AICN's The Hobbit Set Report Part 5

Once again Ain't It Cool News' Quint has posted the next part of his series of set reports from The Hobbit in New Zealand. The last part (part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4) focused on filming at Denize Bluffs' forest and continues to do so here. Below are the highlights, click here for the full article and set images.

Highlights:
- Filming in the report includes a disagreement between the dwarf leader Thorin (Richard Armitage) and Gandalf and a scene of the company riding their horses and ponies near an abandoned farmhouse built specifically for the film.
- The argument is about setting camp at the farmhouse (Thorin) vs continuing to Rivendell (Gandalf).
- Since involves lots of acting scenery chewing, no Tall John stand in but Sir Ian standing on a platform that is set 2-3 feet off the ground so can have that contrast of height between the wizard and the dwarven leader.
- The confrontation leads to one of several Gandalf departures from the company. In The Hobbit books Gandalf leaving is just part of his mysterious plans often occurring suddenly and without explanation. It seems the movie is going to repurposed them for stronger dramatic beats.
- Eric Saindon, visual effects supervisor on set, is charged with making sure Weta gets all the information they need to create the visual effects for the movie. For example he photographed the abandoned farmhouse set so it could be re-created digitally if needed. A digital recreation of a set, props, etc. makes it easier to insert, remove or alter whatever is needed for the scenes.