4-22-04 Latest News

Geekness Enshrined: Learn Elvish at School
Xoanon @ 1:17 pm EST

Learn to speak Elvish, the only way you'll ever have anything in common with Orlando Bloom or Liv Tyler.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - It's central England, not Middle-Earth, but one school is offering its students the chance to learn Elvish.

Youngsters at the Turves Green Boys' Technology College in Birmingham are being offered weekly after-hours lessons in Sindarin, a form of Elvish invented by Lord of the Rings creator J.R.R. Tolkien.

Educational co-ordinator Zainab Thorp hopes the classes help boost students' self esteem. "The recent success of the Lord of the Rings films has increased the interest in learning Elvish," Thorp says. "The children really enjoy it. It breaks the idea that education should be simply about getting a job."

She says that Tolkien was an expert in ancient languages who developed two forms of Elvish. Sindarin was based on Welsh sounds and was more commonly used, while Quenya, which related to Finnish, was largely a ceremonial language.

"A couple of the boys are very into role-playing games. Knowing Sindarin is useful when giving orders to their Elvish armies," Thorp says. "It's also very useful if they want to go to university to study, as it involves looking at some of Tolkien's old manuscripts. This develops some very complex skills." Whatever works, right?

Hall Of Fire Chats This Weekend
Frode @ 8:26 pm EST

Before Sun and Moon two trees gave light to the Blessed Realm, but in a supreme act of evil the diabolus Morgoth destroys the trees and leaves the world in darkness. The symbolism could hardly be stronger. The devastation of Tolkiens childhood countryside haunts this tale and all his works of fiction.

Compare the Green havens of Lorien, the Shire and Doriath with the desolation of Anfauglith and Mordor. Nature is much more then just background or scenery in the tales of J.R.R. Tolkien. Not only do the trees have shepherds and entire woods go to war, Tolkien even embodies what he felt was the true spirit of natural science in Tom Bombadil.

What symbolic position do trees have in the numenorean and elvish cultures? What happens to nature in places like Morgul Vale and Isengard that fall under the dominion of the dark lords? How do the numenoreans perception of the value of nature shift as the shadow falls on Numenor? How does evil target nature and how does nature fight back in Middle Earth?

upcoming topics:

weekend 010504-020504: The Hobbit - Chapter 7

Times:
Saturday Chat:
5:30pm ET (17:30)
[also 11:30pm (23:30) CET and 9:30am Sunday (09:30) AET]

Sunday Chat:
7:00 pm (19:00) CET
[also 1:00pm (13:00) ET and 5:00am (05:00) Monday morning AET]

ET = Eastern Time, USA's East Coast
CET = Central European Time, Central Europe
AET = Australian East Coast

Do you have a possible topic for Hall of Fire? Drop us a line at
halloffire@theonering.net

Clive Barker Is A 'Ringer'!
Xoanon @ 12:58 pm EST

“ABARAT” AUTHOR CLIVE BARKER INTERVIEWED FOR DOCUMENTARY FEATURE, RINGERS: LORD OF THE FANS

April 19, 2004, LOS ANGELES, CA: Horror/fantasy scribe and filmmaker Clive Barker claims the title of ‘Ringer’ by discussing his appreciation for J.R.R. Tolkien’s masterpiece “The Lord of the Rings” in the upcoming documentary feature, Ringers: Lord of the Fans. Mr. Barker granted an interview to Ringers. Mr. Barker speaks of the power and affirmations found within Tolkien’s mythological epic that encouraged him to create fantasy worlds of his own.

Clive Barker is the creator of the Hellraiser series and a string of best-selling books including “Weaveworld,” “Imajica,” and most recently the fantasy series for young adult readers, “Abarat.” Mr. Barker’s production company Seraphim Films has a deal with Walt Disney Pictures for a quartet of “Abarat” books to be produced as a film franchise. “Abarat” and it’s sequel, “Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War” (with a October 2004 release), center on a teenaged girl from rural Minnesota who is swept into another world of adventure and magic. The “Abarat” quartet is illustrated with Mr. Barker’s lush paintings. His play History of the Devil will be made into a mini-series for the Sci-Fi Channel, while his new drama titled The Demonologist has been picked up by NBC.

Ringers documentary filmmakers have secured interviews with several of the world’s foremost fantasy authors, including Terry Pratchett (the “Discworld” series), Peter S. Beagle (“The Last Unicorn”), and Terry Brooks (the “Sword of Shannara” series), in their efforts to document the remarkable influence of “The Lord of the Rings” across the landscape of popular culture over the past five decades. After 16 months of location shooting on three continents, and speaking with dozens of actors, filmmakers, rock musicians, authors, and academics, Ringers stands as the most comprehensive film document of the ongoing Tolkien phenomenon.

About the documentary:

Produced in association with TheOneRing.net; Ringers: Lord of the Fans is a feature-length documentary that reveals the ongoing phenomenon created by The Lord of the Rings. Very funny and often moving, Ringers shows the hidden power behind J.R.R. Tolkien’s books — and how after 50 years a single literary work continues to spark the minds and hearts of millions, across cultures and across time. Shot with groundbreaking new digital technology in 24P, Ringers includes interviews with fans, legendary rock musicians, professors, actors, authors, filmmakers, and even Klingons — with reverent irreverence, the film investigates Tolkien’s influence on Western popular culture. From the 60’s hippie movement to the Internet age; from the Rankin & Bass cartoons to Peter Jackson’s epic film trilogy; this documentary brings together extensive footage from across the globe. With units in Los Angeles, Atlanta, London, Oxford England, Bonn Germany, and Wellington New Zealand, Ringers reveals how the private amusement of a tweedy Oxford professor became a new mythology for the 21st Century.

Current Ringers Interviewees include:

Author/Filmmaker - Clive Barker, Writer/Director/Producer - Cameron Crowe, Actor - David Carradine, Comics Illustrator - Colleen Doran, Author - Terry Pratchett, Author - Peter S. Beagle, Author - Terry Brooks, Tolkien Scholar - Dr. Jane Chance, Chairperson of the Tolkien Society - Christine Crawshaw, Author - Colin Duriez, Filmmaker/Critic - Chris Gore, Screenwriter/Publisher - Forrest J. Ackerman, Actor - Daniel Logan, Actor - Bill Mumy, Author/Tolkien Scholar - Dr. Tom Shippey, Author/Broadcaster - Brian Sibley, Great-Grandson - Royd Tolkien, and hundreds of Tolkien fans!

Ringers: Lord of the Fans - Visit our website:
http://www.lordofthefans.net

Ringer Report: Sean Astin at Denver Starfest
weetanya @ 10:48 am EST

Ringer Spy Shawna writes:

Never let it be said that Sean Astin doesn't go the extra mile for fans. Low on sleep from two days of driving for the Toyota Pro/Celeb race in Long Beach, he came to Denver's Starfest just for the day, to do a couple of autograph sessions and an afternoon talk.

Here's what I remember of the talk-quotes where I could manage them from recorded snippets and notes. I didn't catch it all, I'm afraid.

He came out to wild applause, posed a little, and got some cheers and whistles when he (quite sexily!) took his jacket off. He talked about needing a caffeine hit because he'd just gotten up at 4am to fly in from Long Beach (and later mentioned he was flying back to LA the same day.) Said Denver fans were all very nice and welcoming. He wasn't wearing shoes, and explained, as he said he told his wife on the phone that afternoon, that he just wanted some freedom, and he was a hobbit anyway! He briefly showed his tattoo, saying it was all over the place anyway, and mentioned his website, which was apparently familiar to a small but healthy contingent.

He first talked about his book about his LOTR filming experience ("There and Back again, an Actor's Tale," which is coming out in October), and how that got set up. He said he felt it necessary to write it all down, because people were always asking him about whether it was fun to film, and he said it was like asking someone "so, how were the 70's for you?" He said he hopes maybe his book will find a place on people's bookshelves along with all the other LOTR editions and companion volumes, along with Andy's book. (He also mentioned-I don't remember if it was an audience question or something previous he was referencing--someone asking him about what it was like to work with a CG character, and he said "I wouldn't know. I worked with Andy.")

He talked about the Oscars, and how people say he was robbed of a nom, but he said he always tells people he's proudest of the ensemble SAG award (and rightly so!)

He talked about upcoming projects: Celebrity Poker on Bravo, and a mother's day special on 20/20 (or was it Dateline? ;) ) with his mom. Said the program was emotional, honest, and that he felt "stupefied that I was a part of American cultural life this way."

He talked about his recent film projects-Slipstream, which he filmed in South Africa last year, and Smile, where he plays a teacher who encourages a student to work with disfigured children in China. He mentioned that he and his family were just in Shanghai last weekend, watching the last bits of filming for that project, and how thrilled he was that people recognized him even over there. He also talked about being disappointed on losing out on the directing job for Fantastic Four, but that he's very interested in doing a comic book adaptation sometime, now that he's had the epiphany of what makes them so great, and he said Marvel has assured him that he'll get a chance to direct something for them soon. He also talked about his work with the Presidents council on service and civic participation, and about volunteerism, and how his current pet cause is literacy, and about how important it is to read to your children. He also said he recently met one of his idols, Jimmy Carter, and that he hoped he might be helping out with one of Carter's Habitat for Humanity projects.

The first audience question was about the ideals that Sam represented-friendship, loyalty, etc. Some very nice quotes here about that:

"I just love the idea of friendship. Part of what I go into in the book is that now that I'm sort of this-as the actor who portrayed Sam who is arguably sort of the sort of quintessence of the ideal of friendship, now I'm sort of an ambassador for that. So it's really just a matter of time until I screw up bad enough to not be worthy of that. (pauses) It might have just happened!"

"But no, I love that idea, and I liked sort of affecting it off-camera as well as living it on-camera in character. Just trying to be that friend to Elijah. (pauses) Um.. yeah.. I mean.. It's not like he needed a mentor or protector he's a pretty self-sufficient and forward-looking individual and um.. but I just liked the idea of doing it so I did it. Y'know, get him stuff and bring him stuff-at least for the first half of filming. Then he was like "can you bring that over here?"-- "no!"

"There's a lot of different Sams in the book. It's almost hard to imagine sometimes that it's the same character. The one who's so instantly afraid, or bursts into tears, or quivers that he's going to get turned into something unnatural by Gandalf, that it's the same guy who picks up Frodo and says 'I can't carry it for you, but I can carry you.' (applause) Is that the same character?"

"The ideas about the character that resonated the most with me were those heroic things. Despite the fact that I was getting ever more portly, I still in my heart and in my consciousness, I wanted to believe that I, Sean, was able to play a heroic part, so those were the qualities that I gravitated towards. To the extent that I'm able to manifest or resonate with those ideas in a way that feels authentic to myself and to the filmmaker and to an audience is my great benefit as a human being to be able to enjoy that space. So it was my determination to honor it and to try and not to disappoint."

He got a question from someone about his experience of directing Angel, and what it was like to come into an already-established team like that. Sean explained how he got the job, and how there was definitely a sense of established history and protocol there, and how it felt to be the new guy on set telling everyone what to do.

Another fan presented him with a gold rabbit statue [Edit: The statue we gave him from the Misty Mountain Smial is the order of the Golden Coney. -- Scott McKenzie, Misty Mt. Smial] (complete with backpack full of pots and pans), as a replacement for the Oscar he should've gotten. He was delighted, and decided he should give an Oscar speech:

"I'd like to thank the Misty Mountain Smile for acknowledging my work in this film. I really can't tell you how many times I've imagined this." (lots of laughs)

He told a cute story about how his mom put her Oscar and her statue of Bill and Sam close to each other, hoping the Oscar would bring luck.

He continued with his "Oscar speech": "I'd like to thank my wife. They always thank their wife. I REALLY understand why they thank their wife. My wife is the most patient person in the history of the planet!"

He then talked about how, if he'd won at the Oscars, he'd have started his acceptance speech with the line "I'm happy to accept my party's nomination..."

His next question was from someone who asked him what it was like meeting June Lockhart, who was one of his co-stars on the episode of Las Vegas he was on. He talked a little bit about his character on that show-- "loveable, but an idiot"-and seemed like he'd had a lot of fun with it. He said he didn't work with June much, but found her delightful, and mentioned that she rather enjoyed the risque scene she had (she was surrounded by male strippers) He said he always was amused that young people found things like that shocking, as if they'd forgotten where they came from! He said he enjoyed meeting June, and connecting with her on a generation-to-generation of actors level.

His last question was from a woman (with a very shy child who couldn't quite get the courage to say hello to Sean) who asked about how Sean felt about Tolkien wanting to create a mythological history of England. After admitting (to some shock-apparently some people don't watch the DVD extras!) that he hadn't even heard of Tolkien before hearing about the film project (he said blame his college and his parents!) he talked about how he finds it fascinating that the mythology Tolkien created is being re-created in derivative forms, such as the movies, and in things like fan-created works (he mentioned that he collects fanart) and how technology is helping that process along.

He finished his talk by signing a big poster that all the celebs at the con had signed that was to be auctioned off. He decided he'd sign his name with several different pens, apparently how presidents sign bills, and made the fantasy complete by sitting down at the table on the stage to do it, and acting quite Presidential!

I'm sure I've missed a few things, so perhaps someone else will report in, but in general, I think it was a great talk. None of the questions were silly, and Sean's responses were all very well-thought-out. It was nice to see him in a setting where he could go in-depth into his thoughts about something instead of having to come up with a soundbite. It's a pity there wasn't more time-there were a lot of people lined up to ask questions who didn't make it-but overall, it was a great talk. I highly recommend seeing him do one of these live if you can, preferably when he's just on his own and has plenty of time to ramble.

An Evening with Barrie Osborne Report!
leo @ 5:22 am EST

Ringer Spy Choice of Lúthien writes: Here's a very detailed report of a fabulous presentation by Barrie Osborne. While it was all interesting, I think the character farewell montages information may be of particular interest to some.

I attended the Session with Barrie Osborne at the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis and it was a fantastic night. Despite having been busy all day, Barrie was wonderful and extremely gracious. His talk focused on some of the major challenges of the project and how they were "solved".

1) The challenge of bringing a 1200 page novel to the screen. Barrie mentioned that this was both a blessing and a curse. It was a blessing since there was so much detail there in the books already to guide the filmmakers. The curse was of course the length. He cited the "Council of Elrond" chapter as an example and also talked about how they had to make dramatic liberties.

Barrie also discussed the challenge of LOTR being a fantasy and how they wanted to connect with the audience and "make it real". An important part of this was making the characters 3 dimensional. For example Gandalf was a wizard, but a wizard who smokes, likes to drink and loves life. Aragorn is aware of how his ancestors failed and fears he could never amount to anything. And for Boromir, important backstory was added to show how he was motivated by the love of his kingdom and his father. He makes a mistake and sacrifices his life to redeem himself.

Barrie also cited how important leadership was and that Viggo and Ian McKellan supplied this to the younger actors. Apparently when Viggo went back to LA for Christmas break, he got permission to take his sword back with him so he could practice! Viggo's last minute casting was also brought up and Barrie said that Stuart was actually the first one to realize that he was too young to play Aragorn.

2) The challenge of scale. Different techniques were discussed such as forced perspective, motion capture and scale doubles. He talked about the scene in Bag End between Gandalf and Bilbo as one example, and mentioned that Gandalf's hat in that scene is CG!

3) The challenge of the long journey. It was a long journey both in terms of the story and of the shooting. Barrie talked about some of the techniques used to show the passage of time in the movies: music, set designs, costumes, digital coloring and even sound design. One scene discussed in particular was the opening of ROTK. Digital coloring had to be used to turn the lake from brown (it had been raining) to blue and to add leaves to the trees (since that scene was filmed in the fall.

4) The challenge of the epic battles. Discussion on this topic was centered around MASSIVE - how it was developed, how it works and how it was used. One thing I did not know was that the two different armies are each assigned a different pitch in the program. There were some very interesting clips shown detailing how a scene was composited using MASSIVE, the different stages in the process. The main scene used was the Rohirrim charging into the orc army outside Minas Tirith.

5) The challenge of CG creatures. Gollum was the main creature discussed. Clips similar to the previous ones were shown, detailed how Andy's performance was turned into the Gollum we see. There were also some comparison shots of Andy & Gollum from ROTK. Barrie said that Fran and Andy were the heart and soul of Gollum.

6) The challenge of the infrastructure in NZ. There was very limited space at WETA, they had to dub almost all the sound and had to import most of the equipment. Barrie cited the expansion of WETA-at one point during ROTK production there were 2,500 computers being used but 1,000 more were needed and within two weeks! The sattelite system they ended up using in order to meet the challenges associated with filming at rural locations.

He summarized by saying these challenges were met by a clear vision, an understanding of the financial and technical resources, an early recognition of the unknown, open communication and collaboration, a willingness to adjust plans to fit reality and the courage to go on when things got dark and difficult.

Barrie saved the best for last. He said how each actor had a farewell clip made for them on their last day of shooting (the ones we've heard so much about) and then proceed to show us the clips for Legolas and Elrond! The clips were fantastic. Each one was a montage of character moments and some bloopers set to several different song clips.

For Legolas: I forget the first song but things really picked up when "Hungry Eyes" started. This of course highlighted many of Legolas' looks, carefully chosen to fit the lyrics. The final bit was to "Poison Arrow" (or something like that) and showcased his archery.

For Elrond: The only song I remember was "I will Surive". Some footage from the prologue battle that didn't make the cut was shown (some good stuff), a scene in Rivendell I didn't recognize and clips from all three movies. The second half was titled "Agent Elrond". A couple of bloopers from a scene where Hugo couldn't get the dialogue right and kept swearing. Also when he threw back his hood in ROTK (to give Anduril to Aragorn), he was wearing the Agent Smith sunglasses. And from that same scene when Viggo drew the sword he clipped Hugo's nose. Both of them were way too funny. Barrie wouldn't show more, saying that they might be showing up on DVD in a few years!

During the Q & A part someone asked him about his most memorable experience. Barrie described 2: the camping out to get the sunset on film that we hear about on the TT EE.

The other one was after they had finished some filming near Nelson and had to go to Queenstown. Apparently PJ decided to drive (instead of flying) and so Andrew Lesnie decided to go with him. At that point Barrie figured he better go with both of them. They left late afternoon/early evening after filming and stopped somewhere for the night. The next morning it was discovered they were almost out of gas. PJ assured them it wasn't a problem.they would pass lots of farms along the way where they could get a farmer to fill the car up. But as they drove there were no farms so they had to turn around to where they had been staying to the gas station. It was now 6am and the station didn't open until 8am. PJ mentioned that the owner probably lived in the house behind the station, so why didn't they go wake them up? As the producer, Barrie was given this task. He knocked on the door and when the owner answered, offered him 100 dollars to fill up the tank. Apparently John Rhys Davies was following behind them and when he stopped at the same gas station later heard a story about some "crazy people".

Sean Bean and Orlando were also driving. They stopped on the way to do some antique shopping at the request of Orlando. It was raining extremely hard and they ran into a landslide so they had to turn around and go back. But then they ran into another landslide. They ended up staying and some random house for the night and then they had to convince Sean to fly out on a helicopter the next day since he was needed.

Triple Screening in BC
Xoanon @ 6:09 pm EST

The folks at cinecenta send along this news about a Triple Screening at the University of Victoria, BC.

Friday & Saturday, April 23 & 24

Directed by Peter Jackson, from the books by J.R.R. Tolkien. All rated 14A

1:15 – FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (extended edition – 224 min.)
5:15– THE TWO TOWERS (extended edition – 224 min.)
9:15 – THE RETURN OF THE KING (201 min.)

$15.00 THREE-FILM PASSES (which include a medium popcorn and medium pop)

NOW ON SALE!

You can purchase these anytime weekdays at the Munchie Bar or at the box office on evenings and weekends. (No other passes or tickets valid for this event.)

cinecenta
student union building, university of victoria
721-8365
www.cinecenta.com

Oz's 'Logie Awards' Presented Today
Xoanon @ 10:27 am EST

Laura writes: Earlier tonight in Australia, the Logie Awards were presented. They are the awards for Australian television, with both public and industry voted awards.

David Wenham was nominated in the Most Outstanding Actor category, a industry/peer voted award for his performance in the mini-series After The Deluge. Fellow nominees included Ray Barrett (After The Deluge), Tim Draxl (The Shark Net), William McInnes (The Shark Net).
Unfortunately David Wenham lost, with the award going to his co-star Ray Barrett.

After The Deluge was an outstanding mini-series. It tells the story of an old man (Ray Barrett) who is suffering the effects of Alzheimer's disease. He is living in both the present but with delusions and visions of the WWII. His 3 sons are dealing with their father's illness as well as their own personal troubles. The oldest, played by Hugo Weaving, is a musical has-been who now produces music, but running off the rails. David Wenham is dealing with the breakdown of his marriage, which he doesn't want to happen, as well as raising his 2 kids. Samuel Johnson and his wife have been trying for children without success, and their relationship is on the brink of collapse.

That's just a basic wrap-up of the beginning, as the story unfolds, it all these events begin to tangle together, bringing the sons back together with their father.

I also saw the first ad for the Orlando Bloom movie Troy during an ad break in the broadcast. It opens in Australia on May 13th.

An Evening With Barrie Osborne Reports
Xoanon @ 10:25 am EST

Choice of Lzthien

I attended the Session with Barrie Osborne at the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis and it was a fantastic night. Despite having been busy all day, Barrie was wonderful and extremely gracious. His talk focused on some of the major challenges of the project and how they were 'solved'.

1) The challenge of bringing a 1200 page novel to the screen. Barrie mentioned that this was both a blessing and a curse. It was a blessing since there was so much detail there in the books already to guide the filmmakers. The curse was of course the length. He cited the 'Council of Elrond' chapter as an example and also talked about how they had to make dramatic liberties. Barrie also discussed the challenge of LOTR being a fantasy and how they wanted to connect with the audience and 'make it real'. An important part of this was making the characters 3 dimensional. For example Gandalf was a wizard, but a wizard who smokes, likes to drink and loves life. Aragorn is aware of how his ancestors failed and fears he could never amount to anything. And for Boromir, important backstory was added to show how he was motivated by the love of his kingdom and his father. He makes a mistake and sacrifices his life to redeem himself.

Barrie also cited how important leadership was and that Viggo and Ian McKellan supplied this to the younger actors. Apparently when Viggo went back to LA for Christmas break, he got permission to take his sword back with him so he could practice! Viggos last minute casting was also brought up and Barrie said that Stuart was actually the first one to realize that he was too young to play Aragorn.

2) The challenge of scale. Different techniques were discussed such as forced perspective, motion capture and scale doubles. He talked about the scene in Bag End between Gandalf and Bilbo as one example, and mentioned that Gandalfs hat in that scene is CG!

3) The challenge of the long journey It was a long journey both in terms of the story and of the shooting. Barrie talked about some of the techniques used to show the passage of time in the movies: music, set designs, costumes, digital coloring and even sound design. One scene discussed in particular was the opening of ROTK. Digital coloring had to be used to turn the lake from brown (it had been raining) to blue and to add leaves to the trees (since that scene was filmed in the fall.

4) The challenge of the epic battles. Discussion on this topic was centered around MASSIVEhow it was developed, how it works and how it was used. One thing I did not know was that the two different armies are each assigned a different pitch in the program. There were some very interesting clips shown detailing how a scene was composited using MASSIVE, the different stages in the process. The main scene used was the Rohirrim charging into the orc army outside Minas Tirith.

5) The challenge of CG creatures. Gollum was the main creature discussed. Clips similar to the previous ones were shown, detailed how Andys performance was turned into the Gollum we see. There were also some comparison shots of Andy & Gollum from ROTK. Barrie said that Fran and Andy were the heart and soul of Gollum.

6) The challenge of the infrastructure in NZ.

There was very limited space at WETA, they had to dub almost all the sound and had to import most of the equipment. Barrie cited the expansion of WETAat one point during ROTK production there were 2,500 computers being used but 1,000 more were needed and within two weeks! The sattelite system they ended up using in order to meet the challenges associated with filming at rural locations.

He summarized by saying these challenges were met by: a clear vision, an understanding of the financial and technical resources, an early recognition of the unknown, open communication and collaboration, a willingness to adjust plans to fit reality and the courage to go on when things got dark and difficult.

Barrie saved the best for last. He said how each actor had a farewell clip made for them on their last day of shooting (the ones weve heard so much about) and then proceed to show us the clips for Legolas and Elrond! The clips were fantastic. Each one was a montage of character moments and some bloopers set to several different song clips.

For Legolas: I forget the first song but things really picked up when 'Hungry Eyes' started. This of course highlighted many of Legolas looks, carefully chosen to fit the lyrics. The final bit was to 'Poison Arrow' (or something like that) and showcased his archery. For Elrond: The only song I remember was 'I will Surive'. Some footage from the prologue battle that didnt make the cut was shown (some good stuff), a scene in Rivendell I didnt recognize and clips from all three movies. The second half was titled 'Agent Elrond'. A couple of bloopers from a scene where Hugo couldnt get the dialogue right and kept swearing. Also when he threw back his hood in ROTK (to give Anduril to Aragorn), he was wearing the Agent Smith sunglasses. And from that same scene when Viggo drew the sword he clipped Hugos nose. Both of them were way too funny. Barrie wouldnt show more, saying that they might be showing up on DVD in a few years!

During the Q & A part someone asked him about his most memorable experience. Barrie described 2: the camping out to get the sunset on film that we hear about on the TT EE.

The other one was after they had finished some filming near Nelson and had to go to Queenstown. Apparently PJ decided to drive (instead of flying) and so Andrew Lesnie decided to go with him. At that point Barrie figured he better go with both of them. They left late afternoon/early evening after filming and stopped somewhere for the night. The next morning it was discovered they were almost out of gas. PJ assured them it wasnt a problemthey would pass lots of farms along the way where they could get a farmer to fill the car up. But as they drove there were no farms so they had to turn around to where they had been staying to the gas station. It was now 6am and the station didnt open until 8am. PJ mentioned that the owner probably lived in the house behind the station, so why didnt they go wake them up? As the producer, Barrie was given this task. He knocked on the door and when the owner answered, offered him 100 dollars to fill up the tank. Apparently John Rhys Davies was following behind them and when he stopped at the same gas station later heard a story about some 'crazy people'.

Sean Bean and Orlando were also driving. They stopped on the way to do some antique shopping at the request of Orlando. It was raining extremely hard and they ran into a landslide so they had to turn around and go back. But then they ran into another landslide. They ended up staying and some random house for the night and then they had to convince Sean to fly out on a helicopter the next day since he was needed.

iMark The Blue

Hello, iMark the Blue here. I have just returned home from a presentation by Barrie Osborne. It was an entertaining evening. Mr. Osborne discussed the major challenges they faced making the trilogy and how they overcame them. Mr. Osborne also had some video footage . A fully edited segment on Edoras which was not in the TTT appendices, a few new “Massive” Demo shots (the CGI army program) some Gollum and Minas Trinith Effect shots in progress demonstrations, and – a goodbye clip for Orlando Bloom, and one for Hugo Weaving – These clips were mostly shots of the characters played by the actors from the trilogy in a montage from, but they had some funny older songs with lyrics that made it humorous. I think it was being played off a DVD, and there was a link for many of the other main cast members. . . My guess is that it was a preliminary ROTK appendices of some sort? He said something about not being able to show us more because it will be on the DVD? He also made the comment that he would be interested in producing “The Hobbit” with Peter and Fran.

Hall Of Fire Chats This Weekend
Frode @ 7:30 pm EST

Having escaped the Goblins, Bilbo finds that he is still lost in the
vastness of Middle-Earth. His good luck saves him once again though and he soon locates his friends. He tells the story about Gollum to the Compay, but seems disinclined to talk about the Ring. Fearing Goblins out to avenge their dead leader Gandalf urges the Company on. They soon find themselves facing a different enemy however. A band of Wargs forces them to seek refugee in the trees.

Considering what Bilbo does and says in this chapter, do you think the
Ring is already at work? Where did the Great Eagles come from and what
exactly are the Goblins and the Wargs planning? This weekend in
#thehalloffire we discuss Chapter 6 of 'The Hobbit' - Out of the
Frying-Pan into the Fire.

Upcoming topics:

weekend 240404-250404: Tolkien and environmentalism
weekend 010504-020504: The Hobbit - Chapter 7

Times:
Saturday Chat:
5:30pm ET (17:30)
[also 11:30pm (23:30) CET and 9:30am Sunday (09:30) AET]

Sunday Chat:
7:00 pm (19:00) CET
[also 1:00pm (13:00) ET and 5:00am (05:00) Monday morning AET]

ET = Eastern Time, USA's East Coast
CET = Central European Time, Central Europe
AET = Australian East Coast

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Mojo Magazine Talks Wood & Music
Xoanon @ 11:57 am EST

Ringer Spy Sam writes: I found this interview with Elijah Wood about his taste in music in the May issue of the UK music magazine MOJO.

What music are you currently grooving to?

I'm really into Scottish music. People don't realise there's all this great talent coming out of there right now - I particularly like Franz Ferdinand. And I'm in kind of a Beatles kick at the moment. I love Let It Be...Naked and the John Lennon box set is amazing! And I'm a huge Michel Gondry fan, of the way he combines music and video. I got to meet with him when I was doing Two Towers and Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind, which was great.

What, if push comes to shove, is your all-time favourite album?

Oh that's impossible! I mean really. How do you answer that? I've not been to a record store in over a month - which is really weird for me! And I'm getting into new music -I only discovered The Stone Roses during Lord of The Rings. I really like The White Stripes' Elephant though.

What was the first record you bought? And where did you buy it?

I can't remember. There's always been music around. I'm incredibly passionate about it, kind of insane even.

Which musician have you ever wanted to be?

In my fantasies, it would be great! But as a music-minded person you have your rock 'n' roll dreams but I wouldn't personally want to apply them - I love music too much to screw it up, ha ha! But I'm starting my own record label this summer with a friend to facilitate indie bands, get music I believe in out there. Only indie - to help these musicians signed and heard!

What do you sing in the shower?

I don't!

What is your favourite Saturday night record?

That's difficult to answer, because I love so much music. Let's see - Led Zeppelin, Smashing Pumpkins or Jimi Hendrix.

And your Sunday morning record?

Maybe The Flaming Lips, Radiohead or Massive Attack

Los Angeles Times Festival of Books News
Xoanon @ 8:52 pm EST

Ninth Annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books Serves up Literary Smorgasbord April 24-25 at UCLA

24th Annual Los Angeles Times Book Prize Awards Ceremony to Highlight Festival

LOS ANGELES, April 14, 2004 – Tens of thousands of book lovers of all ages will find a smorgasbord of appealing choices when they gather for the ninth annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, Saturday, April 24, and Sunday, April 25, on the UCLA campus.

Some of the nearly 400 authors who will participate in this year’s Festival are Mitch Albom, Julie Andrews, Clive Barker, Michael Benson, T. C. Boyle, Ray Bradbury, Susie Bright, Stephen J. Cannell, Iris Chang, Sandra Cisneros, Mary Higgins Clark, Carol Higgins Clark, Susie Coelho, Rocco DiSpirito, Carol Muske-Dukes, James Ellroy, Carrie Fisher, Dana Gioia, Arianna Huffington, Chalmers Johnson, Larry King, Dean Koontz, Elmore Leonard, Anchee Min, Nuala O’Faolain, Anna Quindlen, Laura Schlessinger, David Shannon, Jane Smiley, Tavis Smiley, Kevin Starr, Anthony Swofford, Nicholas von Hoffman and Alice Walker. In addition, “Tonight Show” host and best-selling author Jay Leno will make his Festival of Books debut on the Target Stage.

Festival hours are 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Admission is free to the public. However, tickets will be required to attend indoor author panel discussions and lectures. Beginning April 18 at 12 noon, tickets will be available free of charge at all participating Southern California Ticketmaster locations. A limited number of tickets also will be available on-site. On-campus parking is $7.

General event information is available online at www.latimes.com/festivalofbooks or by calling 1-800-LA TIMES ext. 7BOOK. Detailed information on all festival activities will be published in the April 18 edition of the Los Angeles Times.

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books – one of the nation's premier public literary festivals and the largest of its kind on the West Coast – was created in 1996 by The Times to promote literacy, celebrate the written word, and bring together those who create books with the people who love to read them. It is presented in association with UCLA.

Festival Highlights

• More than 400 authors participating in 95 panels, readings and book signings

• Seven stages showcasing book and poetry readings, cooking demonstrations, children's storytelling and cartoon characters, and music, drama and dance performances

• 24th annual Los Angeles Times Book Prize awards ceremony

• More than 280 exhibitors including specialty booksellers and major book publishers

• The “World’s Largest Crossword Puzzle” on a 35’ x 50’ vinyl mat in UCLA’s North Athletic Field. Teams of children will use large red foam letters to complete the puzzle, and each participant will receive a prize following completion of the puzzle.
  

The Los Angeles Times, a Tribune Publishing company, is the largest metropolitan daily newspaper in the country and the winner of 35 Pulitzer Prizes. The Times publishes five daily regional editions covering the Los Angeles metropolitan area, Orange and Ventura counties, the San Fernando Valley, and an Inland Empire edition covering Riverside and San Bernardino counties, as well as a national edition. Additional information about The Times is available at www.latimes.com/mediacenter.

Bruce Hopkins and Operation Read
Tehanu @ 6:05 pm EST

Leo here: you can check out some of Bruce's pictures of these events and Operation Read in our scrapbook!

February 26th 2004 was my day of departure. For the second year in a row I was going to make my way ( thanks to Air NZ ) from the shire that is NZ, to the heart of blockbusterville, the one and only Los Angeles. As with my first trip to the home of the freeway a year before, the purpose was to attend a number of functions ( sometimes called "piss ups" here in NZ ), celebrating the latest, and in this case the last, instalment of Lord Of The Rings trilogy, as it contended for Oscar glory.

Having experienced tinseltown in all its glory as a member of the LOTR family the previous year, I decided I wanted to explore the potential to create a little publicity for myself. Self promotion is an essential item in the survival kit of any LA bound filmy.
I had ( once again through my on going relationship with Air NZ ), visited a small coastal school near the city of Gisborne in NZ a few days after the world premier of The Return Of The King in December 2003. The success of this visit came to mind as I trawled for options to create a point of difference for myself in LA. I figured I could create a win win win scenario and get along to visit a school. In this scenario, I win by getting to create some publicity as an actor visiting a school, I would actually win twice as I love the spirit of the children anyway. The kids win as the majority of them seem to really get a buzz out of meeting actors from LOTR, and the media would hopefully win by scoring a nice little feel good story ( that’s actually a win win win win, with me double dipping )

After a number of fruitless enquiries, Claire McKay ( PR for Air NZ ) and Darryl Dunne ( NZ Consul General in LA ) informed me of a reading programme that Darryl had taken an active role in from prior to the films being released.
It transpired that when it was made public LOTR was being filmed, a local south central LA woman, one Winnie Jackson, decided this was the vehicle to begin her war on illiteracy in a part of town that has the lowest literacy scores for the whole of the USA. It just so happens that another statistic this part of town reigns supreme with, is that it has the highest youth homicide rates in the WORLD!
Despite being told on numerous occasions that LOTR was not the book to introduce kids to reading, Winnies vision and battle plans continued to form.
The plan;
Every child who committed to reading " The Fellowship of the Ring ", then writing an essay summarising what they got from the book in terms of issues raised and how they found it as a story, as well as writing a brief essay about themselves, would be given tickets to attend a special preview screening of the movie, care of New Line Cinema.
As well a free ticket to the movie the books were supplied free of charge.

With " The Fellowship", Winnie’s baby, now named Operation Read, saw 1000 kids take up the challenge.
By the time the preview screening took place for " The Two Towers " there were 4,000 kids who had stepped up.
What happened in December 2003 with "The Return Of The King" was beyond Winnies wildest dreams. Winnie’s baby was now a monster. The response was such that the preview screenings had to take place over 3 days, as 12,000 kids were bussed into Hollywood to witness Gamling and the rest of the team bring peace to Middle Earth. ( Which one was Gamling? I hear you say!……… just look to the right, or left of Theoden, he is the one who is there sometimes )

When I entered the picture, informing Winnie via a fax that I was interested in visiting a couple of schools, it was akin to throwing myself into the path of a human tornado. When you get swept up by this lady, it’s no longer your choice when you touch the ground.
With about 2 days to my departure on the 26th, I suddenly found myself scheduled to visit not one but three schools in south central LA. Now I was fully engaged and the producer in me started to tick over. I was going to be sleeping on the couch at Sala Baker’s apartment, and Lawrence Makaoare was crashing there also, so why not get them on board? Without hesitation, both were more than happy to take part. Air NZ came on board supplying 3-400 beautiful posters that we could sign and give to the kids, as well as a model plane bearing the LOTR/Middle Earth decals, for each school. I managed to get the local NZ television crews who were to be present in LA for the oscar season interested in covering the visits and the schools themselves drummed up interest from NBC as well numerous print media journalists in LA.
It was all shaping up very nicely.

During my time in Wellington leading up to the world premier for ROTK, I had the pleasure, each day, of meeting up with Royd Tolkien, great grandson to the man himself. This guy is a real cool dude and it just so happened he was also travelling to LA to party ( call it PR it sounds more noble ). I began to imagine the buzz it would be for these kids to meet this guy, descended from the loins of the genius himself, and so 48hrs out from hitting LA I emailed Royd to see if he would be up to hanging with the Kiwi contingent as we visited some schools. This would entail Royd giving up a full day, being picked up at 8am about 14 hrs after he had arrived in LA from the UK.
Literally 2 hours before I left my home to go to Auckland airport I checked my emails and there was a reply from Royd informing me he would love to take part!!!. It was all meant to be, them there stars were aligning.

At 9am on the 27th Feb Sala, Lawrence and myself watched as our limo, an LA Probation Department van pulled up to the kerb
( wrong side of the road I might add, mind you the steering wheel was on the wrong side of the van also! ) Inside were the wide awake and smiling faces of Royd and his mate Martin, as well as our host/chauffeur for the day, the incredible deputy Gregory James. This guy is as possessed in his quest to shine light into the lives of the youth of LA as Winnie is in her quest to get their eyes onto the pages of books.
We were now all aboard and bound for the city of Cerritos in south central LA.
First up was Tetzlaff Middle School where Principal Colin Sprigg has been a champion of the reading programme from its inception.
Next we rolled into Dr Laura Rogers Artesia High school, then we finished the day on Don Hastings turf at Los Alisos Middle School.
Eight hours, 300-400 signed posters and many questions later we rolled back onto the freeways and headed for home.
What an experience, each of us felt both tired and inspired.
These kids were such a pleasure to have shared time with, their enthusiasm for the books and films was boundless, we could have spent a full day at each school, but we had parties to attend!!!
One lasting impression was had at Los Alisos school, where, as we sat signing books and posters, the chorus of calls for hugs from" Mr Tolkien" began. A number of girls stood just out of sight from us and would call longingly from a distance " Mr Tolkien, can I have a hug?" I tell you the guy is the next Orlando Bloom.

During our time with Deputy Gregory James he had talked about some other kids who took up the challenge laid down by Winnie. These were teenagers incarcerated, many by California’s incredibly harsh and draconian "3 strikes and you’re out" policy. Gregory had expressed his desire that one day we may be able to visit one of the "lock downs" to support the incredible effort these kids had to put in to read books in an environment where doing so not only meant they were ridiculed by some put them at risk of physical violence from others.
This image stuck with me and so on my return to LA after attending the London Film & Comic Con, I contacted Gregory and so began the next part of my journey into Winnie’s dream.

Friday 19th of March was the day that Gregory, once again at the helm on the wrong side of the van and road, pulled up to the kerb and we hit more of the freeways, this time bound for the confines of Camp Holton, a county probation lock down facility.
upon arrival the first thing to catch my eyes was the sign stating " Watch for Snakes." Beauty! I come from NZ, a mossie bite is about as bad as nature gets ( apart from the odd shark attack!). Successfully negotiating the snakes, we were now standing at the front gates to a "lockdown". It looked like they meant for you to stay once inside!

As soon as the gates slam behind you, you know this is for real. However the other overriding reaction is that the kids who come here have a life line. This camp is situated in a valley tucked away from the outer lying edges of the city. When you enter the valley there is no city, sight or sound, it’s incredible. Many of the young men in here had never known silence, literally, let alone seen woodpeckers or the other myriad of birds that were perched chatting and calling, in the trees spread throughout the compound. One young guy was mowing the lawns others were running errands for the office staff, while the rest of the camp were in school.
This really was time out from the rigours of survival on the streets amidst some of the most brutal urban violence in the world.
Gregory took me for a round of introductions, meeting the wonderful superintendent Leon Bass as well as many of the dedicated staff who invest their time and love trying to guide these young lives onto other paths.
It was such a powerful experience already.
Once the OK was given, 130 kids ranging in ages from 13-17, came jogging in single file from all directions. Classrooms were emptied, kitchens abandoned (the kids work in all facets of camp life) and lawnmowers parked as they assembled to sit in formation on the concrete basketball courts. This happened like a military exercise, commands were barked, orders obeyed and questions answered, all at full throated voice and drilled physical response.

During our visits to the schools, Gregory James had acted as our chauffeur and guide, here in Camp Holton I got to witness the fuel that fires Deputy Gregory James. As it happens Gregory had been to the Camp for his one visit of the year a couple of days before. He runs a programme called The Honour Ensemble. Gregory literally transforms the lives of kids such as these. He does this by introducing the concepts of discipline, respect and expression through a style of interaction that seems unique to him. He is a former promising Hollywood High actor who decided to use his talent and unconditional love for his fellow beings to work miracles in young peoples lives.

Having had the kids who took part in Operation Read stand to be acknowledged, Gregory spoke of their courage and honoured these guys while informing the others that they also had what it takes to free themselves from their current journeys. As he spoke I found myself instinctively walking to each of the kids standing, shaking their hands and embracing them.
Once I was introduced I stood at the front of the seated sea of boyish faces and began to introduce myself and my background. After only a minute or so I had to apologise as I stopped talking, tears beginning to well and spill down my face. My guts were a knotted mess of emotion, sitting before me were kids who may well have been my children, kids who had a Mum and a Dad somewhere, maybe brothers and sisters, grandparents. Apparently in many cases Dad has never been present, Mum is struggling to pay the bills and acceptance by peers etc is often conditional ( with us or against us stuff).
Once I got it together, I carried on with my talk, hopefully speaking in a manner that indicated my respect for the guys who took part in this amazing reading programme and also offering my heartfelt thanks to all of them for allowing me to be there.
Gregory then informed them that he was going to follow up on a promise he had given to everyone during his previous session with them. Each of the kids was to be given a copy of the book, ROTK.
It had been arranged that I would sign copies of the books for the guys who partook in Operation Read, however having had the experience of being in their company I knew I had to sign a copy for every kid at Camp Holton. Maybe some of them wouldn’t give a toss about having the book let alone having me personalise each copy to them, but again it was an impulse that I knew I had to pursue.
A couple of hours later, having had the chance to talk to a couple of the guys and sign about 150 of the books ( some of the staff were keen for a copy as well!), Gregory and I hit the road back to bedlam, well Hollywood anyways. It was kind of weird, feeling grateful and almost guilty, driving back to LA and my version of freedom, knowing Camp Holton was going into the evening phase of its routine, with 130 young men putting their heads onto pillows as the sound of doors locking bade them to sleep.
It later turned out that about 4-5 of the guys who stood up had in fact not taken part in Operation Read, they just wanted to be part of the moment. Gregory had to stop one of the staff from asking these kids to sit down. His reasoning being that it was better for them to decieve for a good cause than be busted once again. He also told me on the drive home that these guys had now put their own respect at stake and reading the book was their road to redemption. We had a real good laugh about this naïve kiwi being conned by these young street smart kids.

I came away from that experience knowing that I wanted to see a documentary made about this incredible programme Operation Read and the inspiring people behind the scenes.
( sorry I’ll speed this up, I’m raving here but I find it hard to retell this experience without tracing every step)
On the 23rd of March, having been introduced to award winning doco maker Kyra Thompson by Kathy Eldon ( yet another inspiring new friend in LA ), I was headed back to Camp Holton. This time it was with Gregory, Kyra, AP Murray ( with digital video camera in tow), Amy Eldon ( award winning doco maker) and my mate Sala.
We had a court order allowing us to film inside the facility, for the purpose of creating a short promo to use in applying for funding to make the documentary of Operation Read.
The visit was amazing, again it filled me with such powerful emotions and determination to get this feel good story out there.

My last session with Winnie was on Friday march 26th at a luncheon held at the world class Cerritos library. ( if you ever have the chance, check it out, that’s an order!)
The luncheon was Winnies chance to honour all who had helped in her journey to open new worlds of opportunity and vision for kids many of whom would not normally consider a book as part of their minds diet.
Citations were awarded, food was eaten and glowing speeches given. I had the chance to express my gratitude to Winnie and Gregory, as well as Ken Kondo and the LA Probation department, and the schools who allowed me to share in this joyous series of events.
We had immediate expressions of interest with regard seeking funding to make this doco a reality and will continue to pursue these and look for further avenues also. Our team is getting close to being in place and in fact I have had a wonderful offer of support from the incredible Josie, one of Peter Jackson’s staunchest allies throughout the epic production of LOTR.
It is meant to be and it will be.
Bring on the DVDs, the extended DVDs, reruns, conventions, docos. It’s all good!
Much love to you all if you managed to read this whole bloody rave, well done you are now part of Operation Read.
See you at a screening near you.

Games Workshop Announces Games Day Los Angeles
leo @ 4:21 am EST

Games Day conventions are the annual gaming extravaganzas for the Games Workshop series of hobby games such as Warhammer Fantasy Battle and Warhammer 40,000, the world’s most popular tabletop battlegames. There will be gaming events ranging from beginner to expert for all the games, plus painting contests, seminars, demo games, special guests, and more. This year the action will spread to 4 locations, with Atlanta joining Los Angeles, Chicago, and Baltimore as host cities. There will be lots of new Lord of the Rings tabletop battlegame events too, including special displays and promotions.

This year will feature expanded Club Games where members of the Regiments of Renown Club Support Program run great games at each show. These are always original and feature the best from the local gaming community, and will include a large Blood Bowl tournament. The crew from Warhammer Online (www.warhammeronline.com) will also be at the event, demonstrating the upcoming online game for fans. And of course the Golden Daemon Painting Competition, always the highlight of any Games Day, will be showing off the finest painting and modeling in the country. There will also be new Create and Keep scenery construction classes, where people will be provided materials for making their own gaming terrain piece and can then keep their new creation after they are done!

Each Games Day will also feature huge tournament gaming for Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40,000. These will run on Saturday, and registration will be at 8:00AM at the door on a first come, first served basis. Entry for a tournament will be $20 in addition to the normal Games Day ticket. Games Day T-shirts, sold only at the event, will also be available.

The 2004 US Games Day Miniature: Archaon on Foot
In conjunction with the upcoming global campaign - Storm of Chaos - our 2004 US Games Day miniature will be the mighty chosen one of Chaos itself - Archaon, Lord of the End Times, on foot. This mighty scion of the Dark Gods is provided free with the purchase of each full-price admission to a US Games Day (models will be distributed upon entry to Games Day) and will also be available for sale separately at each show for $20.00 USD. 5 other new limited edition models will also be available at the show as well!

Visit the Games Day 2004 and the Los Angeles 2004 websites for all the latest news!
http://gamesday.us.games-workshop.com/GamesDay2004/Los_Angeles/LA_04.htm

Want to see all of the cool things you can do at a Games Day? Click here!
http://us.games-workshop.com/e-zine/issues/blackgobbo-11/gamesday/default.htm

Event Details:
Games Day Los Angeles
Show Date: Saturday, April 24
Location: Ontario Convention Center
2000 Convention Center Way
Ontario, CA 91764
Exhibit Hall A & B
Hours: 10am - 6pm
Tickets are $30 and go on sale January 31st
Scheduled Special Guests: Sculptor Jes Goodwin, artist Paul Dainton, and Games Designer Gavin Thorpe

Ticket Information
Each ticket includes full admission for the event, entry to the day-long seminar program, participation in the Golden Daemon competition, 2 free Registered Game sessions, unlimited gaming in the Club and Open Gaming areas, plus this year’s free Games Day miniature! Additional Registered Game session tickets will be available at the door.

You can get tickets through Mail Order at 1-800-394-GAME, the Games Workshop website www.games-workshop.com, your local Games Workshop Hobby Center, selected Independent Retailers, or at the door.

Special Runtherd (Parents) tickets are also available. Runtherd passes allow a parent or guardian to attend Games Day (but not play in any of the games or events) and keep an eye on their kids. 2 Runtherd passes are available per ticket for parents of children 16 and under.

For more information or to order tickets, visit www.games-workshop.com or call 1-800-394-GAME.

Games Day History
Long a tradition in England where the Games Workshop hobby started, Games Day in the USA started over 10 years ago in one of Maryland’s Games Workshop Hobby Centers. Despite the small venue, nearly 100 dedicated fans showed up for the full day of fun! The next year the show was moved to a real convention hall, where the show grew even larger. So big in fact that two years later the show moved to the Baltimore Convention Center and spread into a 2 day event. Each year the show has expanded in both size and attendance, with thousands arriving each year to play, paint, and celebrate the miniature gaming hobby.

Each year has seen such wild events as Squig Hopper Races, fun (but messy!) Speed Painting competitions, and Formula Waaaagh! Demolition Derbies. One highlight has always been the Golden Demon miniature painting competition, showcasing the best figure painters in the country and their work with the finest miniatures in the world. Last year’s Games Day conventions drew nearly 10,000 enthusiastic hobby fans from all over the country, and even more are expected this year.