The Frodo Franchise by Kristin Thompson
 
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July 27 : 2009

Peter Jackson respects fans at Comic-Con

Variety has a nice little wrap-up of Comic-Con that mentions Peter Jackson a couple of times. It sounds like PJ still feels a connection to the fans, even though to many of them his vast success may have made him seem less accessible than he was back in the days when he was still making LOTR. One remark quoted in the story: “I wish you could take the energy here and bottle it and give it to Hollywood to drink.”

Variety also praised Peter’s ability to connect with the fans during his mentions of The Hobbit:

Much has been said over the years about the importance of respecting the geeks.

Jackson proved just how to do that last week when he took the time during Sony’s panel for “District 9″ to update the crowd on “The Hobbit,” of which two films are planned.

He explained the intricacies of Hollywood’s development and casting process, of studio politics and the difficulty of getting movies made. It was a sincere explanation that had the crowd captivated.

For my comments on what Peter said about The Hobbit at Comic-Con, see here.

[July 28: On TORN, Rebecca alerts us to a video of PJ's comments.]

[July 31: TORN has now posted Comic-Con's own HD version of PJ's comments.]

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    The Frodo Franchise
    by Kristin Thompson

    US flagbuy at best price

    Canadian flagbuy at best price

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    Berkeley: University of California Press, 2007.
    hardcover 978-0-520-24774-1
    421 pages, 6 x 9 inches, 12 color illustrations; 36 b/w illustrations; 1 map; 1 table

    “Once in a lifetime.”
    The phrase comes up over and over from the people who worked on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings. The film’s 17 Oscars, record-setting earnings, huge fan base, and hundreds of ancillary products attest to its importance and to the fact that Rings is far more than a film. Its makers seized a crucial moment in Hollywood—the special effects digital revolution plus the rise of “infotainment” and the Internet—to satisfy the trilogy’s fans while fostering a huge new international audience. The resulting franchise of franchises has earned billions of dollars to date with no end in sight.

    Kristin Thompson interviewed 76 people to examine the movie’s scripting and design and the new technologies deployed to produce the films, video games, and DVDs. She demonstrates the impact Rings had on the companies that made it, on the fantasy genre, on New Zealand, and on independent cinema. In fast-paced, compulsively readable prose, she affirms Jackson’s Rings as one the most important films ever made.

    The Frodo Franchise

    cover of Penguin Books’ (NZ) edition of The Frodo Franchise, published September 2007. The tiny subtitle reads: “How ‘The Lord of the Rings’ became a Hollywood blockbuster and put New Zealand on the map.”