New Hobbit Video Blog Features A Surprise Cameo And Many Dwarves

A lot of the video blogs from the set of The Hobbit has given you a look not just at the world of the movie, but the fairly astonishing scenery in New Zealand itself. But in the latest video blog, which Peter Jackson just dropped on the film's Facebook page, we focus on all the action that's happening at their Stone Street Studios in Wellington (and also a little bit at Weta, just down the road). Don't worry, the blog is just as funny, entertaining, and occasionally silly as all the others have been-- and at 14 whopping minutes long, it's pretty damn informative too. And make sure to watch until the end-- there's a special cameo that makes it worth it!

I love the energy everyone brings to their bits of narration, from the second second assistant director to the actors picking on each other and constantly exaggerating the amount of time they've been working. Sure, the blog also reveals a couple of details we'll see in the film that comes out this December-- dwarves in barrels going through white water rapids!-- but it's almost more fun to see the incredible level of detail that goes into creating absolutely everything, like the guy sitting in an office hand-lettering the sign that says "no admittance except on party business." Movies like The Hobbit are impressive on their own onscreen, but when you actually see the incredible number of people who go into making this kind of film, it blows you away all over again.

It's kind of impressive that on a set this huge, Peter Jackson and the people behind these videos blogs can get so many people to cooperate, and that so many people working behind-the-scenes on The Hobbit are so charismatic and eager to talk (well, not as surprising in the case of Orlando Bloom, I guess). Not many movies could pull off seven (and counting!) production video blogs, but as we all know, The Hobbit is pretty special. As promised by Jackson at the end, we've got just one more blog to look forward to, coming in a few weeks, and then finally the release on December 13 this year.

Katey Rich

Staff Writer at CinemaBlend