Peter Jackson and the cast and crew of “The Hobbit” films may be able to sleep in their own beds before they to travel to their newest location. It has been confirmed by The Dominion Post that Jackson’s production company, 3 Foot 7, have acquired a license to occupy land on the northern tip of the Miramar Peninsula from December 22, 2011 to July 31, 2012. Also located on the Miramar Peninsula are the Stone Street Studios – the headquarters for filming on “The Hobbit.”
The land is owned by the Defence Force and was recently the site of a film set for the cancelled Biblical movie, “Kingdom Come.” According to the consent form, the area will be used for “the construction of temporary structures for the purpose of a film set.” The Dominion Post reports that “up to 60 shipping containers would be brought into the area to act as rigging for scaffolding to build the films sets.” Construction on the site was set to take place between December and March.
Filming is expected to begin in March and will continue between 4:00 AM and 10:00 PM seven days a week for approximately eight weeks. Local residents have been informed that as many as 500 vehicles are forecasted to travel to and from the set every day.
