The Frodo Franchise by Kristin Thompson
 

Archive for the 'New Zealand government and the franchise' Category

July 22 : 2011

President Obama gives prime minister a replica Hobbit sword

On Tuesday I reported that New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key was coming to the U.S. to meet with government officials, and with Warner Bros. executives as well. Now Stuff.co says that Key met with President Obama:

Before the 30 minute meeting, Key had been presented with the president’s formal gift of a replica Hobbit sword that came from half way around the world – New Zealand. It was made by Weta Workshop in Wellington and the gift was organised by Hobbit backers Warner Brothers.

No pictures or other details are given.

[Thanks to Grant McKenna for the link!]

Radio New Zealand adds some information, mainly what Mr. Key gave the president:

Mr Obama has given Mr Key a New Zealand-made gift, a replica of the sword being used in the Hobbit movies, by the character Bilbo Baggins.

It was made by the Weta Workshop in Wellington.

In return, Mr Key gave Mr Obama a greenstone mere, made by Ngai Tahu.

US protocol requires official gifts to be exchanged behind the scenes, rather than directly between leaders.

    The Frodo Franchise
    by Kristin Thompson

    US 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.”