Well, well, well.  Last week we exclusively broke the news that it seemed like there might be a change in the title of the third film in the Hobbit trilogy, previously referred to as There and Back Again. New Line had just registered The Hobbit: Into the Fire. Today, on his Facebook page, Peter Jackson revealed that the title has been changed – but not to Into the Fire. They’ve gone back to the title originally registered back in 2012: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

Jackson also shares some exciting information about The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition, telling us that we can look forward to more than 25 minutes of new material when we get to see that cut, later this year. Let the speculation on what that might be begin!

Read what PJ had to say here. Personally, I’m disappointed that they didn’t go for The Beorn Ultimatum or Exit the Dragon… Let us know what you think of this new title, and what you hope to see in the Extended Edition of the second movie, in the comments below.

THE HOBBIT - FAKE BOFA TITLE

It may be that Warner Bros., New Line and MGM are currently reconsidering exactly what they should call the final film of Peter Jackson trilogy of Hobbit films. Or maybe they’re not. Maybe it’s for some related thing (a video game tie-in, perchance?). We’re still not quite sure.

However, IF a title change is in the air, the smartmouths of the internets would like to put in their two bob and suggest some alternatives that could prove a hit with the punters. Continue reading “Thirteen alternative titles PJ should consider for The Hobbit: There And Back Again”

hobbitconlogoBONN — HobbitCon 2, in Bonn, Germany is just hours away from starting with a hotel packed full of special guests, lecturers, and fans from around the world.

The Maritim Hotel in Bonn hosts the entire event, which takes over the whole property for the weekend. A full slate of lectures and presentations are scheduled starting just a few hours from now. All of the 13 dwarves from The Hobbit movies are present save Richard Armitage, who is at WonderCon, James Nesbitt who was scheduled but had to cancel and Aiden Turner. That means Adam Brown, Jed Brophy, John Callen, Ken Stott, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Stephen Hunter, Dean O’Gorman, Graham McTavish and William Kircher are all involved. (That means three trolls are here as well!) The gentlemen were present and were rumored to have been observed hanging around the hotel last night talking together and to each other. Reportedly, 26 countries are represented at the event.

The first HobbitCon
The first HobbitCon
Richard Taylor and Royd Tolkien were also in the house as was Mark Atkin — Thorin Oakenshiled in scale size. TheOneRing.net has three panels scheduled for the weekend, including one tomorrow evening, speculating on the third film in Peter Jackson’s adaptation. With the entire event scheduled in one place, it gives the whole affair a remarkable, intimate feeling that is a little challenging to explain. Its one of those things where you have to be there.

In fact, European fans can still make that happen, buying tickets by walking up to the hotel. Details can be found RIGHT HERE. TORn would love to see you in person around the hotel and at the first panel at 5 p.m.!

Expect updates all weekend long.

Here’s a really interesting behind-the-scenes clip from the folks at Weta Digital that delves into the virtual cinematography of The Desolation of Smaug.

Apparently, fully a quarter of the film is made of all-CG shots, and this clip describes the typical workflow of developing the camerawork, keyframe refinement and how lighting choices were dictated by the mood of each scene. Thanks to Ringer Sandesh for the heads-up!

Continue reading “Video: virtual cinematography in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”