Just when we thought that Peter Jackson had blown his entire budget for The Hobbit on new actors and fancy Red Epic cameras, he releases this production vlog showing just how complicated (and presumably expensive) the logistics of filming the epic fantasy truly are.
The video, which comes just days after the release of the first trailer for the film, gives a glimpse into what had to be done to get the entire production -- cast, crew, sets, etc. -- from the green-screen-filled studio where it had been filming out into the wilds of New Zealand for the movie's on-location shoots.
"We've been travelling pretty much the length and breadth of New Zealand shooting locations for The Hobbit," Jackson says in the clip above. "It's been great to get outside; it's been great to get that texture of Middle-earth into the movie after many, many weeks of shooting in the studio."
What's coolest about the clip is watching how crafty the set designers got with creating a fully functional Hobbiton. Individual homes, gardens and the Shire itself were all created for the film -- and they all look beautiful. There's a simple reason we put some of New Zealand's Lord of the Rings filming spots on our list of nerdy film locations you should visit in your lifetime: The countryside is stunning and this video only scratches the surface.
Speaking of Hobbiton and tourism, the vlog also has some great cameos from folks like 30-year-old Elijah Wood, who points out that he turned 19 in Hobbiton, and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key, who agrees with Jackson that the hobbit world the director has created should remain a tourist attraction for years to come.
Check out more of the insane movie logistics in the clip above. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey opens Dec. 14, 2012.
[via The Mary Sue]
