Next Photo of Dwarves Hits the Web: Bombur, Bofur, and Bifur

In this photo released by IGN we meet Bombur (Stephen Hunter), Bofur (James Nesbitt), and Bifur (William Kircher) and I have to say, the moment I saw it I burst into laughter. You definitely get a sense of humor with these Dwarves and I can’t wait to see their characters develop on screen.

Left to Right: Bombur (Stephen Hunter), Bofur (James Nesbitt), and Bifur (William Kircher)

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hits theaters December 14th 2012 followed by The Hobbit: There and Back Again on Decemeber 13th, 2013.

Harry Potter Based 'Hog's Head PubCast' Joins Middle-earth Network Radio

As the Middle-earth Network continues to grow, we are striving both to recruit the highest quality content and to diversify our programming and reach out to new communities. In the last decade, many Tolkien fans have embraced  another series, one that is radically different in its worldview, basic rules and structures, and writing but has the same tug on our moral imaginations and many of the same essential core values, including the value of friendship and self-sacrifice. The series we're speaking of centers on a boy wizard by the name of Harry Potter.

Middle-earth Network is proud to announce today the first of what we hope will be many Harry Potter shows to join the Middle-earth Network: this show is the Hog's Head PubCast. The PubCast, as its fans call it for short, broadcast its first episode back in late 2006, and this week, after a nine-month hiatus, it makes a triumphant return by joining the Middle-earth Network family. The PubCast is hosted by thehogshead.org, a fantastic site for serious discussion of fantasy literature, and it's produced by Travis Prinzi, one of the Leaky Cauldron's Potter Pundits, and a trailblazer in serious Harry Potter scholarship, having written books such as "Harry Potter & Imagination: The Way Between Two Worlds" and most recently "Harry Potter for Nerds." And we'll let y'all in on a secret: Travis is also an avid Tolkien fan.

We are thrilled to be partnering with The Hog's Head and to be working with them to build bridges between our two communities who have so much in common. Keep your eyes and ears open for further announcements to come in the next week and be sure to give a warm welcome to any Hog's Head fans who join us at the My Middle-earth social network.


BREAKING: Airing TODAY at 2 PM EST- Travis Prinzi was able to screen the new Harry Potter film, Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (due to hit theaters this Thursday, July 15th, 2011) and will be reviewing the film LIVE on Middle-earth Network Radio!


Also Airing today is Travis' newest Hog's Head Pubcast at 1 PM and 6 PM EST.


The Hog's Head Pubcast on Twitter.
My Middle-earth Network Radio on Twitter.

Official Photo of The Thirteen Revealed 'Hobbit' Dwarves

Photo by James Fisher

The Thirteen Dwarves (left to right): Nori (Jed Brophy), Fili (Dean O'Gorman), Dori (Mark Hadlow), Bofur (James Nesbitt), Gloin (Peter Hambleton), Dwalin (Graham McTavish), Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), Balin (Ken Stott), Oin (John Callen), Bombur (Stephen Hunter),  Bifur (William Kircher), Ori (Adam Brown), and Kili (Aidan Turner).

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hits theaters December 14th 2012 followed by The Hobbit: There and Back Again on Decemeber 13th, 2013.


Click on photo below for larger image:

Next Up: Fili and Kili

Now that we've already seen the first photos of Dori, Ori, Nori, Oin, and Gloin, the next Dwarves on our list are Fili and Kili, played by Dean O'Gorman and Aidan Turner, respectively. The photo by James Fisher, which debuted on Msn.com, reveals two Dwarves who are much thinner than the average Dwarf, and who have also been deemed "sexy" dwarves.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is slated for release on December 14th, 2012. Part 2 of the film adaptation, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, will debut the following year on December 13th, 2013.

Peter Jackson Searches for New 'Hobbit' Locations

Sir Peter Jackson's Gulfstream jet in a Queenstown airport

'Hobbit' director Sir Peter Jackson and his production crew have recently been touring New Zealand's South Island, seeking out new locations to be transformed into Middle-earth.

'The Hobbit' is currently seeing a break from filming to allow cast and crew members some time to rest.

“Everywhere you turn, on people's backs was ‘200 days to go’," says Jackson, "and it was like, ‘oh god, I felt tired before lunch’, you know?

"I always just tell people I get exhausted at the end of the first couple of days and stay exhausted until it finishes.”

The break will also allow Jackson and his team more time to scout out new locations. As the second official production video, recently posted on his Facebook page, points out, Jackson and his team are now relying on helicopters to carry them across the New Zealand landscape.

“I think people think it's such a small country, and Lord of the Rings we saw so much of it that we must have seen everything,” says Jackson . “But believe me, we haven't. There's a huge amount of wonderful locations still to come.”

The production team is also planning to head for the Mackenzie Country, areas near Mount Cook and Queenstown, and, for the first time, Dunedin.

The cast and crew will be back to work on 'The Hobbit' films in early September, with the first of the two-part film adaptation being released in theaters in December of next year.

Second 'Hobbit' Production Video Posted

Following the excitement of Warner Bros.' release of several photos of the dwarves (Nori, Ori, Dori, Oin, and Gloin), Peter Jackson has uploaded a second Hobbit production video on his Facebook page (the first was released several months ago).

The video, which is ten minutes in length, was taped upon completion of the first block of filming, and offers viewers a glimpse of some of the actors shooting their scenes, as well as Andy Serkis, who is directing parts of The Hobbit films, conversing with Peter Jackson about the pressure they face in directing the films.

"I always tell people I get exhausted at the end of the first couple of days and just stay exhausted until it finishes," Jackson tells Serkis, which is why he has broken filming, which is set to span 254 days, into three blocks. "I think it's a much better way to divide it into three blocks and have some time to look at what you've done... it's a much smarter way to shoot these big films."

 

The remainder of the video focuses on Peter Jackson and his team while they scout out potential locations for the films, as the second block of filming will include a great deal of on-location work. They have already chosen several areas in Mackenzie Country and Mt. Cook, and have also decided that they would like to film in Dunedin. In addition, they are looking for a suitable location south of Queenstown.

Some of the problems involved with scouting out the location involve the amount of space needed, in addition to the location being an appropriate place for filming.

"It's weird on locations because you're standing in the middle of a mountain or valley or some beautiful place and you're having to try to figure out where are you going to put the crew tents, where are people going to get changed and where are the portaloos going to go - because all of that stuff has to be where you're not going to want to point the camera," Jackson says.

"The last thing you want to find out in six months time is you're standing on this beautiful mountain and saying, 'Wow this is exactly the shot I want to do' and you've got 20 portaloos in front of the camera."

Cast and crew members are expected to return on September 5th to begin filming block two.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be in theaters on December 14, 2012, with The Hobbit: There and Back Again arriving on December 13, 2013.

Oin and Gloin Revealed in Latest Hobbit Film Photo

Just a day after the three Dwarf brothers Nori (Jed Brophy), Ori (Adam Brown), and Dori (Mark Hadlow) photo was revealed, another one has hit the web. This time we get a glimpse of Oin (John Callen) and Gloin (Peter Hambleton). 

Yahoo Movies, who broke the story, gave this summary: "Distant cousins of Thorin Oakenshield, these two doughty Northern Dwarves join the Company out of a sense of loyalty to their kin, and also because they have a substantial sum of money invested in the venture. Along with Bombur, Gloin is the only other married Dwarf in the Company (there being a shortage of female Dwarves in general). His wife is an acclaimed beauty with a particularly fine beard. Gloin is the proud father of a young son, Gimli, who will go on to become part of the famous Fellowship of the Ring."

Left: Peter Hambleton (Gloin) and Right: John Callen (Oin)