DeviantArtist ChipsEss0r originally started this bit of Lord of the Rings fan art as a school project. We don’t know what grade she ended up getting for this triptych combining Gimli, Aragorn, and Legolas, but we give it an A+! (spotted by Middle-earth News reporter Alice)
Darren Elliott, a student at University of Waikato in New Zealand, is researching 3D and HFR perception by audiences of The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug. Does 3D and HFR impact audiences immersion and perceptions of reality? To know the answer, he launched an online questionnaire that can be found here. (spotted by Middle-earth News reporter Lily)
Kevin Sherwood, Visual Effects producer at Weta Digital, is currently working on The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, but he took some time to talk to Creative Bloq about changes is visual effects and the challenges of working on a “dragon that’s the size of a 747.” (spotted by Middle-earth News reporter Amanda)
Photo by Tytti Levänen
Plstcgy Cosplay fashioned this gorgeous re-creation of the Galadriel costume from The Lord of the Rings musical for Desucon, held this past weekend, and took second place in the cosplay contest! There was video taken of her performance, but it’s not online yet. If you want to see the upcoming video and other amazing costumes, follow Plstcgy Cosplay on Facebook. (shared by @MiddleEarthNews Twitter follower @plstcgy)
Tomorrow, Cate Blanchett, who played Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, will receive Women in Film’s Crystal Award for Excellence in Film. “Often I find with female-lead films, that the budgets are smaller and the resulting box office is extraordinary,” she said. “But it would be great if there were more films led by women that had that initial investment, because people want to see stories with women at the center.” (spotted by Middle-earth News reporter Lily)
Marine scientists have urged New Zealand to step up efforts to save the world’s rarest dolphin, saying only a few dozen Maui’s dolphins remain, and immediate action is needed to prevent their extinction. The Maui’s dolphin, dubbed “the hobbit of the sea,” is one of the world’s smallest dolphins, with a maximum length of 1.7 metres. A report by an IWC scientific committee meeting held in Slovenia last month called for a total ban on gillnet and trawl fishing, adding: “The current management situation falls short of that required to reverse the Maui’s dolphin’s decline.” (spotted by Middle-earth News reporter Lily)
This wallet by Etsy shop The Nerd Boutique features the map of “Wilderland” which contains Mirkwood from the The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. All paper material is taken from an actual copy of Tolkien’s book. Just don’t let Smaug see how much gold you’re carrying around! (spotted by Middle-earth News reporter Alice)
