The Hobbit takes centre stage
Since Prime Minister John Key signed the deal with Warner Brothers, The Hobbit has been receiving a great deal of attention, whether it be from animal activist groups, labour unions or avid fans counting down the days - any press is good press, right? Either way, Middle Earth, as Tolkien fans affectionately refer to New Zealand, has definitely caught the attention of the international arena.
The three Hobbit films serve as a prequel to the enormously successful Lord of the Rings trilogy both sets of movies based on the fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien. The final Lord of the Rings film, The Return of the King won 11 Academy Awards putting it on par with only two others in history, Ben-Hur and Titanic, bring the total wins for the trilogy to 17 - rather big win for us Kiwis.
The Hobbit films are even bigger and better that the original trilogy with Weta Workshops and Sir Peter Jackson trying out new film and graphic techniques which are rumoured to be absolutely brilliant - so good in fact that it has already been nominated for an Academy Award in Visual Effects and the movie hasn’t even been released.
What, however, does all this mean - economically, socially?
The Social Company
New Zealand, as a small and rather neutral nation, is not always at the forefront of anything on the international playing field - we are generally known as the country with sheep. The Lord of the Rings and now, The Hobbit are giving the world and especially Hollywood a chance to shift its all seeing eye to the land of the Kiwis.
The elaborate preparations and extravagant premiere however, seems to have irked many a person. The Twitter and Facebook spheres have been alight with just as many journalists and members expressing how embarrassing and over-the-top New Zealand’s enthusiasm and preparations were citing that we were the only small country with small nation syndrome - making a big deal out of something that other places would find normal.
They, however, need to get over it and be happy for such Kiwi success. Yes, we are doing a lot for the premiere and it is indeed because we are a small country but the rest of the world loves it and we need a platform to celebrate the success that Sir Peter and his team have brought to our shores. The films also showcase the technical and graphic skills of our experts and inspire budding hopefuls to make their name and find their place in our industry.
The Precious Economy
In addition to inspiring cinematic hopefuls, the trilogy has also created over 3000 jobs in the country, most of which were sought to be filled by locals. Yes, arguably these jobs have been subsidised by taxpayers and the government subsidy of the films. This however, is an investment in the millions the movies will bring in both in the short and long term.
Tourism New Zealand chief executive Kevin Bowler hopes that the films will put New Zealand in the top 10 tourist locations estimating that 6 per cent of all visitors to New Zealand cite the films as a major reason for their visit and 1 per cent stating that they films were the main reason. This should bring in a tentative $500 million in spending money estimates Bower.
As Bower outlines, the films reach farther markets than the Rugby World Cup - building the hype for the next two years. The films also affect Asian and American markets hopefully bringing in both tourism and investment from these two substantial economies.
For a small, tourism reliant nation such as Middle Earth this is rather big news.
Sir Peter Jackson has surely made a name for himself, the Kiwi technical cinema industry and New Zealand as a whole, which will only grow positively in the years to come. As Kiwis would say, he’s a bloomin’ good chap.
FACT BOX
Opening Dates
13th December 2012 - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
13th December 2013 - The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
18th July 2014 - The Hobbit: There and Back Again
Director
Sir Peter Jackson
Author of Novels
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
Starring
Martin Freeman
Ian McKellan
Richard Armitage
Andy Serkis
Benedict Cumberbatch
Tourism Benefit
Estimated at $500 million
Since Prime Minister John Key signed the deal with Warner Brothers, The Hobbit has been receiving a great deal of attention, whether it be from animal activist groups, labour unions or avid fans counting down the days - any press is good press, right? Either way, Middle Earth, as Tolkien fans...
Since Prime Minister John Key signed the deal with Warner Brothers, The Hobbit has been receiving a great deal of attention, whether it be from animal activist groups, labour unions or avid fans counting down the days - any press is good press, right? Either way, Middle Earth, as Tolkien fans affectionately refer to New Zealand, has definitely caught the attention of the international arena.
The three Hobbit films serve as a prequel to the enormously successful Lord of the Rings trilogy both sets of movies based on the fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien. The final Lord of the Rings film, The Return of the King won 11 Academy Awards putting it on par with only two others in history, Ben-Hur and Titanic, bring the total wins for the trilogy to 17 - rather big win for us Kiwis.
The Hobbit films are even bigger and better that the original trilogy with Weta Workshops and Sir Peter Jackson trying out new film and graphic techniques which are rumoured to be absolutely brilliant - so good in fact that it has already been nominated for an Academy Award in Visual Effects and the movie hasn’t even been released.
What, however, does all this mean - economically, socially?
The Social Company
New Zealand, as a small and rather neutral nation, is not always at the forefront of anything on the international playing field - we are generally known as the country with sheep. The Lord of the Rings and now, The Hobbit are giving the world and especially Hollywood a chance to shift its all seeing eye to the land of the Kiwis.
The elaborate preparations and extravagant premiere however, seems to have irked many a person. The Twitter and Facebook spheres have been alight with just as many journalists and members expressing how embarrassing and over-the-top New Zealand’s enthusiasm and preparations were citing that we were the only small country with small nation syndrome - making a big deal out of something that other places would find normal.
They, however, need to get over it and be happy for such Kiwi success. Yes, we are doing a lot for the premiere and it is indeed because we are a small country but the rest of the world loves it and we need a platform to celebrate the success that Sir Peter and his team have brought to our shores. The films also showcase the technical and graphic skills of our experts and inspire budding hopefuls to make their name and find their place in our industry.
The Precious Economy
In addition to inspiring cinematic hopefuls, the trilogy has also created over 3000 jobs in the country, most of which were sought to be filled by locals. Yes, arguably these jobs have been subsidised by taxpayers and the government subsidy of the films. This however, is an investment in the millions the movies will bring in both in the short and long term.
Tourism New Zealand chief executive Kevin Bowler hopes that the films will put New Zealand in the top 10 tourist locations estimating that 6 per cent of all visitors to New Zealand cite the films as a major reason for their visit and 1 per cent stating that they films were the main reason. This should bring in a tentative $500 million in spending money estimates Bower.
As Bower outlines, the films reach farther markets than the Rugby World Cup - building the hype for the next two years. The films also affect Asian and American markets hopefully bringing in both tourism and investment from these two substantial economies.
For a small, tourism reliant nation such as Middle Earth this is rather big news.
Sir Peter Jackson has surely made a name for himself, the Kiwi technical cinema industry and New Zealand as a whole, which will only grow positively in the years to come. As Kiwis would say, he’s a bloomin’ good chap.
FACT BOX
Opening Dates
13th December 2012 - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
13th December 2013 - The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
18th July 2014 - The Hobbit: There and Back Again
Director
Sir Peter Jackson
Author of Novels
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
Starring
Martin Freeman
Ian McKellan
Richard Armitage
Andy Serkis
Benedict Cumberbatch
Tourism Benefit
Estimated at $500 million
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