Behind-The-Scenes on an 'Epic' Film: 'The Hobbit' Production Video #7

While there has been some interesting debate about the future of filmmaking (higher frame rates vs. 3D), Peter Jackson has been busy shooting The Hobbit in 3D on RED Epics at 48fps. They've had some wonderful behind-the-scenes production videos that are not only fascinating for their in-depth look at the continuation of The Lord of the Rings series, but also give some insight into the way in which real sets function. It's not always clear exactly what certain positions actually do when you're watching the credits of a film, but in this seventh production video, we're taken on the lot for The Hobbit, and get to see many of these important positions performing their duties.

The Hobbit: Production Video #7:

Rather than just reading about some of the more specialized positions in the credits, it's fascinating to get to see many of them in action and in their element. A movie that's working with hundreds of crew members takes amazing amounts of organization to pull off, and it's essential that everyone knows their role to make things move smoothly (though we also know this isn't limited to big sets -- smaller sets need to be organized as well). It's not often that there are 11 Assistant Directors working on a project, but that just gives you an idea of the massive scale of this film. If you haven't seen the other production videos that Peter Jackson has posted, you should do so now at his Facebook page at the link below.

Link: The Hobbit Production Videos - Peter Jackson - Facebook

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Your Comment

10 Comments

Really love that waterproof camera rig that was essentially a floating box with a window and you push it along the river like a little boat. Genius. like a boat dolly. or something. i want to go make one now

June 6, 2012 at 1:17PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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john jeffreys

The crew doing these (terrific, entertaining) behind-the-scenes videos is probably larger than most of our actual shooting crews. What a massive production!

June 6, 2012 at 2:19PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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Ryan Koo
Founder
Writer/Director

Greenscreen and moving cameras, I wonder how they do it. They probably have huge computer programmes to sync the two but I wonder whether there is an easy (even if not so perfect) way to mix green screen with moving camera.

June 6, 2012 at 2:24PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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They have tracking points on the screen.

June 6, 2012 at 2:56PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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Kilgore

Everyone can do it with some tracking points and After Effects. If you want to have green screen an moving cameras in a live environment like in a news studio, you'll need a vritual studio software and computers though - not cheap, but every other news show has one.

June 7, 2012 at 1:07PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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Heiko

Loved it. Glad Peter Jackson is doing this. very fun to watch even though you know a movie of this scale can probably be frustrating at times.

June 6, 2012 at 3:43PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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While I’m more of an original trilogy kind of guy, one of the best behind-the-scenes as of late has been the Star Wars prequels.

The one that stands out is called "Within A Munte" for Episode III, where Rick McCallom walks us through an hour long documentary on what it takes to get it from conception to finished product. Here's a clip: http://youtu.be/PNyt4PLe2sE

It covers *everything*, from accounting, to props, to editing, rotoscoping, catering for the set, and more. Really worth your time if you can get a hold of the the Episode III DVD.

June 7, 2012 at 5:40AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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I wish every film did these!

June 7, 2012 at 8:42AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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Archie

It's probably redundant to say this, but the Lord of the Rings extended edition DVDs come with a humongous amount of special feature documentaries, literally 6 whole DVDs worth, covering all aspects of preproduction, shooting and postproduction. Inspiring stuff, and much recommended if you've not seen it before (even if you're not a LOTR fan).

June 8, 2012 at 9:33AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM

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I’ll have to get After Effects then. I have tried with FCPX but no luck so far.

December 18, 2013 at 1:10PM, Edited September 4, 8:45AM

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