One Dragon, One Party menu signed by Dean O’Gorman, Craig Parker and Adam Brown
We ran a simple lottery for a nifty little prize in the form of a Menu from last year’s One Dragon, One Party signed by several cast members. The contest is now over and we have ourselves a very surprised and happy fan in Texas by the name of Susan H. The nice thing is, she does not have to wait to see if the campaign will be successful, she will be receiving this signed item in the next few days.
We have other really cool items already in the campaign, as well as new ones coming up to add to the campaign as either Perks for specific pledge levels, or other Lottery prizes. We may even do something extra special just for the Professor’s Birthday this weekend. And if you are unable to join us at the party, please don’t despair, we have now added a perk specifically for a Live Stream from the party.
Join us in Los Angeles in February at The One Last Party
We’re hosting a Party of Special Magnificence next February — a toast to all SIX movies, both LOTR trilogy and The Hobbit. We’ve hit and surpassed the 50% mark of our funding goal and there’s 18 days to go. Even if you can’t make it to Hollywood, there are still ways to help out if you’re keen, and some neat perks you can pick up too!
About a minute into this NPR interview, Billy Boyd and fellow Beecake guitarist Billy Johnston perform a wonderful acoustic rendition of The Last Goodbye.
More from the press junket for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies World Premiere in London! This time it’s three elves who were chatting with staffer greendragon – discussing topics such as what exactly is the quality an actor playing an elf has to find, and how to let go and just trust the creative but chaotic genius of Peter Jackson!
Off camera, all three were invited to join us at The One Last Party. They were excited to party with fans – Evangeline Lilly even said that, although that is her one week off in the year, she might break into her down time to be with us! Don’t forget, if you pledge to the crowdfunding campaign before 12noon EST on Dec 31st, you could win a cool prize! Full details here.
Join us in Los Angeles in February at The One Last Party
We’re hosting a Party of Special Magnificence next February — a toast to all SIX movies, both LOTR trilogy and The Hobbit.
We’re still working hard to make #OneLastParty – a Party of Special Magnificence – happen, so we can all celebrate together next February! We had many requests from fans who hoped we could extend the deadline, so after much consideration we went ahead and extended to January 18th. It was tricky to choose a date – of course we all want to reach our target as soon as possible, but we wanted to take into account the fact that some folks don’t get paid until Jan 15th, and may want to purchase tickets then.
The goal, of course, is still to reach that target as soon as possible – and to that end, we are holding an exciting GIVEAWAY for all those who pledge before 12noon EST on December 31st! Everyone who has already pledged – and all who pledge between now and then – will be entered into a draw to WIN a Menu from our ‘One Dragon, One Party’ Oscar Moot held 2014 at the Cat & Fiddle restaurant in Los Angeles. This beautiful item, printed on a thick card stock paper, golden marbled, using the Shire Regular font designed by Daniel Reeve (the official Calligrapher for the films), was SIGNED at the party by Adam Brown (Ori), Craig Parker (Haldir) and Dean O’Gorman (Fili).
One Dragon, One Party menu signed by Dean O’Gorman, Craig Parker and Adam Brown
To be in with a chance to win this item, you simply need to have made a pledge of ANY level to the campaign before 12noon EST, Wednesday 31st December. You can give $10 and be part of the big thank you card we will send to PJ et al; you can pledge $200 for a party ticket; you can even snag some exclusive items at higher ‘perk’ levels, (such as a solid gold One Ring from Badali Jewelry, which retails for $924, but which you could claim for only $600 – and that includes your party ticket, too!) Names will be entered into the draw for as many times as an individual has pledged – so if you’ve pledged twice, you have two chances to win!
A name will be drawn at random and the winner will be notified by email, and the signed menu shipped out to that lucky person asap. This means that the winner will receive the menu no matter what the final result of our campaign is. Someone is guaranteed to win this special collectible signed by three cast members – all you have to do, to be in with a chance to win, is make a pledge!
And if you need any further persuasion to join the party, here’s a video where Billy Boyd chats with staffer greendragon. Towards the end of the interview, he talks about the music he’d like to play at the party; let’s make it happen, so Billy can come and serenade us all! #OneLastParty – see you there!
Join us in Los Angeles in February at The One Last Party
We’re hosting a Party of Special Magnificence next February — a toast to all SIX movies, both LOTR trilogy and The Hobbit.
Inside a sound stage, or outside on location, it is a constant and central fixture on a movie shoot. It is home base for Peter Jackson and his team.
It is sacred ground — more or less.
The decisions made inside it, by the team, under Jackson’s direction, are crucial to the project where it is determined what will later happen in front of the camera.
So every day, whatever happens to a set or a sound stage overnight, the tent is there set up and waiting for the core of the shooting unit.
Editor Jabez Olssen, Script Supervisor Victoria Sullivan and First Assistant Director Carolynne Cunningham call it home during the shoot. Cunningham is outside of the director’s tent a lot, Olssen and Sullivan less so and Producer Zane Weiner is always near. Jackson’s assistant Sebastian Meek is in and out at all times, bringing badly needed tea and watching the door from outside to eliminate distractions inside.
Jackson lives on tea and Meek has a talent for having it handy at the perfect moment.
SETTING THE SCENE
In April, 2012, as a representative of fandom via TheOneRing.net, I was invited to be on set during five weeks of the filming of the Hobbit films. At the time, it was still scheduled to be two movies and the production had just settled in to shoot in studio instead of on location. Much was unknown then, that now is completely familiar to fans.
When I first arrived at Stone Street Studios, the publicity team took me to set, showed me the ropes and left me to my own devices during the rest of my stay to meet folks and get interviews, which was great — no time and no need for babysitting.
I was there to be a good guest and to observe. Two weeks later I was definitely convinced I had no chance of talking to Peter Jackson, except for an occasional, “Hello, how are you getting on?” from him during my time there.
Fans world-wide know from production diaries, how exhausted Jackson gets during the shooting phase of filmmaking. It is important to really understand why.
Peter Jackson is a busy guy. Particularly when he is shooting, there is a lot to do in a day and a lot of people that need to understand his vision in order to do their jobs well; he is the hub of the great spinning wheel.
He is the director, a writer and a producer — each a big job on its own. Many films have one of each of those, or several of some, all working together. But Jackson was all of them at once and combining titles didn’t mean there was less work to be done. Just because he was reviewing shots didn’t mean the script didn’t need his touch or that the art department didn’t need his input or the next day’s schedule didn’t need approval. Others were partners on all of these roles but they also required Jackson.
In a day he might need to meet with the effects supervisor, set designers, concept designers, costume designers, the composer or see actual costumes for approval, or changes, to name just a few of the many things that require his time. He will confirm the schedule with his Assistant Director, producers and spend time with the Second Unit Director Andy Serkis, to make sure all is to his liking. They need sets built, greens grown, existing sets decorated, concept guys working ahead, materials guys building everything, maximizing actors’ time, feeding all of those people, screening extras, bringing in the right number of prosthetic artists for the day’s schedule of actors and extras and on and on. In short, there is never a shortage of people who need Jackson’s input to work on his vision and it takes the logistics of — dare I say — planning a battle with five armies.
In short, everything goes through Peter Jackson.
Those are the reasons “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” and his other Hobbit movies are genuinely Peter Jackson movies. It also means he is booked.
Solid.
THE FINAL HOURS
And so it was, the last day of my time on The Hobbit set, after several assurances that my interview with Peter Jackson would happen — it did.
Lunch happened and on the location set of Dale, up on a hill overlooking Evans Bay to Wellington, I was invited to that nearly sacred director’s tent to sit and talk with PJ — just the two of us alone. (One editor asked me if we ate together in the tent but I don’t think so, but why many memories are crystal clear of that meeting, anything we ate or didn’t eat isn’t clear. I just have no idea.)
I had been inside before, but not often. The day I shadowed him, I spent several hours, trying to melt into the background. This was his sanctuary and office.
WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND — We talked to Orlando Bloom in a sound stage on set during filming of The Hobbit movies. Bloom is a massive movie star, more than he is an actor, he is a franchise actor in series of films that have grossed billions. Of all the folks we interviewed I knew him the least (not at all) and he was the most difficult to read.
I recall that he was nervous but reading through the transcription that doesn’t show up at all. We talked a lot about Rings vs. Hobbit a lot here and that wouldn’t have been my choice. But there are no bad questions, it just feels slightly repetitive. However, after seeing “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,” I do understand more clearly of what he was telling us. He was forthright and open.
It is worth a mention that Bloom is a physical actor who mixes it up with stuntees and action full bore. He doesn’t hold back.
If memory serves he was in at least partial Legolas clothes with some green pants and his legs were restless.
Other Q&A interviews about “The Hobbit:The Battle of the Five Armies,” include:
MEDIA: Yesterday. We got in yesterday. ORLANDO BLOOM: How long for?
MEDIA: Saturday morning.
ORLANDO BLOOM: All from the States?
MEDIA: No. I’m from Sydney.
ORLANDO BLOOM: Sydney?
MEDIA: Yeah.
ORLANDO BLOOM: States. LA.
MEDIA: Austin.
ORLANDO BLOOM: Austin?
MEDIA: The One Ring. States.
ORLANDO BLOOM: Oh, yeah.
MEDIA: He exists entirely online.
MEDIA: The district of One Ring.
ORLANDO BLOOM: How is The One Ring?
MEDIA: Honestly, now we’re good. We’re still broke from our last party, actually. But otherwise we’re good.
MEDIA: So, now we’re seeing you out of the full hair and makeup and whatever. How does the process compare this time around, just in terms of duration and ease and whatever, to the first three movies?
ORLANDO BLOOM: To get made up?
MEDIA: Yeah. Have they refined the process so that it’s a breeze now?
ORLANDO BLOOM: It’s about the same for me. I think they simplified it for the hobbit, for Martin, because they came up with those boot ideas which– Actually, I think that was– A great idea by Viggo’s old makeup artist, somebody was telling me actually, funny enough. He came up with the idea for having the feet be boots.
Can you imagine how much time that would have saved? Because on Rings, they had the joint there and it was so visible that they had to– So, yeah, I think it’s– But for me, I just have my ears, and they just pop on and they seal them down in about an hour and fifteen minutes.
We’re hosting a Party of Special Magnificence next February — a toast to all SIX movies, both LOTR trilogy and The Hobbit. We’ve hit and surpassed the 50% mark of our funding goal and there’s 18 days to go. Even if you can’t make it to Hollywood, there are still ways to help out if you’re keen, and some neat perks you can pick up too!
About a minute into this NPR interview, Billy Boyd and fellow Beecake guitarist Billy Johnston perform a wonderful acoustic rendition of The Last Goodbye. 
