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Pete’s Dragon, a reimagining of Disney’s cherished family film centered on an orphaned boy named Pete and his best friend Elliot, who just so happens to be a dragon. Families will be captivated by this magical movie followed by never-before-seen bonus features, including a revealing look at director David Lowery’s personal diary kept during the filming of “Pete’s Dragon,” the design process behind the lovable dragon Elliot, deleted scenes, a tour of the film’s breathtaking production location of New Zealand, audio commentary by filmmakers and actors and hilarious bloopers. Today’s announcement also ushers in tomorrow’s World Dragon Day and the heartwarming adventure arrives on Digital HD, Blu-ray™, Disney Movies Anywhere, DVD and On-Demand on Nov. 29; just in time to entertain the entire family this holiday season.

Families will be captivated by this magical movie followed by never-before-seen bonus features, including a revealing look...

Pete's Dragon is coming home on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD!

“Pete’s Dragon,” a reimagining of Disney’s cherished family film centered on an orphaned boy named Pete and his best friend Elliot -- who just so happens to be a dragon -- comes home on Nov. 29 on Digital HD, Blu-ray™, Disney Movies Anywhere, DVD and On-Demand. Families will be captivated by this magical movie followed by never-before-seen bonus features, including a revealing look at director David Lowery’s personal diary kept during the filming of “Pete’s Dragon,” the design process behind the lovable dragon Elliot, deleted scenes, a tour of the film’s breathtaking production location of New Zealand, audio commentary by filmmakers and actors and hilarious bloopers. "Pete's Dragon" stars Bryce Dallas Howard ("Jurassic World") as Grace, a forest ranger in the Pacific Northwest who happens upon 10-year-old Pete, played by Oakes Fegley ("This is Where I Leave You...

Burbank, Calif., Oct. 14, 2016 — Pete’s Dragon, a reimagining of Disney’s cherished family film centered on an orphaned boy named Pete and his best friend Elliot — who just so happens to be a dragon — comes home on Nov. 29 on Digital HD, Blu-ray™, Disney Movies Anywhere, DVD and On-Demand. And the timing couldn’t be better: Today’s announcement ushers in tomorrow’s World Dragon Day and the heartwarming adventure arrives just in time to entertain the entire family this holiday season.

Families will be captivated by this magical movie followed by never-before-seen bonus features, including a revealing look at director David Lowery’s personal diary kept during the filming of “Pete’s Dragon,” the design process behind the lovable dragon Elliot, deleted scenes, a tour of the film’s breathtaking production location of New Zealand, audio commentary by filmmakers and actors and hilarious bloopers.

Pete’s Dragon stars Bryce Dallas Howard...

With recent examples like Housebound, What We Do In The Shadows (review), The Devil's Rock and Black Sheep, it's clear that New Zealand is quickly becoming a hotbed of quality quirky genre films. How much of that is due to the direct influence of Peter Jackson and his earlier output like Bad Taste and Dead Alive (aka Braindead) could be up for debate, but when it comes to writer/director Jason Lei Howden's feature debut Deathgasm, there is no question. Howden cut his teeth doing visual effects on many films for Weta Digital, including as senior paint artist on two of Jackson's Hobbit films. But it's his love of practical [Continued ...]...

Academy Award-winning cinematographer Andrew Lesnie has died at the age of 59. Leslie was the cinematographer for Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, for which he won his first and only Oscar in 2002. He afterwards continued to shoot for Jackson, lensing "King Kong," The Lovely Bones" and "The Hobbit" trilogy. "Andrew Lesnie and Peter Jackson would giggle behind the camera together like the most mischievous pair of movie masters that I've seen," said film critic Harry Knowles, who visited the set of "The Lord of the Rings." Jackson's New Zealand production house, Weta Digital, posted their condolences on Facebook: "Our memories of Andrew will always be of a wonderful and caring person who looked out for the technicians around him, was keen to have a good laugh and keep everyone jollied along, even when things were at the most stressful for everyone." Ron Johanson, president of the Cinematographers Society in.

The undisputed standout in Peter Jackson's sixth and final Middle-earth movie The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies was Richard Armitage, whose rigorous performance as the increasingly deranged Thorin lent psychological weight to what was otherwise an action-heavy final chapter.

Digital Spy spoke to Armitage this morning to discuss the final days of Thorin Oakenshield, his upcoming role on Hannibal, and his plans for a theatre reunion with The Crucible director Yaël Farber.

Now that you're more than a year out of it, how does it feel to look back on the Hobbit experience?

"You know what, it feels like a lifetime ago. I mean, I think we wrapped in 2013, but then the release of the final film at Christmas reminded us all of the work that we've done. It was such a nostalgic time because it was Pete's farewell to the Middle-earth saga, and it was really...

Furious 7, the early front-runner for Best Picture, was just over halfway done with its primary shoot when Paul Walker died in a car crash in November 2013. Replacing Walker, one of the two major faces of the franchise (along with Vin Diesel), and reshooting half of the film would have been inconceivably vulgar, as well as vulgarly expensive; so, according to The Hollywood Reporter, director James Wan summoned Peter Jackson’s Weta Digital to complete the arduous task of bringing Walker back to believable life. The masters of digital wizardry conjured a hybrid avatar of Walker, amalgamating computer imagery, practical effects, and stock footage of Walker and his two brothers, who both bear an uncanny semblance to the late actor. While you can occasionally discern when Walker’s avatar is being used in the film, the unprecedented attention to detail and advanced technology make the actor feel jarringly alive, and...

Spoilers: This article may contain plot details some readers may wish to avoid.

Paul Walker's unfinished scenes in Fast & Furious 7 were completed using a combination of cutting-edge visual effects, archive footage from the Fast movies and body double work from his brothers Caleb and Cody Walker.

Watch footage of the digitally-recreated Paul Walker below:

Paul passed away mid-way through the Furious 7 shoot in late 2013, leaving Universal with a blockbuster hanging in the balance.

Paul's character Brian O'Connor plays an integral part in the action film's storyline, and Peter Jackson's Weta Digital VFX firm was enlisted to help complete the actor's final big screen performance.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Furious 7 employed similar methods used when the late Oliver Reed's Gladiator character had to be recreated.

Left: Paul Walker's digital double; Right: The real Paul Walker

Director James Wan finished Paul's performance by digitally...

This story first appeared in the April 10 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. No actor is indispensable. That is the blunt lesson from the fact that Universal Pictures was able to complete its April 3 tentpole, Furious 7, following star Paul Walker's death in a November 2013 car accident about halfway through the shoot. Beyond saying that brothers Cody and Caleb stood in for Walker and that director James Wan culled footage of Walker from the earlier films, Universal declines to discuss which tricks were employed to breathe life into Walker's character. But sources say Peter Jackson's Weta Digital

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Principal photography on Pete’s Dragon got underway on February 10, 2015 in New Zealand. The film is a re-imagining of the 1977 Disney classic and will blend live action and CGI to tell the story of the special bond between an orphaned boy, Pete, and his best friend, Elliott, who just happens to be a dragon.

The film stars Bryce Dallas Howard (The Help) as Grace, a park ranger who discovers the existence of Elliott; ten-year-old Oakes Fegley (This is Where I Leave You) as Pete; Wes Bentley (The Hunger Games) as Jack, a local mill owner; New Zealand native Karl Urban (Star Trek Into Darkness) as Jack’s brother, Gavin; Oona Laurence as Natalie, the young girl who befriends Pete; and Oscar-winner Robert Redford (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, All the President’s Men) as Grace’s father.

Pete’s Dragon is directed by David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) and produced by Jim Whitaker,...

Production on the remake of the classic Pete's Dragon has officially started in New Zealand Disney announced this morning, along with providing details on the new cast that will bring the story to life. Come inside to learn more.

While this may not be as exciting (for some) as Disney's Other big news this morning, if you're looking forward to the remake of Pete's Dragon then you'll be happy to hear that cameras are rolling:

Principal photography on “Pete’s Dragon” commenced today in New Zealand. A reimagining of the 1977 Disney classic, “Pete’s Dragon” will blend live action and CGI to tell the story of the special bond between an orphaned boy, Pete, and his best friend, Elliott, who just happens to be a dragon.

The film stars Bryce Dallas Howard (“The Help”) as Grace, a park ranger who discovers the existence of Elliott; 10-year-old Oakes Fegley (“This is Where I Leave You...

Principal photography on Pete’S Dragon commenced today in New Zealand.

A reimagining of the 1977 Disney classic, Pete’S Dragon will blend live action and CGI to tell the story of the special bond between an orphaned boy, Pete, and his best friend, Elliott, who just happens to be a dragon.

The original starred Helen Reddy, Mickey Rooney, Jim Dale, Red Buttons, Jeff Conaway, and Shelley Winters.

The new film, scheduled to be released in U.S. theaters in August, 2016, stars Bryce Dallas Howard (“The Help”) as Grace, a park ranger who discovers the existence of Elliott; 10-year-old Oakes Fegley (“This is Where I Leave You”) as Pete; Wes Bentley (“The Hunger Games”) as Jack, a local mill owner; New Zealand native Karl Urban (“Star Trek Into Darkness”) as Jack’s brother, Gavin; Oona Laurence as Natalie, the young girl who befriends Pete; and Oscar winner Robert Redford (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,...

The writing process for James Cameron‘s “Avatar” sequels is so “involved” that he has had to push the release date for the first back to late 2017.

The Associated Press reports the Academy Award winner behind “Titanic” and “The Terminator” dropped the bad news for fans hoping to see the first of three new movies in 2016 while promoting the local film industry in Wellington, New Zealand with “Hobbit” director Peter Jackson. Cameron filmed the 2009 blockbuster there, and has returned to produce the three sequels, which will be released over three consecutive years.

See photos: Disney Releases First Look at ‘Avatar...

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For the past three years, the wizards of Weta Digital have returned audiences to Middle Earth after first enthralling viewers with its wonders a decade ago. "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" is the last of Peter Jackson's six films in the saga, and, accordingly, the last chance to honor the series in the category of Best Visual Effects – the only category where all five films to date have picked up an Oscar nod. Joe Letteri first arrived at Weta some 15 years ago, just as production on "The Fellowship of the Ring" was ending. His primary task was discrete enough but couldn't have been more important: creating the iconic creature Gollum. "I was interested in creature work — how do you make things come alive," Letteri says. "At the time, there was a perception that visual effects artists primarily ‘blew stuff up,' whereas creatures were the work of puppets.

The Walt Disney Studios has confirmed that live-action and CGI film Pete’s Dragon will be filmed in New Zealand from January to April 2015. Production will be based at Peter Jackson’s Stone Street Studios in the nation’s capital of Wellington. Pete’s Dragon, to star Robert Redford, Boardwalk Empire actor Oakes Fegley and Matilda’s Oona Laurence, is the first studio feature to use Stone Street since production wrapped on The Hobbit films. Filming will also take place in several locations around New Zealand including the Bay of Plenty, Wellington and Canterbury regions. Its unclear if Weta Digital, another of Jackson’s

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As the Studio has done in the past with such epic film series as “Harry Potter” and “The Dark Knight,” Warner Bros. Pictures, in conjunction with New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), is once again treating über-fans to a movie marathon, this time in celebration of the highly anticipated finale of Peter Jackson’s blockbuster “The Hobbit” Trilogy.

On Marathon Monday, December 15—two days prior to the third and final film’s theatrical release—moviegoers in select theaters across North America can experience Middle-earth one last time, beginning with “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” followed by “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” and, a full 24 hours prior to its theatrical release, “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.”

Tickets for Marathon Monday go on sale Friday, November 14 at 12:00 p.m. Est / 9:00 a.m. Pst, the same date and time as tickets for opening day of “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies...

**Massive spoilers for every Godzilla movie, with the exception of the 2014 reboot, and Mothra follow**

August 6th and 9th, 1945 forever changed the course of history. When the first nuclear bombs were dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, World War II ended, but a new fear was born that dominated the thoughts of all men, women, and children for decades to come. The Cold War, atomic bomb testing, a cartoon turtle telling children to “duck and cover”, and this new technology that had the actual potential to literally end the world changed the perception of what was scary. Art reflects life, so cinema began to capitalize on these fears. Gone were the days of creepy castles, cobwebs, bats, vampires, werewolves, and the other iconic images that ruled genre cinema in film’s earliest decades. Science fiction was larger than ever and giant ants, giant octopi, terror from beyond the stars, and...

If you’ve ever wondered just how much of Benedict Cumberbatch there is in Smaug, we have a Thursday treat for you. This fascinating extra from The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug’s forthcoming home-formats release pulls back the curtain on an off-set performance that’s as much physical as it is vocal. Sure, Cumberbatch may not have spent a decade sitting on a pile of treasure or gone full Stanislavski by hanging out with other wryms to interrogate their motivations in life but be in no doubt, Smaug is as much a meticulously prepped and fully-formed Cumberbatch performance as John Harrison or Sherlock. brightcove.createExperiences();This marriage of technology, as rendered by the tech wizards at Weta Digital, and acting craft is why directors like Peter Jackson and James Cameron are so keen to shift the ‘capture’ terminology from ‘motion’ to ‘performance’. The facial rigging originally pioneered for Avatar...

Last fall, before The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hit theaters, some images surfaced of Benedict Cumberbatch doing motion-capture performance work to bring the dragon Smaug to life, complete with some wild-eyed facial expressions. Then earlier this year, a featurette showed off how Weta Digital helped turn that performance into what we see on the big screen. Now with the extended cut of The Desolation of Smaug arriving on Blu-Ray on November 4th, some new featurettes of Cumberbatch's awesome work have surfaced online, and it's absolutely fascinating to see the actor dig into this peculiar character. Watch now! Featurettes on Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug from La Times, Warner Bros. UK & Mmgn Australia: See more of Benedict Cumberbatch in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, in December. In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit... J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, being directed by Peter Jackson as three separate movies,...

Warner Bros./New Line Cinema

The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies is one of the year’s biggest releases and arrives in less than five months, yet actually information is very thin on the ground. Peter Jackson doesn’t really need to do much to promote the film beyond simply announce its existence, but you’d expect by now we’d have more than a couple of screenshots and the odd snippet from interviews.

A (apparently very short) teaser is rumoured to be imminent but Jackson has said (due to the time it’s taking for Weta Digital to finish off the visual effects) we won’t get the full trailer until October. October?! That’s, like, two months before release. The spoilerphobe side of us kinda hopes this sets a precedent in more toned back advertising (we really don’t need another case akin to Prometheus or...

Nowadays, with major advances in technology CGI is playing a huge role in the movie making industry. Of course sometimes creators can go a little too far with CGI making the realistic looking aliens or monsters not so realistic looking and instead creepy or annoying (see Jar Jar Binks) but when they get it right it is nearly perfect. 

Each month the Cinelinx staff will write a handful of articles covering a specified film-related topic. These articles will be notified by the Movielinx banner. Movielinx is an exploration and discussion of our personal connections with film. This month we investigate characters in film that are not made of flesh and bone, but bits and bytes born from hours of programming. Join us as we discuss CGI characters both good and bad. 

 

One CGI masterpiece that comes to mind is Gollum in The Lord of the Rings. When reading The Lord of the Rings...

When I watched Godzilla Thursday with an enthusiastic late-night audience, the crowd broke out in spontaneous applause during two specific moments. The first was when Ken Watanabe’s scientist mentioned the legendary creature’s name for the first time. And the second came when Godzilla unleashed one of his most famous weapons on a nasty rival beastie. The audience went home happy — much happier than in 1998, when Godzilla invaded New York in Roland Emmerich’s stinker.

This time around, it’s director Gareth Edwards at the controls, a massive promotion from his low-budget Monsters debut. Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston...

Warner Bros. Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and New Line Cinema jointly announced on Friday that the much-anticipated final film in Peter Jackson’s trilogy adaptation of the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien, has now been titled The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies.

The film, previously titled “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” will be released worldwide December 17, 2014, with select international territories releasing on December 10, 2014.

Peter Jackson stated, “Our journey to make ‘The Hobbit’ Trilogy has been in some ways like Bilbo’s own, with hidden paths revealing their secrets to us as we’ve gone along. ‘There and Back Again’ felt like the right name for the second of a two-film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo’s arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film. But with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced — after all, Bilbo has already arrived...

Weta has released a visual effects breakdown for their work done for Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. The video takes us through the process of how Weta Digital brought Smaug, Lake-town, the Lonely Mountain and more to life in epic fantasy adventure.

Middle-earth is a fantastical world of imagined landscapes and many incredible digital creatures. We completed almost 2000 VFX shots for the film, encompassing hero digital performance work, large scale water and fire simulations, complex digital environments, digital doubles of a large cast, and extensive creature work. Take a glimpse at the invention, artistry and innovation that the artists at Weta Digital used to make it all come together in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.

It always amazing me what can be done with visual effects these days, and Weta works wonders at it.

Arriving on home release on March 17, the Hunger Games: Catching Fire Blu-ray and 2-disc DVD set go beyond the usual thrifty bonus feature content for a deep dive into the making of the sequel.

A nine-part behind-the-scenes documentary, which runs over two hours, takes fans through the entire production process - from hiring Francis Lawrence to replace Gary Ross right through to the preparation for the two-part Mockingjay adaptation.

Here are nine things we uncovered from Catching Fire's bumper making-of doc...

The biggest decision the Catching Games producers had to make was who to hire to replace Gary Ross.

Franchise producer Nina Jacobson admitted that losing Ross after The Hunger Games was a big loss, and she was left pondering: "Who else's instincts can I trust?"

She quickly turned to Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend), who was in the middle of finishing work on Kiefer Sutherland pilot Touch. The filmmaker met with Jacobson,...

Its loss this past Sunday night to “Gravity” doesn’t discount the effectiveness of the visual effects work in “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.” While Weta Digital’s work on the film’s titular dragon garnered the most attention last December, the effects company’s wizardry can be seen throughout the entire film and a new video has arrived online detailing how one particular non-Smaug-related sequence in the film was created. Earlier this week Wired posted a video showing how the bravura Steven Spielberg-esque barrel-escape set piece from the middle of the film was brought to life. The seven-minute sequence began life as dozens of pre-viz animatics before landing in front of cameras for hours upon hours of on-location, aerial, soundstage and green screen footage. That’s all before you factor in all the time Weta artists put in to create the stuff that could never possibly exist.

We posted a motion poster for you last week that gave some of the details of the Blu-ray/DVD release of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, but now, thanks to the lovely folks at Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, we have the full deets for you, including info on the very cool limited collector’s edition packaging, and some enticing clips to remind you of the awesomeness of the movie:

Trailer: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – Available April 8

Clip: The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug – You Have No Right: Available April 8

Clip: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – It Is Our Fight: Available April 8

Clip: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – Your World Will Burn: Available April 8

Clip: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – I Found Something: Available April 8

Clip: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – Into the Barrels: Available April 8

Continue The Epic Adventure When “The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug,...

In my humble opinion, Benedict Cumberbatch gave his best performance last year as the voice of Smaug the dragon in "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug." The actor gave the menacing character its much needed heart!

But now, if you want to see Cumberbatch on all fours, you can thank Peter Jackson and Weta Digital for fulfilling your dream! They released a featurette from the upcoming Blu-Ray release of the sequel and you can watch below!

The DVD and Blu-Ray of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" arrive on April 8.

We have just one more chapter in Peter Jackson's trilogy adaptation of The Hobbit, and if you missed the second installment, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, you can catch the film on Blu-Ray and DVD on April 8th. But for everyone else who saw the film (and the fun cameo featuring J.R.R. Tolkien fanatic Stephen Colbert), we've got a cool featurette from David Clayton and the rest of the Academy Award nominated visual effects team at Weta Digital showing us how a combination of a motion capture performance from Benedict Cumberbatch and animators brought the dragon Smaug to life. Watch now! Here's the featurette on the work Weta Digital did in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (via THR): In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit... J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, being directed by Peter Jackson as three separate movies, is set in Middle-Earth...

Peter Jackson's Weta Digital has released a new video exclusively to The Hollywood Reporter detailing its Oscar-nominated work to create the massive dragon Smaug and meld it with the performance of Benedict Cumberbatch for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. "Our challenge with Smaug was making him every bit as engaging and believable as his live-action counterparts," explains David Clayton of Smaug's Oscar-nominated VFX team from Weta Digital. Clayton tells THR that to get started, Cumberbatch came to Wellington, N.Z.'s Weta in early 2012. "Using our motion-capture stage, we recorded his performances, which focused on the conversation with Bilbo

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In the lead-up to the 86th annual Academy Awards on March 2, HitFix will be bringing you the lowdown on all 24 Oscar categories with multiple entries each day. Take a few notes and bone up on the competition as we give you the edge in your office Oscar pool! The season of Oscars Lowdown (née Oscar Guide) might as well begin with the biggest no-brainer category of the bunch, just to go ahead and get it out of the way. But it's worth pointing out that it's always unfortunate when there's an obvious winner in any category, particularly Best Visual Effects as it seems a number of times over the last few years — "Avatar," "Life of Pi," etc. — there has been a clear dominant player and all other nominees are just along for the ride. Still, this year's likely victor is a landmark every bit deserving of the trophy coming its way.

After striking it big with Avatar in 2009, James Cameron is now devoting pretty much all of his time to developing not one, not two, but three sequels that he hopes to shoot back-to-back-to-back in order for them to hit theaters in 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively. For those keeping track at home, that’s a seven year gap between the first film and its first sequel, meaning that Cameron will have to do quite a lot to get people interested in visiting Pandora again after spending so much time away.

The director has spent the last couple of years giving brief hints and updates regarding production, and today he spoke with Rtl to give a few more. According to Cameron, things are still in the early stages of development and moving along slowly. That’s no surprise, of course, considering how technologically dependent these movies are, but the director is confident that new...

Like any filmmaker, New Zealand-based Australian David Gould wants his action-thriller The Cure to reach a wide audience- but he.s concluded that releasing the film in cinemas in either country is not cost-effective.

The film will premiere on February 6 at The Embassy Cinema in Wellington and will then be available on DVD, VOD platforms Vimeo and IndieReign and pay-tv.s Rialto Channel.

.We are self-distributing in New Zealand as I think that theatrical releases don.t really work for indie films,. says Gould, who worked for Weta Digital on the visual effects of numerous films including two editions of The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Rise of the Planet of the Apes and The Adventures of Tintin.

.We aren.t doing a theatrical release because we don.t feel that the expense really brings the corresponding returns. The general public want to see the film in a way that is convenient for them,...

The Academy's VFX branch voted for the five nominees Thursday night, and while frontrunners "Gravity," "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug," and "Pacific Rim" wowed the packed Samuel Goldwyn Theater, "World War Z," "The Lone Ranger," and "Oblivion" put on impressive presentations, too. For that matter, the remaining contenders acquitted themselves nicely: "Iron Man 3," "Elysium," "Star Trek Into Darkness," and "Thor: The Dark World." So who knows? There might be a surprise or two come next Thursday, upending my original predictions of "Gravity," "Smaug," "Pacific Rim," "World War Z," and "Elysium." Strategically, though, the supervisors stressed the mixing of practical and CG effects whenever possible, most likely appealing to old school VFX vets as much as high-tech practitioners.  Weta Digital's Joe Letteri explained that "Smaug" upped its digital character count to 60 (including every Orc) and that director Peter Jackson wanted to shoot the spider...

20th Century Fox and Lightstorm Entertainment will produce the next three movies in the science fiction "Avatar" series in New Zealand, spending $413 million on live action and visual effects, over 9 months.

This agreement comes after the New Zealand government hiked film industry tax rebates to up to 25 percent from the current 15 percent. Cameron didn’t disclose an exact budget although he says he expects economies of scale will help the three movies together cost less than $1 billion, shot at the same time, with a 2016 release target for the first sequel.

"The Avatar sequels will provide hundreds of jobs and thousands of hours of work directly in the screen sector as well as jobs right across the economy," said Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce.

"Avatar" director James Cameron, who has a farm in New Zealand, partly made the first "Avatar" in New Zealand, with special effects done at Peter Jackson's Weta Digital.

Peter Jackson's well-received second "Hobbit" movie, "The Desolation of Smaug," not only moves along more swiftly and assuredly, but it also contains a greater variety of VFX (spiders, bear, shadowy Necromancer, and a rollicking barrel chase down a river). The high-frame rate is also improved with a more filmic look applied during post. But, of course, the centerpiece for Weta Digital is Smaug (voiced with menace and charm by Benedict Cumberbatch), the best CG-animated dragon ever created and sure to make a great impression at the Academy bakeoff. Like the riveting encounter between Bilbo (Martin Freeman) and Gollum in the cave, his dance with Smaug in the treasure chamber is a tricky test of courage and craftiness (it's probably no coincidence that Jackson reversed roles for "Sherlock's" co-stars). But Smaug is keyframed rather than performance-captured because the differences between human and dragon were too great and, besides, the...

We have some tickets to giveaway for the next entry in The Hobbit trilogy, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug! This one is super simple to enter so read on dear reader. Your journey awaits!

Trailer

Synopsis

From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” the second in a trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.

The three films tell a continuous story set in Middle-earth 60 years before “The Lord of the Rings,” which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar®-winning “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”

“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” continues the adventure of the title character Bilbo Baggins as he journeys with the Wizard Gandalf and thirteen Dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield, on an epic quest to...

Air New Zealand has the world premiere reveal of the full look of Peter Jackson’s theatrical interpretation of the mythical Dragon Smaug.

How did they do the reveal? By painting a 54 metre (177 feet) long dragon on both sides of a Boeing 777-300 aircraft.

The reveal comes ten days ahead of the release of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" in cinemas across the globe.

Air New Zealand CEO Christopher Luxon says: "For our partners to allow Air New Zealand to reveal their star to the world is a huge privilege. We worked with Weta Digital which designed the graphic especially for us for this purpose."

Jackson himself days: "To see Smaug fly off the big screen and into the skies like this is pretty exciting. We’re proud to debut him here in New Zealand, where our team has worked so hard to bring him to life."

The aircraft...

The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced today that acclaimed filmmaker Peter Jackson, visual effects artist Joe Letteri and Weta Digital will receive the Producers Guild’s 2014 Vanguard Award. The award will be presented to Jackson, Letteri and Weta Digital at the 25th Annual Producers Guild Awards ceremony on Sunday, January 19th at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.

Jackson and Letteri‘s Academy Award-winning visual effects powerhouse Weta Digital is a world leader in all areas of digital visual effects production, having created some of the most astounding effects ever seen onscreen. Their motion picture credits include such hits as The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, Avatar and King Kong, among many others.

The Producers Guild’s Vanguard Award recognizes achievements in new media and technology. Previous recipients include James Cameron, Stan Lee, George Lucas, John Lasseter, YouTube founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen,...

A couple of our readers have been getting shirty with us over the inclusion of Peter Jackson's latest "Hobbit" chapter in our Oscar contenders galleries, and it's true that nobody is expecting anyone but the below-the-line artists of "The Desolation of Smaug" to feature much in the awards race. But here's at least one gong the Oscar-winning New Zealander will be taking home this season: the Vanguard Award from the Producers' Guild of America. Together with pioneering visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri and their company Weta Digital, Jackson will accept the award in recognition of their technical advancement of the medium....

Past recipients include James Cameron, Stan Lee, George Lucas and John Lasseter.

The Producers Guild of America has has tapped Peter Jackson, visual effects artist Joe Letteri and Weta Digital for its 2014 Vanguard Award.

The award will be presented to the three honorees at the 25th annual PGA ceremony Jan. 19 at the Beverly Hilton.

Video: 'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' Trailer 3

Jackson and Letteri's Academy Award-winning visual effects company Weta Digital is a trailblazer in all areas of digital visual effects production, having created some of the most celebrated effects ever seen onscreen. Their film credits include such hits as The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Avatar and King Kong, among many others.

The Vanguard Award recognizes achievements in new media and technology. Previous recipients include James Cameron, Stan Lee, George Lucas, John Lasseter, YouTube founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen and...

The Producers Guild of America (PGA) will honor Peter Jackson, visual effects artist Joe Letteri and Weta Digital with the Producers Guild’s 2014 Vanguard Award, which recognizes advancements in new media and technology. It will be presented at the 25th Annual Producers Guild Awards ceremony on January 19. Jackson and Letteri‘s Oscar-winning visual effects powerhouse Weta Digital includes in its resume the ongoing “Hobbit” trilogy, “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, “Avatar” and “King Kong,” among many others. Previous Vanguard recipients include James Cameron, Stan Lee, George Lucas, John Lasseter, YouTube founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, and game designer Will Wright.

The Producers Guild of America will honor filmmaker Peter Jackson, visual effects artist Joe Letteri and Weta Digital will receive the Producers Guild’s 2014 Vanguard Award, the organization said Monday. The awards will be presented to Jackson, Letteri and Weta Digital at the 25th Producers Guild Awards ceremony on Sunday, Jan. 19th at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. The Producers Guild’s Vanguard Award recognizes achievements in new media and technology. Also read: Peter Jackson Wants to Do Smaller Movies After ‘The Hobbit’ Jackson and Letteri‘s Weta Digital visual effects credits include “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,...

On Monday, eager Hobbit fans got the chance to meet new cast members - Orlando Bloom, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace and Luke Evans - joining the highly anticipated second film in “The Hobbit” Trilogy, The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug, as part of a global fan celebration.

Held simultaneously around the world, each of the satellite-linked cinemas in Los Angeles, New York, London and Wellington, New Zealand broadcast director Peter Jackson, members of his cast and filmmaking team as they showed exclusive footage from the film and answered questions in front of a live audience.

Below is one of the fantastic surprises they had in store.

Additionally, in cities across the globe – including Brussels, Belgium; Hamburg, Germany; Madrid, Spain; Mexico City, Mexico; Miami, Florida, USA; Paris, France; Rome, Italy; Sydney, Australia; and Toronto, Canada – fans were invited to gather at select cinemas to be among the first to see the...

New footage! Cast interviews! Today! The press release below gives some of the information about today’s fan event for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, but the main thing you need to know is that, if everything goes right, you can watch it right here on this post at 5pm Eastern, 2pm Pacific, at the link directly below this paragraph. We are advised by Warner Publicity that the link will automatically update from PreState, to live video and finally to VOD after the event.

If the link isn’t working, we’re told you should be able to watch by clicking here or here.

Worldwide Fan Event For “The Hobbit: The Desolation Of

Smaug” Set For November 4, 2013 Fans Get Chance to Meet New Stars Joining the Trilogy, Catch an Exclusive First Look at Footage from “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” and Participate in a Live Q&A with...

New Zealand's film industry may face 'crippling losses' if James Cameron's Avatar sequels are filmed in a country with better tax incentives

• Avatar sequel will see Colonel Quaritch return from dead

• Avatar sequels 'to begin shooting in October 2014'

New Zealand's film industry looks set to lose out on a billion-dollar bonanza from James Cameron's Avatar sequels because other countries are offering greater tax incentives to Hollywood studios.

Star Sam Worthington revealed this week that the long-awaited films are due to begin shooting in October 2014. It had been expected that Cameron would return to New Zealand, where special effects company Weta Digital are based. But public-owned broadcaster Tvnz has revealed Twentieth Century Fox may be considering other options for cost reasons.

New Zealand currently offers a 15 per cent tax rebate to foreign studios, but the UK and Australia are now offering 25 per cent for major productions. The disparity has reportedly...

What does the new trailer for the second Hobbit movie tell us? Mostly that Peter Jackson knows more about Middle Earth than Jrr Tolkien did

• The Desolation of Smaug's quest to transform The Hobbit

• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – a sneak preview of first footage

Reading on mobile? Clock here to watch video

We're still well over two months away from the debut of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in cinemas and I'm starting to wonder how on Middle Earth Peter Jackson's going to fit everything in. The Kiwi film-maker's source novel may be a breezy 350-page children's fantasy fable, but the new trailer for the middle part of his latest fantasy trilogy makes it clear just why this whole thing will stretch to well over nine hours by the time it's done: bloomin' Jrr Tolkien just left too much stuff out!

One can just imagine the...

Two of Peter Jackson’s companies will be among the honorees at the International 3D & Advanced Imaging Society’s 5th annual 3D Technology Awards. The awards will be presented Sept. 18 during a ceremony at Paramount Studios. The Society’s Lumiere statuettes for technology will be awarded to Weta Digital for the visual effects pipeline it created for Avatar; and to Park Road Post for the 3D high frame rate pipeline it developed for The Hobbit. Related, a Lumiere will also be awarded to manufacturer Sgo for its Mistika postproduction system, which was a key tool used at Park Road Post for its 3D

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‘Avatar 2′ and follow-up sequels’ release dates revealed (image: Na’vi Sam Worthington in ‘Avatar’) Avatar, James Cameron’s late 2009 (and early 2010) blockbuster that spearheaded the (currently dwindling) popularity of 3D movies, will have three sequels. Why exactly that has come as a surprise revelation for some is unclear. Sigourney Weaver, who for quite a while has been scheduled to return for the Avatar sequels, had already mentioned that there would be three movies, filmed concurrently much like Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies. Anyhow, James Cameron and Avatar distributor 20th Century Fox have announced that the three sequels will be released as follows: Avatar 2 (not to be confused with Avatar: The Last Airbender or Avatar: The Legend of Korra or online thumbnail avatars) will reach theaters in December 2016, a full seven years after the original. The second sequel (or third Avatar...