Hello everyone, here are some answers to just a few of your questions. Thank you all for sending them in. It’s been fun looking back at that exciting period spent in middle-earth, NZ.
Q1. Nadia W.
What do you think about the Hobbit’s portrayal in many other’s artwork. They often turn out to be rather unattractive and almost goblin like in the face. How do you think those compare to Tolkien’s vision of Hobbits and also how do you think the movie’s version of the Hobbit’s compares to what he originally intended for them? Where did you find your balance in your drawings of the hobbits?
I always take care to ensure that there is nothing grotesque or over-comical when drawing them. Tolkien probably created their characteristics from people that he knew, and I’ve met quite a few hobbit look-alikes in the 30 years that I’ve lived in the countryside. I think the casting, and acting, of the hobbits is one of the most successful aspects of the movies.
Q2. Malia N.
Who was your biggest inspiration as an artist?
A2. Hello Malia, I’ve had so many influences and sources of inspiration as an illustrator that it is impossible to name just one. I loved Aubrey Beardsley when I was a student, and then Edmund Dulac and other Golden Age illustrators made a big impact, as well as Victorian painters like Richard Dadd and Edward Burne-Jones. My long-term heroes though are Albretch Durer, Brueghel, Hieronymous Bosch, Jan Van Eyck, Leonardo, Botticelli, Rembrandt, Turner and Degas. What most of them have in common is brilliant draughtsmanship and a strong linear or graphic quality. Most are also printmakers. The one I keep going back to and who fascinates me the most is JMW Turner, the greatest watercolourist.
Q3. Ryan A.
I have seen your works in the Silmarillion and the Lord of The rings. I read the books, and tend to imagine the characters differently than you portrayed them. When you were reading these books (I assume) did you imagine the characters and landscapes in this way, or were you trying to get as close as you could to Tolkien’s thoughts. Also, was it difficult to make the costumes and props, special effects etc. to match your art? You truly doubled the experience of the LOTR with your works! Keep up the good work.
A3. Hi Ryan, I don’t usually have a very clear image of characters in my mind when I’m reading; any little clues that the author gives adds to the picture, but it is more a matter of trying to evoke something of the personality or atmosphere surrounding the character. Then when I draw I’m trying to eliminate things that don’t feel right. This gets harder as the picture gets more detailed, so I often keep the figures small or indistinct in some way. I prefer painting woods, mountains and other natural features anyway and creating a believable setting; the author will have done most of the work of creating a character, and I don’t want to compete with that, or do anything to interfere with the readers appreciation of the text.
On the films, I didn’t get too involved in the costume design. I don’t have the skills for that, but I would occasionally offer up an idea, which would add to the costume designers reference files if nothing else. One of the things a concept designer is doing in this type of film is being a sort of reference library for things which don’t exist yet. As well as the sets, I would get involved in prop design, especially for “hero” props which would handled by the actors, and I stayed throughout the post-production period working on designs for visual effects, cg environments and miniatures. It was good to be able to follow the design process from initial concept through to the finished shots – which in some cases took five years.
Q4. Teresa S.
I love your artwork for LOTR. Did you design any of the furniture for the Elf Villages?
A4. Thank you Teresa, We had a team of prop designers working on furniture and other props, but I did design some of the Rivendell fixtures and fittings – chairs and couches for Elrond, Gandalf and Arwen, seating for the Council of Elrond, and Frodo’s bed. There were display cases for valuable and ancient relics, and bookcases, lamps etc. I don’t think we had a lot of other furniture for Rivendell. Those elves looked at their best drifting around in their long robes carrying a book or a harp. I designed a loom, a huge, heavy object based on an ancient Greek model, which the set dressers manhandled onto every set. It was never filmed.
Q5. Melissa C.
I was privileged enough to see “the lord of the rings” exhibit in Houston at a museum about 6-7 years ago and was absolutely stunned at the beauty of the props, costumes, models, but most of all, the artwork that was displayed from both artists! Just Breathtaking!!
My question is for both Alan Lee and John Howe- which character (either human-like or not) was the most difficult for each of you to conceptualize and then finally complete for the films and why? Thank you so much!
A5. Hello Melissa, most of the work of developing characters and creatures was done by Weta’s team of designers. I would contribute ideas for helmets, pieces of armour and heraldry etc, trying to establish a cohesive and realistic look for the different cultures, but the only creature I can really claim any credit for is that weird monocerous that appears in the battle of the Pelennor fields, dragging Grond towards Minas Tirith.
I think Sauron was probably the most difficult character to pin down. Was he the eye on the top of Barad-dur, or was he in the tower, with the eye as a sort of cctv? Would we see him at the battle of the Black Gate? I did designs for the eye, and for Sauron’s helmet in the Prologue, and worked on ideas for how he might materalize if we did get closer to him, but keeping as a distant, enigmatic threat made a more powerful impact.
The Ents were also quite tricky to handle. Daniel Falconer had designed a great Treebeard, but we needed other Ents for the Entmoot and the attack on Isengard. We decided on 6 or 7 other tree types, which we would have multiple copies of for the bigger scenes. I produced drawings, photoshop studies and photographs of bark textures, and worked closely with the cg modellers, but it would have been nice to have been able to spend more time on them.
Q6. Alexandra L.
How old were you when you started drawing tolkien’s work? Does it seem like it keeps re-inventing itself, or is your art similar to your earlier works? (I mean how has your artwork changed over the years)
A6. Hi Alexandra, I read the Lord of the Rings when I was 17 years old, but didn’t do any illustrations based on it until 20 years later, in 1984, when I put visualizations of Barad-dur and Minas Tirith into a book called “Castles”. That led to the pictures being used in a Tolkien calendar, and then to being asked to illustrate the centenary edition of the Lord of the Rings, which came out in 1992.
The book had a big influence on me when I first read it, and reinforced my interest in myths and legends, which is a life-long passion. When I look back at work I did as a student – mainly illustrations to ancient Irish legends – and compare them to what I’m doing now, there isn’t a huge difference. They were in pen and ink, and I now work in pencil or watercolour, but the interest and attention to detail is similar. Hopefully, my more recent work is a little better. Working on the films makes a big difference in that an illustration may show one view of a city, for example, but a sequence in the film will mean that every detail needs to be thought through and designed to work as a three-dimensional object. While I’m doing that I’m aware that it is still part of helping to tell, or illustrate, a story, but I’m really engrossed in working out how this gate should operate, or how that complex of alleyways should be arranged. My work has broadened, and I’ve learnt new skills, but I think I’m still going in the same direction.
Q7. Doci M.
Are your illustrations complemented by each other? When you create one image, do you use a previous image to back it up or is it a completely separate thought process?
A7. Hello Doci, I’m frequently thinking ahead, when I’m working on an illustration. When it is going well I want to be able to carry the ideas and momentum straight onto the next picture, or series of illustrations, but as soon as I finish one I found myself at the bottom of the hill again with all the research and other preparatory work ahead of me before I can get back into the flow. I find that looking at a picture in the half-light, or from a distance, or upside-down can spark ideas for other compositions, or I’ll want to expand on some details or textures I enjoyed on a previous picture.
Of course, when illustrating a book you need to ensure that there is continuity between the pictures, but I don’t work in a very systematic way, preferring to let the pencil wander as though it had a mind of its own before settling on a composition, or even a subject.
Q8. Garrett S.
Before New Zealand entered the picture, did you ever imagine specific European locations when envisioning Middle-Earth on film? Is there a valley, mountain or river outside of New Zealand that you could have imagined being perfect for translating Tolkien to the screen?
Q8. Hello Garrett, I read and illustrated the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit long before anyone came up with the idea using New Zealand landscapes to represent Middle-earth, and my imaginings were based on my own experiences of British landscapes. At seventeen this was limited to a few square miles of the outer suburbs of London. I realized that Tolkien had based many of his descriptions on places that he knew, but I don’t think I would have got any closer to Middle-earth by visiting those same places. In the end the only thing you can do is read carefully, and trust your own imagination to come up with images that work for other people too.
With the films, the process is different. I’m adjusting my vision to match the director’s imagination, with the help of stunning, unspoiled New Zealand landscapes. There are lots of places in the world where you could find appropriate settings for these stories, but it would be harder to find them all in one country.
Q9. Christina T.
How many hours a day did you spend sketching for the film during preproduction?
A9. Hi Christina, when we started conceptualising for Peter Jackson’s LOTR trilogy 12 hours a day of drawing was quite normal. When we started filming everything accelerated and I was regularly working until 10pm or so, and frequently at weekends. There were a few occasions where I worked through the night to help get a set ready for shooting the next morning. Everyone else was working hard, and I got caught up in the whole process and didn’t really notice the long hours. I thought post-production would be a little quieter, but that became just as intense, especially as delivery dates drew near. I was still in New Zealand in 2004 doing designs for dvd packaging and menus, while everyone else was packing up and moving on to other projects. I felt like one of those lone soldiers posted on an island who hadn’t been told the war was over.
Q10. Michael B.
I have 2 questions; 1) I know that Andy Serkis based his decision of making Smeagol crawl due to a drawing by John. Did any other actors made character decisions through your drawings? 2) How did you decide on what to make the races of Middle Earth look like i.e. Tolkiens writings or your own interpretations?
A10. Hello Michael, I can’t think of specific examples of influencing a performance; if an actor is looking at a drawing it would usually be so that he or she would have some idea of where they are meant to be when they are surrounded by green screens, or what is about to happen to them. You can influence a performance, for good or ill, with the props that the actor has around them. Most actors seem to like to have objects that they can handle when not in dialogue, and which help them to express their personality, so pipes, mugs, pouches, tools and weapons are chosen carefully and can become part of the process of developing a character.
Q11. Dain L.
I may be an uber nerd, but I sat through all the special features on a very extended edition so I don’t really have any questions about ‘how it’s made’ but alan/richard/john…..who is YOUR favourite lotr character? Which ones did you enjoy working on most?
A11. Hello Dain, I don’t think you are a nerd. Thanks for the difficult question! I think my favourite character in the books and the films is Eowyn, and I really enjoyed Miranda Otto’s subtle performance in that role. However, I’ll choose the King of the Dead as the most enjoyable character to work on. By that stage in the production everything was moving very fast, and he was designed, costumed, filmed and composited in a matter of weeks – rather than years. He provides some creepy moments in the Paths of the Dead, then turns up at Minas Tirith, changes the course of the battle, evaporates and is quickly forgotten. Not the most pleasant character –you can see right through him – but I like him anyway.
Q12. Emma P.
What has been the best piece you did while working on lord of the rings and why?
A12. Hello Emma, I think the most satisfying design was for Edoras, and other parts of the Rohan scenes. It all came together really well; Weta’s work on armour and weapons and the Art Department’s work on props and buildings were in harmony with Ngila Dickson’s work on the costumes and all contributed to creating a believable culture. The interior of the golden hall was lovely, and the landscapes were perfect. I could sit in that set and imagine myself back in the 9th century.
Q13. Noura A.
One of the most beautiful parts is when they show Minas Tirith… The white city .. How long did it take you to design such an amazing scene? Another amazing part is in Mirkwood. How beautiful the trees and lights were!
A13. Hello Noura, we spent quite a long time on Minas Tirith, which was built as 7 different sets and 3 miniatures, with a cg environment and matte paintings – as well as everything else that was happening around it. My work on it started in 1998 with views of the city and a series of pencil drawings following Gandalf up through the streets on his way to the citadel, and a plasticine model to help work out out the shape of the overall structure, then endless drawings of details, statues, fountains, doors, pillars and furniture. After it was built and shot there was lot of work to do on creating the vistas around it and all of that needed artwork, which was done in photoshop. One of the last things I was working on, in 2004, was for shots of the Houses of Healing, so the design of Minas Tirith was spread over the whole period of working on the films.
The woodland scenes were also very important. Lothlorien was a long design process. There weren’t as many shots, but it was difficult capturing the mysterious and elusive quality of the place, so there was quite a lot of modelling of different ideas before we got the right look. A lot of credit for these scenes should go to Weta’s team of model-makers, as well as the skilled carpenters and sculptors of the Art department, who really enjoyed the challenge of giving material form to the sketches they worked from. Now, those miniature-based shots would be all cg, but the fact that those strange structures were built by hand, lit and filmed made what could have been an excursion into a fantasy land into something real and memorable.
Q14. Rick P.
Which of you would win in a sword fight?
A14. Hi Rick, are you trying to stir up trouble between us? John would win, because he not only has a sword, but a suit of armour as well. He runs like a greyhound, leaps like a springbok and can peel an apple just by looking at it. I might challenge him to a cagefight, but only if he was in the cage and I was outside it.
Q15. Ayesha K.
If you could add a scene that was in any of the books to the movies, which would it be?
A15. Hi Ayasha, another tricky question! I think the right choices were made when adapting the books to the screen. As much as I would have loved to have seen the Scouring of the Shire, and enjoyed the company of Tom Bombadil and Goldberry, their inclusion would have over-burdened the story-telling. I like the Barrow- Downs scene, but we’d need Tom Bombadil to rescue them. We could have stopped off at Cerin Amroth and seen a little more of the beauty of Lothlorien, but I think the most satisfying addition would be a little more back-story in the prologue to ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’. Isildur planting the white tree, perhaps, or a little more about Bilbo finding the Ring, and his other adventures – now there’s a thought!
Alan Lee
Q1. Nadia W.
What do you think about the Hobbit’s portrayal in many other’s artwork. They often turn out to be rather unattractive and almost goblin like in the face. How do you think those compare to Tolkien’s vision of Hobbits and also how do you think the movie’s version of the Hobbit’s compares to what he originally intended for them? Where did you find your balance in your drawings of the hobbits?
I always take care to ensure that there is nothing grotesque or over-comical when drawing them. Tolkien probably created their characteristics from people that he knew, and I’ve met quite a few hobbit look-alikes in the 30 years that I’ve lived in the countryside. I think the casting, and acting, of the hobbits is one of the most successful aspects of the movies.
Q2. Malia N.
Who was your biggest inspiration as an artist?
A2. Hello Malia, I’ve had so many influences and sources of inspiration as an illustrator that it is impossible to name just one. I loved Aubrey Beardsley when I was a student, and then Edmund Dulac and other Golden Age illustrators made a big impact, as well as Victorian painters like Richard Dadd and Edward Burne-Jones. My long-term heroes though are Albretch Durer, Brueghel, Hieronymous Bosch, Jan Van Eyck, Leonardo, Botticelli, Rembrandt, Turner and Degas. What most of them have in common is brilliant draughtsmanship and a strong linear or graphic quality. Most are also printmakers. The one I keep going back to and who fascinates me the most is JMW Turner, the greatest watercolourist.
Q3. Ryan A.
I have seen your works in the Silmarillion and the Lord of The rings. I read the books, and tend to imagine the characters differently than you portrayed them. When you were reading these books (I assume) did you imagine the characters and landscapes in this way, or were you trying to get as close as you could to Tolkien’s thoughts. Also, was it difficult to make the costumes and props, special effects etc. to match your art? You truly doubled the experience of the LOTR with your works! Keep up the good work.
A3. Hi Ryan, I don’t usually have a very clear image of characters in my mind when I’m reading; any little clues that the author gives adds to the picture, but it is more a matter of trying to evoke something of the personality or atmosphere surrounding the character. Then when I draw I’m trying to eliminate things that don’t feel right. This gets harder as the picture gets more detailed, so I often keep the figures small or indistinct in some way. I prefer painting woods, mountains and other natural features anyway and creating a believable setting; the author will have done most of the work of creating a character, and I don’t want to compete with that, or do anything to interfere with the readers appreciation of the text.
On the films, I didn’t get too involved in the costume design. I don’t have the skills for that, but I would occasionally offer up an idea, which would add to the costume designers reference files if nothing else. One of the things a concept designer is doing in this type of film is being a sort of reference library for things which don’t exist yet. As well as the sets, I would get involved in prop design, especially for “hero” props which would handled by the actors, and I stayed throughout the post-production period working on designs for visual effects, cg environments and miniatures. It was good to be able to follow the design process from initial concept through to the finished shots – which in some cases took five years.
Q4. Teresa S.
I love your artwork for LOTR. Did you design any of the furniture for the Elf Villages?
A4. Thank you Teresa, We had a team of prop designers working on furniture and other props, but I did design some of the Rivendell fixtures and fittings – chairs and couches for Elrond, Gandalf and Arwen, seating for the Council of Elrond, and Frodo’s bed. There were display cases for valuable and ancient relics, and bookcases, lamps etc. I don’t think we had a lot of other furniture for Rivendell. Those elves looked at their best drifting around in their long robes carrying a book or a harp. I designed a loom, a huge, heavy object based on an ancient Greek model, which the set dressers manhandled onto every set. It was never filmed.
Q5. Melissa C.
I was privileged enough to see “the lord of the rings” exhibit in Houston at a museum about 6-7 years ago and was absolutely stunned at the beauty of the props, costumes, models, but most of all, the artwork that was displayed from both artists! Just Breathtaking!!
My question is for both Alan Lee and John Howe- which character (either human-like or not) was the most difficult for each of you to conceptualize and then finally complete for the films and why? Thank you so much!
A5. Hello Melissa, most of the work of developing characters and creatures was done by Weta’s team of designers. I would contribute ideas for helmets, pieces of armour and heraldry etc, trying to establish a cohesive and realistic look for the different cultures, but the only creature I can really claim any credit for is that weird monocerous that appears in the battle of the Pelennor fields, dragging Grond towards Minas Tirith.
I think Sauron was probably the most difficult character to pin down. Was he the eye on the top of Barad-dur, or was he in the tower, with the eye as a sort of cctv? Would we see him at the battle of the Black Gate? I did designs for the eye, and for Sauron’s helmet in the Prologue, and worked on ideas for how he might materalize if we did get closer to him, but keeping as a distant, enigmatic threat made a more powerful impact.
The Ents were also quite tricky to handle. Daniel Falconer had designed a great Treebeard, but we needed other Ents for the Entmoot and the attack on Isengard. We decided on 6 or 7 other tree types, which we would have multiple copies of for the bigger scenes. I produced drawings, photoshop studies and photographs of bark textures, and worked closely with the cg modellers, but it would have been nice to have been able to spend more time on them.
Q6. Alexandra L.
How old were you when you started drawing tolkien’s work? Does it seem like it keeps re-inventing itself, or is your art similar to your earlier works? (I mean how has your artwork changed over the years)
A6. Hi Alexandra, I read the Lord of the Rings when I was 17 years old, but didn’t do any illustrations based on it until 20 years later, in 1984, when I put visualizations of Barad-dur and Minas Tirith into a book called “Castles”. That led to the pictures being used in a Tolkien calendar, and then to being asked to illustrate the centenary edition of the Lord of the Rings, which came out in 1992.
The book had a big influence on me when I first read it, and reinforced my interest in myths and legends, which is a life-long passion. When I look back at work I did as a student – mainly illustrations to ancient Irish legends – and compare them to what I’m doing now, there isn’t a huge difference. They were in pen and ink, and I now work in pencil or watercolour, but the interest and attention to detail is similar. Hopefully, my more recent work is a little better. Working on the films makes a big difference in that an illustration may show one view of a city, for example, but a sequence in the film will mean that every detail needs to be thought through and designed to work as a three-dimensional object. While I’m doing that I’m aware that it is still part of helping to tell, or illustrate, a story, but I’m really engrossed in working out how this gate should operate, or how that complex of alleyways should be arranged. My work has broadened, and I’ve learnt new skills, but I think I’m still going in the same direction.
Q7. Doci M.
Are your illustrations complemented by each other? When you create one image, do you use a previous image to back it up or is it a completely separate thought process?
A7. Hello Doci, I’m frequently thinking ahead, when I’m working on an illustration. When it is going well I want to be able to carry the ideas and momentum straight onto the next picture, or series of illustrations, but as soon as I finish one I found myself at the bottom of the hill again with all the research and other preparatory work ahead of me before I can get back into the flow. I find that looking at a picture in the half-light, or from a distance, or upside-down can spark ideas for other compositions, or I’ll want to expand on some details or textures I enjoyed on a previous picture.
Of course, when illustrating a book you need to ensure that there is continuity between the pictures, but I don’t work in a very systematic way, preferring to let the pencil wander as though it had a mind of its own before settling on a composition, or even a subject.
Q8. Garrett S.
Before New Zealand entered the picture, did you ever imagine specific European locations when envisioning Middle-Earth on film? Is there a valley, mountain or river outside of New Zealand that you could have imagined being perfect for translating Tolkien to the screen?
Q8. Hello Garrett, I read and illustrated the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit long before anyone came up with the idea using New Zealand landscapes to represent Middle-earth, and my imaginings were based on my own experiences of British landscapes. At seventeen this was limited to a few square miles of the outer suburbs of London. I realized that Tolkien had based many of his descriptions on places that he knew, but I don’t think I would have got any closer to Middle-earth by visiting those same places. In the end the only thing you can do is read carefully, and trust your own imagination to come up with images that work for other people too.
With the films, the process is different. I’m adjusting my vision to match the director’s imagination, with the help of stunning, unspoiled New Zealand landscapes. There are lots of places in the world where you could find appropriate settings for these stories, but it would be harder to find them all in one country.
Q9. Christina T.
How many hours a day did you spend sketching for the film during preproduction?
A9. Hi Christina, when we started conceptualising for Peter Jackson’s LOTR trilogy 12 hours a day of drawing was quite normal. When we started filming everything accelerated and I was regularly working until 10pm or so, and frequently at weekends. There were a few occasions where I worked through the night to help get a set ready for shooting the next morning. Everyone else was working hard, and I got caught up in the whole process and didn’t really notice the long hours. I thought post-production would be a little quieter, but that became just as intense, especially as delivery dates drew near. I was still in New Zealand in 2004 doing designs for dvd packaging and menus, while everyone else was packing up and moving on to other projects. I felt like one of those lone soldiers posted on an island who hadn’t been told the war was over.
Q10. Michael B.
I have 2 questions; 1) I know that Andy Serkis based his decision of making Smeagol crawl due to a drawing by John. Did any other actors made character decisions through your drawings? 2) How did you decide on what to make the races of Middle Earth look like i.e. Tolkiens writings or your own interpretations?
A10. Hello Michael, I can’t think of specific examples of influencing a performance; if an actor is looking at a drawing it would usually be so that he or she would have some idea of where they are meant to be when they are surrounded by green screens, or what is about to happen to them. You can influence a performance, for good or ill, with the props that the actor has around them. Most actors seem to like to have objects that they can handle when not in dialogue, and which help them to express their personality, so pipes, mugs, pouches, tools and weapons are chosen carefully and can become part of the process of developing a character.
Q11. Dain L.
I may be an uber nerd, but I sat through all the special features on a very extended edition so I don’t really have any questions about ‘how it’s made’ but alan/richard/john…..who is YOUR favourite lotr character? Which ones did you enjoy working on most?
A11. Hello Dain, I don’t think you are a nerd. Thanks for the difficult question! I think my favourite character in the books and the films is Eowyn, and I really enjoyed Miranda Otto’s subtle performance in that role. However, I’ll choose the King of the Dead as the most enjoyable character to work on. By that stage in the production everything was moving very fast, and he was designed, costumed, filmed and composited in a matter of weeks – rather than years. He provides some creepy moments in the Paths of the Dead, then turns up at Minas Tirith, changes the course of the battle, evaporates and is quickly forgotten. Not the most pleasant character –you can see right through him – but I like him anyway.
Q12. Emma P.
What has been the best piece you did while working on lord of the rings and why?
A12. Hello Emma, I think the most satisfying design was for Edoras, and other parts of the Rohan scenes. It all came together really well; Weta’s work on armour and weapons and the Art Department’s work on props and buildings were in harmony with Ngila Dickson’s work on the costumes and all contributed to creating a believable culture. The interior of the golden hall was lovely, and the landscapes were perfect. I could sit in that set and imagine myself back in the 9th century.
Q13. Noura A.
One of the most beautiful parts is when they show Minas Tirith… The white city .. How long did it take you to design such an amazing scene? Another amazing part is in Mirkwood. How beautiful the trees and lights were!
A13. Hello Noura, we spent quite a long time on Minas Tirith, which was built as 7 different sets and 3 miniatures, with a cg environment and matte paintings – as well as everything else that was happening around it. My work on it started in 1998 with views of the city and a series of pencil drawings following Gandalf up through the streets on his way to the citadel, and a plasticine model to help work out out the shape of the overall structure, then endless drawings of details, statues, fountains, doors, pillars and furniture. After it was built and shot there was lot of work to do on creating the vistas around it and all of that needed artwork, which was done in photoshop. One of the last things I was working on, in 2004, was for shots of the Houses of Healing, so the design of Minas Tirith was spread over the whole period of working on the films.
The woodland scenes were also very important. Lothlorien was a long design process. There weren’t as many shots, but it was difficult capturing the mysterious and elusive quality of the place, so there was quite a lot of modelling of different ideas before we got the right look. A lot of credit for these scenes should go to Weta’s team of model-makers, as well as the skilled carpenters and sculptors of the Art department, who really enjoyed the challenge of giving material form to the sketches they worked from. Now, those miniature-based shots would be all cg, but the fact that those strange structures were built by hand, lit and filmed made what could have been an excursion into a fantasy land into something real and memorable.
Q14. Rick P.
Which of you would win in a sword fight?
A14. Hi Rick, are you trying to stir up trouble between us? John would win, because he not only has a sword, but a suit of armour as well. He runs like a greyhound, leaps like a springbok and can peel an apple just by looking at it. I might challenge him to a cagefight, but only if he was in the cage and I was outside it.
Q15. Ayesha K.
If you could add a scene that was in any of the books to the movies, which would it be?
A15. Hi Ayasha, another tricky question! I think the right choices were made when adapting the books to the screen. As much as I would have loved to have seen the Scouring of the Shire, and enjoyed the company of Tom Bombadil and Goldberry, their inclusion would have over-burdened the story-telling. I like the Barrow- Downs scene, but we’d need Tom Bombadil to rescue them. We could have stopped off at Cerin Amroth and seen a little more of the beauty of Lothlorien, but I think the most satisfying addition would be a little more back-story in the prologue to ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’. Isildur planting the white tree, perhaps, or a little more about Bilbo finding the Ring, and his other adventures – now there’s a thought!
Alan Lee
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