In upcoming Issue 175, TotalFilm.com has published some great aerial shots of Hobbiton in production. You can see a small preview image above and on their site by following this link. If you happen to get your hands on this issue and want to send us a scan, we won’t refuse! š Please send it to spymaster@theonering.net.Ā [View Preview]
Category: Make the Hobbit Happen
A majority of New Zealanders support the deal the Government did with Warner Bros to keep Hobbit film production in New Zealand. However, a majority donāt want a similar deal done again.
A new nationwide HorizonPoll finds 56.4% support for the agreement the Government made with United States film studio Warner Bros. Only 18.8% disapprove of the deal, under which the company received additional tax write-offs for large-budget films of about $15 million, and another $13 million for marketing. Warner Bros agreed to include material in DVDs to film audiences promoting New Zealand.
With the news that the NZ Equity Meeting was canceled last night, we are now getting some reports from the ground. Below you will find two reports: One from a witness to the resulting technician march (with pictures!); Ā Another from a technician marching with some exclusive information. As a quick summary, the general consensus is that the meeting was canceled last night when it was realized the protest group greatly outnumbered those in the actor’s equity. However, the worst news comes from Jabes report:
We received news tonight that the Hobbit is essentially lost to NZ, but maybe some drastic act would help brew enough support to present a solid case to Warner/MGM
Thanks to Ringer Caras Galadhon and Ringer Jabes for sharing their reports! Click ‘continue’ to read them in their entirety.
Continue reading “NZ March Reports – Hobbit already moving??”
Ataahua sends in this link to Kiwi cartoonist Tom Scott latest Hobbit related cartoon.
The New Zealand actor’s union has accepted an invitation to meet with the Screen Production and Development Association (SPADA). The meeting is likely to take place Thursday or Friday of this week according to SPADA chief executive Penelope Borland:
“I also rang Equity today and said to them did they realise how grave this situation was and we need to resolve this and meet.Ā We’re hoping that we will hear from Equity what their issues have been and to work out a way forward. We’ve been wanting to meet with them for quite some time.”
She also urged the actor’s union to call off their boycott of “The Hobbit” production as the situation is now in the “11th Hour.” On the other side of the issue, in a statement on the Actors Equity New Zealand site, President Jennifer Ward-Lealand is calling for calm on the issue”
Over the last few weeks there has been a high level of interest and emotion in the issues surrounding the engagement of performers on the production. āWe have chosen, in a deliberate decision, to avoid the media fray on this. Negative comments donāt serve the primary objective of seeing the production made in New Zealand.ā
Communication is key in this situation and it looks like the wheels are turning for that to happen. The end of the week will hopefully bring good news from all sides of the issue. With all the news coming so fast and furious, don’t take your eyes off of TheOneRing.net for long! Thanks to message board member ranger123 for finding the tv.co.nz article.
If you have glanced at TORn or even the internet this week you will have noticed the “Hobbit” news stories coming fast and furious from every corner. Peter Jackson has spoken about the collective of rumors and the current status of the two-part films. He spoke with EmpireOnline and made it clear that people are working hard, but nothing has officially happened yet. Jackson said:
Weāve seen these reports before, reports saying there was going to be a greenlight in a couple of days ā well, a weekās gone by and there isnāt one. You canāt believe everything you read. There is only one thing you want to believe and thatās when the studio announces a greenlight. As far as Iām aware thatās not going to be today. I keep hearing positive things. Everyoneās working very hard. Thereās a lot of people at Warner Bros. who are working around the clock trying to manoeuvre through the MGM complexities.
The rest of the article is really interesting with heavy Jackson quotes. You can read the rehash lots of places but why not go to the source?
It is clear from Jackson’s comments that the MGM situation remains sticky but that the will to get this picture in production is strong both on a studio level and from the Jackson camp. Not spoken of was the unsettled labor situation in New Zealand but it seems likely that dispute would also delay a greenlight but all parties seem to taking care of that issue behind the scenes and not in the press, likely so as not to give the NZ film industry a bad name internationally. The saga of the two-part film continues!