, smiling and laughing through the interview and he tried as best as he could to answer every question put to him from the fans, and from the host Oscar Hillerstrom.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s how the night went \u2013 plenty of laughter and cheering and just a great vibe all round!…<\/p>\n
Chris Murray:<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cGood Evening! Do I need to ask how you\u2019re doing? Um, I\u2019ve never been to an underwear sale at David Jones but I suppose this is the closest thing. Ladies and Gentlemen my name is Chris Murray and I am the Creative Director of Popcorn Taxi. It gives me no greater pleasure and enormous privilege to have you here tonight to see on the big screen The Hobbit. But not only that I know why you\u2019re here\u2026 Richard Armitage on that seat ladies and Gentlemen\u201d<\/p>\n Mad applause.<\/em><\/p>\n Chris Murray:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cYes, you get the chance to ask him questions \u2013 I get the chance to curl into a small ball and rock backwards and forwards in the corner.\u201d<\/p>\n More laughter\u2026 Then Chris laid down some house rules regarding soft toys and portraits not coming anywhere near the stage, but he mentioned nicely that questions were welcomed from the audience. Chris Murray: <\/strong>We are celebrating a fantastic film, and that film is out on Blu-ray and DVD today (mad applause)<\/em>\u2026 \u201cYes! You should buy it! Warner Bros will love me! But, what\u2019s not on that Blu-ray and what\u2019s not on that DVD is what I\u2019m about to play for you now. We have 12 minutes of a little behind the scenes that you will not see anywhere else. (lots of gasps)<\/em> After that, you\u2019ll get to meet Mr Richard Armitage.<\/p>\n Mad cheering!<\/em><\/p>\n Chris Murray:<\/strong>\u00a0So enjoy the 12 minutes and relax \u2013 get the wetness out of the seats – whatever works for you \u2013 and I\u2019ll be back! Please enjoy this event.<\/p>\n The sound of the cheering audience was amazing! Then silence. The lights lowered and the huge screen lit up\u2026 and then there was Peter\u2026<\/p>\n And that familiar drone of singing Dwarves speaking of “Pines and Mountains cold” echoed through the theatre \u2013 every eye was glued to the screen\u2026 it was more than 12 minutes of magic!<\/p>\n The film covered races and character that we see in the An Unexpected Journey \u2013 with snippets of comments from the actors and crew members. It shortly gave a brief explanation of the storyline and highlighted some of the production values and costuming as well.<\/p>\n In no particular order – Here are just some of the presenters on the clip, and what they had to say\u2026 Peter Jackson<\/strong>: \u201c10 years ago it was Ian playing the character of Gandalf and no one had seen any of the movies, and now that\u2019s an iconic figure. That\u2019s Gandalf.\u201d Peter Jackson<\/strong>: \u201cThe same creative talent. 20 or 30 of the most senior people were Lord of The Rings veterans\u201d Peter Jackson<\/strong>: \u201cThe thing that\u2019s so incredible about Martin is that he\u2019s always exploring, he\u2019s experimenting, he\u2019s always trying to figure out where Bilbo\u2019s truth is\u201d Peter Jackson<\/strong>: \u201cOne of the scary things about adapting The Hobbit is the fact that there\u2019s 13 dwarves \u2013 and differentiating those characters was important.\u201d Philippa Boyens<\/strong>: \u201cI remember the day when I knew we were back in Middle-Earth. I walked over to the costume room and there was Gandalf. And I suddenly thought\u2026 We\u2019re Back.\u201d Philippa Boyens<\/b>: (about Dwarves): \u201cIn the end Pete fell in love with each and every one of those characters. And as much as there is a little bit of Dwarf in Peter I think there\u2019s a little bit of Peter in all those Dwarves.\u201d John Howe<\/strong>: \u201cI imagine that Peter will do for Dwarves what he did for Elves because he is going to give them much more density, much more history.\u201d Martin Freeman<\/strong>: (talking about his character Bilbo) \u201c\u2026 We join Bilbo as the book of The Hobbit does, as a home faring solitary Hobbit. \u2026certain things struck me about him suggested a certain timidity and a lot of life\u2026\u201d Elijah Wood<\/strong>: \u201cYou\u2019ll get taken on an amazing ride\u201d Elijah Wood<\/strong>: \u201cTo have a chance to return, pop a wig on and feet it kind of feels like I\u2019ve stepped into a time machine. And I get to meet all of these other actors who are coming along for the real long journey and sort of seeing\u00a0in them a little bit of what we felt like when we started\u201d<\/p>\n Elijah Wood<\/strong>: \u201cA seed is being planted for what eventually comes the time period that we meet in Lord of The Rings\u201d. Christopher Lee<\/strong>: \u201cMiddle Earth seems to be just beginning to rumble and tumble\u201d Christopher Lee<\/strong>: \u201cThe White Council \u2013 they represent enormous power. There\u2019s suspicion amongst all of them that there\u2019s this building power of evil \u2013 getting stronger and stronger!\u201d Cate Blanchett<\/strong>: (on Gandalf in the film): \u201cWhat makes Gandalf the most wonderful hero is the courage against popular opinion. He gets to move on into the darkness that no one else is prepared to go into.\u201d Hugo Weaving<\/strong>: \u201cGandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, Saruman, they play a role in eliminating those [forces?] from the political landscape.\u201d Ian McKellen<\/strong>: (on his character Gandalf regarding the appendices) \u201c Gandalf in The Hobbit; he is off and away doing other business and quite what that is, is not revealed in the novel. In the films we get to see what Gandalf was up to.\u201d Ian McKellen<\/strong>: \u201cIt\u2019s magic. It\u2019s pure magic. And you\u2019ll believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n The sound of the Dwarves was heard and the film ended with the audience cheering and clapping once more.<\/p>\n Then it was time for Richard Armitage to grace the Stage\u2026 Richard walked on stage to a deafening round of applause, looking relaxed and happy he greeted and waved to the audience, and then said hello to a few fans that he recognized who had been at a TV studio earlier on in the day. Some fan questions had been sent in from the Richard Armitage Army and Oscar was going to put those questions to Richard in the course of the interview.<\/p>\n Richard sat down in his chair opposite Oscar and they began to talk…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> You brought yourself to Thorin Oakenshield. There\u2019s so many facets of the role but at the same point this is a character that\u2019s is indelible in the mind for many audience \u2013 What does in fact playing Thorin Oakenshield leave with you with as a person and an Actor?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I think it\u2019s kind of an interesting question because I haven\u2019t left Thorin Oakenshield yet. So, he’s kind of \u00a0still with me, but I think the one thing I discovered about myself creating the role was the realization about leadership by example \u2013 because I\u2019m not really a born leader as a person and I found in him a nobility which is about leading by example \u2013 not necessarily by dictation, so really, that\u2019s the biggest thing I learnt for myself.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> So if you\u2019re in trouble\u2026 pick up a piece of wood and hit somebody\u2026 Audience:<\/strong> laughter<\/em> Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Words to live by.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> One of the most interesting things about this particular character is the heavy make-up that you work with. Were you surprised and shocked by how different you look onscreen \u2013 and was the acting process similar to say mask work where you\u2019re trying to convey emotion through that makeup and the giant beards?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> When I met Peter \u2013 you actually get a character breakdown and it does say \u2018will be required to wear some prosthetics\u2019 so I knew there would be something whether it was some ears or something like that. But it was extensive and the initial manifestation of Thorin was much greater than what you see there. They worked with my own face to try and make it look like it wasn\u2019t too dramatic \u2013 which was a slow process \u2013 it changed throughout the course of the filming.<\/p>\n I did do mask work at drama school so it was useful to see my face and try and make it move in the mirror, and I spent a lot of time doing that. I also worked with Tammy \u00a0my prosthetics artist to try and make sure that the flashing on the eyes wasn\u2019t too heavy so I could move my eyebrows. And the eyes move in such a sensitive way that I didn\u2019t want it to be prohibitive in any way because I felt that the key to seeing into Thorin\u2019s heart was through his eyes, and I was nervous about having all of that on his face. But I think it worked out ok and when I took the prosthetic off, my face was much more animated than I normally am as a person, but that was because of the muscles being exercised a little bit more.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> Yeah, it was something that I discovered as I was researching the Hobbit, because I had read Tolkien\u2019s biography and I think he talks a lot about his experiences of World War I. His losses \u00a0informed him of what he was writing about, and the rise of evil in Europe was something very much in his head when he wrote the book. I think audiences of the time would have understood that more closely, but at the same time, we are living in a time where our children, our friends are going all across the world to fight battles. And particularly with the Dwarves the idea of an exiled people returning home trying to find their homeland, I mean that\u2019s a story which pervades across time. So, all of these things resonate for you \u2013 they give you ideas, but at the same time we\u2019re making a fantasy movie essentially aimed at young adults, so we just bear in mind try not to get too heavy or political about it.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> That the most interesting thing because ultimately these films are innately fun, and I want to ask you about \u2018the fun of it\u2019 because obviously 266 days of hard work in heavy makeup, heavy battle gear and of course throwing Orcrist around it sounds like a very difficult job but at the same time it must be a hell of a lot of fun. I mean; how heavy is Orcrist to wave above your head? Is it just a piece of balsa wood or is it a lovely WETA work?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I\u2019ve got to say most of the fun was had off set. (laughter)<\/em>. The first day I had all the costume on, makeup and everything, it was so hot and heavy (as you probably heard from all the other whinging actors on this movie winks<\/em>) But I made a conscious decision that I didn\u2019t want it to inhibit what I was doing and I knew that if I really concentrated on the character that I could try and have some fun with Thorin. He\u2019s not a big bag of laugh\u2019s \u2013 I\u2019ve got to be honest. \u00a0It was a challenge looking for a single moment to make him smile and obviously as the story goes on there are less and less of those moments. But, for me I have fun when I\u2019m being tested and being pushed and this was an endurance test from the beginning to end. And if it hadn\u2019t been for my fellow dwarves and that coming together of two cultures I really would have had a lot less fun. But we had such a great cast and I can\u2019t wait to see them again.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Whilst you shot quite a lot of the trilogy, there\u2019s still actually quite a bit more shooting to do \u2013 I was quite surprised at that.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Spoiler Alert!<\/p>\n Audience:<\/strong> (laughing)<\/em><\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> cont\u2026<\/em> yeah, so we have to do that and also they would have edited the second movie and the third movie and decided they\u2019ll need to get some new material, so that\u2019s what we go back to shoot. 10 weeks of shooting is effectively enough time to make 2 small independent films. So you can imagine the scale of what we have to do. I started training again at the end of January so I could swing that heavy sword around we\u2019ve been talking about. But I was gifted a replica of the sword at the end of the last year so I could practise with it. I was very close to taking it to the gym with me.\u00a0winks<\/em><\/p>\n Audience:<\/strong> (laughter)<\/em><\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> you didn\u2019t bring it with you now though?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I didn\u2019t bring it with me. I surely would never have got it through security.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> I would have liked to have seen you go through Customs with that. \u2018Well, I\u2019m an Actor!\u2019\u2026 It would have certainly taken them by surprise.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Now, you talk about having fun on the set and perhaps I\u2019ll move into some of the stories that you may not have regurgitated previously. Perhaps one\u2019s where the Director may have been put in a very embarrassing situation?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> Our Director put himself in a very bad situation. He might not want me to tell this. You know at the end of the first film when you see Thorin on the tree and he\u2019s about to attack Azog \u2013 I didn\u2019t really know what people were shooting there. And I was trying to run down the tree trunk wearing these massive Dwarf boots and I obviously wasn\u2019t coming down quick enough, so Pete got up on the tree and said \u2018no, no, this is how you do it.\u2019 He came running down so fast, so by the time he got to the bottom his pants had fallen down. He lost his pants in front of the entire crew and they had been filming it. So somewhere there is a video of Pete with his pants around ankles. (Audience in hysterical laughter)<\/em><\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> \u2018Sir\u2019 Peter Jackson Ladies and Gentlemen \u00a0(<\/em>Audience laughing loudly all the way through this and the next \u2018embarrassing moment\u2019 tale) <\/em>is not the first person to lose their trousers on the set of The Hobbit. I want to take you to a fan question about Dwarves Illustrated 2012.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> This was actually my idea. Don\u2019t let Graham McTavish tell you any different. This was my idea! It was Pete\u2019s 50th Birthday and we decided we would create a Naked Dwarf Calendar. But of course you know what a naked dwarf looks like \u2013 we\u2019re loaded with padding. So that was the joke. So basically every Dwarf was a different month in very compromising positions\u2026 (laughter erupted)<\/em> in their fat suits or their colossus suits or whatever you call them. But there\u2019s only one copy which Peter owns. Graham wanted to make more but I said absolutely not! \u00a0There\u2019s only one copy. Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> So for you obviously as Thorin Oakenshield, you had a strategically placed piece of oak or … ? Audience:<\/strong> (clapping and laughing)<\/em> Richard Armitage:<\/strong> What happened in the calendars…? \u00a0winks and laughs<\/em><\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Well that\u2019s all we have time for from Mr December.<\/p>\n After this Oscar opened the Questioning up to the Audience Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> I\u2019m going to ask one more question \u2013 I think we need to talk about the singing. Because the first thing that snapped this film away from the normal action hero movies was the first trailer which had Dwarves singing, and I think that\u2019s a bold move. But I wanted to know, from your perspective \u2013 you were a song and dance man before you went into the more serious side of drama \u2013 what was it like to actually sing \u2018in camera\u2019 (so to speak) with the other Dwarves?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I did a production of The Hobbit when I was 13 – which was a musical really. So I knew that Tolkien had written loads of songs so I was very excited that they were going to put this song in. Fran Walsh wrote the theme, Fran is Peter\u2019s partner and writing partner, and she wrote the tune. So I was very honoured to have been asked to take the first line of that song. I didn\u2019t want him to sound like a singer, so I listened to a lot of Russian Church music, I listened to a male Welsh Voice Choir, and I worked with a pianist and we slowly took the pitch down and down till we got to a point where it sounded as Tolkien was describing it \u2013 which was the deep throated sound of the singing of the Dwarves.<\/p>\n Then we went into a studio and recorded it a number of times. I wanted to keep recording it until the end of time because I was not ever happy with it. But yes, I think it was one of those moments that they didn\u2019t know what that song was going to sound like, and when obviously all of the men and the boys, the other Dwarves, the blend of sound sounded so beautiful that they just decided to use it in the Trailer.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Now Ladies and Gentlemen it\u2019s your turn so \u2026 we\u2019ll start over here.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> They\u2019ve done a great job making the horses look like Dartmoor Ponies. What were the horses like to work with? They seemed far less grumpy than actual ponies.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I loved my horse \u2013 my horse was called Sharmon. She and I became very close. I used to go out riding with Jed Brophy (Nori) on weekends. When we were on location we used to go and visit the horses and take them out. Tolkien describes Dwarves as not liking the horses, they don\u2019t ride very well. Which I get slightly annoyed about because obviously I was totally in love with my horse. And yeah, they had some hairy costumes on which Sharmon didn\u2019t like. She used to try and shake that woolly coat off.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> The whole process working with Peter and his team was collaborative. At every stage my opinion was valued \u2013 down to the shape on the body, the fit, the shape of the costume, the length of the costume, the length of the hair. I remember asking for more grey at the sides because I felt that it would really give him more age. And I wanted that pelt (the fur pelt) \u2013 because I originally conceived Thorin as being like a Bison, and I wanted that upper body bulk. Whenever I didn\u2019t have that fur on I really felt that I was sort of missing a part of him. So, as much as it was hot and heavy, they would always say \u2018you can do this scene without the pelt if you want to\u2019 and I would be like \u2018no, no, I need it, I like it, it makes me feel like the character\u2019.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> Did you ever record a full version of The Misty Mountain song, because it\u2019s so short?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> You\u2019re about to see the film. And it (the song) is quite long. If that song could have been any longer I think people would have got a bit impatient. (laughter) But there was a moment where I nearly got to sing the song at the end. Yeah. But I thought it may not be appropriate for all of the characters in the scene, but that was the full version of the song in the movie. Neil Finn did a version of the final song which he extended and wrote and developed, which I absolutely love. But I\u2019m hoping there will be more singing in movies 2 & 3.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> Can you talk about the way in which you, as a child, imagined Thorin to be as compared to the role you created after Peters vision?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> Yeah its very interesting because I was trying to listen to both those voices because I do remember very clearly reading the book as a 12 year old, and then as a slightly older than 12 year old. As a kid I focused very much on Bilbo and then as an adult I was focussing on Thorin. But I had seen him probably as a bit older, but it was important that he was a potential King. That he was somebody who could return to his throne and lead his people and show his prowess on the Battlefield. So I think we found a place which was older than I am but he still had the youth to be able to swing that sword around and really fight for \u2018his people\u2019 which was important.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I hate to disappoint you but I never met Christopher Lee. Sadly. (audience gasp)<\/em> Well I don\u2019t like giving away too many secrets about filming but, all of Christopher\u2019s stuff was shot in the UK because he was too old to travel. Yeah, so I never got to meet him sadly.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> If you hadn\u2019t have been cast as Thorin, who would you have liked to have been cast as?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> Umm, you tell me (smiles)<\/em>. Actually one of my favourite characters in the book is Beorn, so I would have liked to have had a crack at him. But you wait until you see Mikael Persbrandt \u2013 it\u2019s an incredible performance – and he really lives up to that image that I had as a kid. Yeah, he\u2019s one of my favourite characters.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> This person had a bit of difficulty with the question, but Oscar helped out by rewording the question for them: What was it like to feel like watching yourself in a movie?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> It was really surprising. I had actually thought that I hadn\u2019t done very much in the first movie. I thought all my stuff is in movies 2 & 3. So when I saw the first film I was shocked. I just didn\u2019t realize what Peter had been doing; I didn\u2019t realize the shots that he\u2019d choose. Um, I was obviously quite pleased. Because he made Thorin look pretty awesome \u2013 that\u2019s his work mainly, not mine.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> Could you tell us how Peter Jackson as a Director gets a performance out of an Actor?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> It was always very difficult to get Peter to sit down before you went onto set to talk about the character, or the process or the story. He actually likes to have a conversation while the camera is rolling, so the whole thing feels like an experiment. He loves it when you develop an idea and he\u2019ll go with you. It takes a while for you to find that path together. But one of the things he does which I absolutely love is that he\u2019ll use another actor to get the performance out of somebody, so he doesn\u2019t necessarily come to you and say I want this response. He\u2019ll take an actor away that you\u2019re going to work with. And I had a moment in movie 3 \u2013 which I can\u2019t talk about – with Martin where I was in the middle of a scene and he took Martin away, and I didn\u2019t know that he\u2019d done this. And Martin came back and played something to me which got quite an extraordinary response from me that I had not predicted \u2013 and that was the take. And that\u2019s actually what he (PJ) does. And he did it to me as well. I had a scene with Kili and he (PJ) took me aside and said \u2018I want you to say this, I want you to do this\u2019 and we got the response from Aidan. And I say this; it\u2019s such a great piece of work you just don\u2019t know that he\u2019s having an effect on you.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> The main thing really is time. When you\u2019ve got a budget like we have for The Hobbit it buys you so much time. Because in television you do 3 or 4 takes and you move on \u2013 there\u2019s this urgency to shoot. I mean don\u2019t get me wrong, if there was an urgency we\u2019d shoot, but there was time to experiment and really that\u2019s what I\u2019m talking about in regards to the last question. But also to work on a green screen \u2013 which I\u2019d never done before \u2013 I was nervous of it, but in fact what it does it fires up your imagination and like, I come from a theatre background so it was tapping into a lot of old things that I had forgotten about \u2013 all the things you have to imagine \u2013 so I really enjoyed that aspect of it.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> What elements of Thorin\u2019s character can you relate to the most? And do you have any life experiences that helped to shape your portrayal of Thorin?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> I suppose the thing I loved about Thorin really, is because he does have a fear of what he\u2019s going to do, he is stepping into the unknown, he\u2019s bound on a path towards something which is both thrilling \u2013 he will get to be a King and he will accumulate a huge amount of wealth. But at the same time in that Mountain is the most terrifying thing that he\u2019s ever experienced and it\u2019s like he has experienced it \u2013 The Dragon. Really I assimilated that with or to a holocaust of some kind. But, I mean I was using the bomb on Hiroshima \u2013 the extraordinary devastation that caused. So he\u2019s experienced that. So I think that that\u2019s the thing that I was most fascinated with \u2013 he\u2019s walking towards something that he wants but at the same time its repelling him. That kind of dichotomy was the most interesting thing \u2013 and I feel like that in my own career.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> Of all the stunts you were legally allowed to do what was your favourite stunt? Richard Armitage:<\/strong> My favourite stunt was one that I didn\u2019t know I was going to be able to do. I watched my stunt double do it, he was absolutely brilliant and it was this scene where – it was actually an additional scene we were in pickups, when we were on the Mountain where the Stone Giants are fighting and Bilbo falls of the side and Thorin climbs down and then falls. And we were doing that on wire and my stunt double came to me and said \u2018I think you can do this\u2019 and I was like \u2018OK if you think I can do this then I\u2019ll do it\u2019. So just getting on a wire and doing something that you\u2019ve summed up as already shocked is thrilling but you know, I love doing as many of the stunts as possible. Not because it gives you a sense of heroism but it makes you really feel like you\u2019re playing the character if you get to do everything that the character does it\u2019s just very satisfying.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> It was kind of essential actually. A lot of the discomfort of the costume and prosthetic was alleviated by just staying focused on the character. But also the way Pete works is sometimes he\u2019ll just call on you with half a minute to prepare and you have to dive straight into something, so it was very hard to take my mind off things and gauge too much. Although Dwalin and I did have a lot of games of table tennis on G stage \u2013 but apart from that \u2026<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> You\u2019ve played a lot of dark brooding grumpy characters. (laughter)<\/em> \u2013 I wonder if you could comment on what your experience is of \u2018casting to type\u2019 and your experience on that especially in the US and the UK, and whether you\u2019re looking forward to choosing some different sorts of roles in the future?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> That\u2019s a very good question. I always get very nervous when I read something that I feel is close to myself, because I predict that I won\u2019t get it. Because I\u2019m better at being somebody who is very far away from myself I think. But of course I fantasize about playing the romantic lead and the heroic character I just don\u2019t think my face suits that \u2013 I think there\u2019s just something \u2026 (laughter)<\/em><\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:\u00a0<\/strong>Yes I think you\u2019re right \u2013 you do look inherently evil. (laughter)<\/em><\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> Peter is renowned for his high tech approach. Were you expecting to work with such a high quality technology?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> You know, when you\u2019re shooting it you\u2019re really not aware of any kind of technological differences between cameras apart from the fact with digital you can do what\u2019s called \u2018rolling research\u2019 which I think is something that Peter uses himself whereby you don\u2019t cut camera you just keep going and you go again immediately and for an Actor that\u2019s an absolute gift because you don\u2019t have time to think about it or over think it or self-note or analyse so it\u2019s very freeing. The only thing that was a struggle and a bit of a challenge was to get the scale issue right. Pete developed a technique called \u2018slate motion control\u2019 \u2013 where some Actors are in a Greenroom, some are on a scale set and the two cameras are coordinated. I think I have a scene in the second movie \u2013 which I\u2019m not allowed to talk about \u2013 whereby there were 300 people on set and I was alone in a Greenroom with 25 eye lines \u2013 little crosses on the wall. But then again you try to find something in your imagination. You go back to the main set and you rehearse again and you take that feeling away with you and just shoot the movie. So yeah, it was challenging.<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> It was one of the best parts of the character actually because Tolkien did write about that story in the Appendices which we were allowed to use as Thorin\u2019s reference. I mean I love to write the biography for the character so I used all of that and then added some things myself that I felt would help me because I knew we were going to do a prologue so I tried to imagine what happened on that day when the Dragon came so that when that character opens the door to the Mountain, and smells the air it has such a sense of memory for him of what happened to him as a child that all of these things as much as they burn him they drive him forward so it was one of the best reasons to play the role.<\/p>\n Audience Question:<\/strong> What was it like filming scene 88 the wall chase. Dean, Steven and Graham mentioned that it was really full-on. What was it like for you?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> Scene 88 was a chase sequence \u2013 it felt like we had run throughout the whole of the North and the South Island. But it was so great to be out in those incredible locations. Places that I had never seen in my life and probably never will again. But I do remember every day strapping up my ankles with tape because the ground was so uneven that you could really twist your ankle and obviously you can\u2019t have a limping Thorin in the front of the scene so\u2026no, it was a challenge.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Now Richard obviously Andy Serkis\u2019 work has been ground breaking and he got to work with Martin Freeman, but there\u2019s another character who I can imagine you wouldn\u2019t think would be working in a motion capture situation and that is the character played by Benedict Cumberbatch. And the thought occurred to me that it\u2019s quite possible that Peter Jackson would get Smaug and you in the room together \u2013 and I\u2019m just wondering whether that\u2019s happened or whether you\u2019ve actually talked about it.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> And finally I\u2019d like to \u2013 something that\u2019s been touched on in a few questions \u2013 I think it summed up in the fact that you worked with the Appendices and you went back to the original material and you were influenced by Tolkien, and many fans you inspired by Tolkien now see you come to life is one thing, but I\u2019m wondering; What would you ask him about your character and this story if you could?<\/p>\n Richard Armitage:<\/strong> The one thing I would want know and it\u2019s something I try to fill in in my little biography was \u2018Who was the love of his life?\u2019 Because I felt that he sacrificed his life, all that he has given up for his people, for his quest, and I did imagine that there might have been a Princess that he would have been betrothed to as King under The Mountain. So perhaps that\u2019s probably what I\u2019d ask Tolkien.<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> well Ladies and Gentleman, I think that sums it up! Richard Armitage in a nutshell \u2013 a class act! Thank-you everyone. Goodnight.<\/p>\n This was the end of the Q&A and Richards\u2019s appearance for the evening. The audience stood to their feet and cheered and clapped as he left the stage.<\/p>\n After this the audience was treated to a screening of The Hobbit. Deleece:<\/strong> And we are talking to: from Popcorn Taxi\u2026<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Oscar Hillerstrom<\/p>\n Deleece:<\/strong> And Oscar was one of the main people this evening that had Richard Armitage come to speak to us about The Hobbit. And Popcorn Taxi is renowned for their guest speakers, their presentations that they put on; How long have you been doing this?<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Well I\u2019ve been working full time for Popcorn Taxi for I guess almost 2 years, but I\u2019ve been working on and off for them for their entire 14 year history.<\/p>\n Deleece:<\/strong> That\u2019s amazing! So, how do you think tonight went? Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> Very well. It\u2019s extraordinary to see, and it\u2019s lovely to sell out such a very big room – and to have such intense and passionate fans but also well-read and well educated fans. It\u2019s not just a whole bunch of \u2018Oh my God \u2013 Richard will you kiss me\u2019<\/em> fans but thoughtful interesting questions which Popcorn Taxi love for our audience to do so that\u2019s what we saw tonight.<\/p>\n Deleece:<\/strong> And you found that Richard was very happy to do these sorts of things (Q&A)? Have you done anything before with Richard through Popcorn Taxi?<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> No, this is the first time we\u2019ve worked with Richard. But, at the same time, I had a chat with him yesterday and I found him remarkably candid, very thoughtful, and a straight forward actor. It\u2019s really interesting when you talk to him just as a normal human being how you see the qualities of Thorin onstage come through him. But, at the same time he\u2019s just a regular guy who is very interested in the craft of acting, and that kind of thing really comes out on stage. I think he is fascinating. Especially for the fans who get to see a bit of stuff behind the scenes and obviously the interviews. But, when you\u2019re on a Popcorn Taxi stage the curtains are let down \u2013 I guess \u2018the pants\u2019 in this particular aspect are also let down (laugh). You get to see something you don\u2019t normally get to see – which is a normal human being discussing what they do for a living. And perhaps it takes a smidgeon of mystery out of it but at the same time it gives you so much more. And that for me is the real joy of it.<\/p>\n Deleece:<\/strong> That is a joy! The last time I was here (at Cremorne Orpheum Theatre) we were talking to Viggo Mortensen, a member of Lord of The Rings, and Popcorn Taxi was part of that were they?<\/p>\n Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> I\u2019ve certainly had a chat with Viggo a while ago myself with Popcorn Taxi. I think perhaps it was 3 or 4 years ago we spoke with Guillermo del Toro about Hellboy 2 when he was in \u2013 we hooked him up on the phone from Germany while we were in Sydney, but obviously at that time he was talking about The Hobbit, which was certainly one of his dream projects. And it\u2019s interesting obviously now that to see this story come to life but, at the same time you can see perhaps elements of Guillermo\u2019s DNA there still today. But also obviously the way that Peter Jackson has worked so hard for so long that you really can\u2019t begrudge him any of the success, and certainly you can\u2019t begrudge any of the actors any of their success.<\/p>\n
\nThen the first surprise of the night was announced\u2026<\/p>\n![\"richard](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/richard-armitage-QA-2013-013A-1024x859.jpg\")
Peter Jackson:<\/strong> \u201cYou want the Hobbit to be a visual experience that goes several steps beyond Lord of The Rings\u201d<\/p>\n
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\nPeter Jackson<\/strong>: \u201cWhen we made Lord of the Rings I was absolutely sure that was going to be a once in a lifetime experience. I never realized that ten years later I\u2019d be doing it all over again \u2013 and we actually shot the 266 days on The Hobbit which was exactly the same number of days we shot on Lord of The Rings, so I\u2019ve sort of done the once in a lifetime experience twice now (laughs) not a third time \u2013 there won\u2019t be a third time\u201d<\/p>\n
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\n\u00a0Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong>\u00a0It\u2019s an honour and a privilege to be here with you ladies and gentlemen. \u00a0I think not many of you won\u2019t know that Richard Armitage literally ran away to join the circus as a young chap. He has then continued down a career path which I think most people would have been quite \u00a0happy with. We have seen him in North & South, Spooks, and of course as Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood (applause & cheers) \u2013 some of you may have even seen these shows, I don\u2019t know (laughter)\u2026 but it is the one moment where he had a meeting with some friendly New Zealanders in London \u2013 that changed his life, and changed our lives \u2013 because it\u2019s a fruition of Actor, Director and soir\u00e9e which has bought Thorin Oakenshield to life. And now ladies and gentlemen I\u2019d like you to meet the Actor who has done just that. Put your hands together for Mr Richard Armitage.![\"richard](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/richard-armitage-QA-2013-017A-1024x964.jpg\")
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Oscar Hillerstrom:<\/strong> I think for most people the world of The Hobbit is filled with adventure and magic and the first question is What is it that you think is left behind for audiences today as opposed to the audience of Tolkien\u2019s time who would have seen it as a direct metaphor for World War I?<\/p>\n![\"richard](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/richard-armitage-QA-2013-009A-768x1024.jpg\")
Richard Armitage:<\/strong> Yeah, at the end of May we go back and we\u2019ve got 10 more weeks of shooting. We haven\u2019t shot a single frame of the Battle of the Five Armies. Actually I think it might be the Battle of the Six Armies…<\/p>\n
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Audience Question:<\/strong> How much input did you and the other Dwarves have with the final Dwarf looks?<\/p>\n![\"01052013707\"](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/01052013707.jpg\")
Audience Question:<\/strong> There a lot of Urban legends about working with Christopher Lee. How was your experience with working with him?<\/p>\nAudience Question:<\/strong> From an Actors perspective can you tell me what you learnt that was different when doing something as massive as The Hobbit as opposed to doing TV series (like Spooks), and which do you prefer?<\/p>\n
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Audience Question:<\/strong> You\u2019re a method actor and you immerse yourself in your characters \u2013 was that more difficult or easier to do when you had to have so much make-up and use Green screens?<\/p>\n![\"01052013705\"](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/01052013705.jpg\")
Audience Question:<\/strong> Was it a hard to live up to Thorin\u2019s character seeing that Thorin had so much heavy history and backstory; losing his whole kingdom and his father?<\/p>\n![\"richard](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/richard-armitage-QA-2013-015A.jpg\")
Richard Armitage:<\/strong> That\u2019s a big spoiler (laughter)<\/em>. I went into the motion capture studio because I wanted to see how Benedict worked and I\u2019m a huge fan of his, so we did cross paths. I love the fact that they\u2019ve cast him because it means that the Dragon has incredible intellect and an incredible voice. I also think that they may be able to use certain aspects of his bone structure in the face of the Dragon but nobody knows yet. But I don\u2019t know if Thorin and Smaug ever come face to face. That\u2019s something I\u2019ll find out when we go back to do reshoots. I hope so.<\/p>\n
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\nAfter Richard Armitage had finished speaking and had left the theatre to a rousing cheer and enthusiastic applause from the audience \u2013 the screening of The Hobbit was about to begin but, I decided to go outside and see if I could find someone to interview. I was delighted to meet up with Oscar Hillerstrom and he talked with me about the nights Q&A and some of Popcorn Taxi\u2019s other Middle-Earth guests.<\/p>\n
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