Tourism New Zealand has unveiled the latest evolution of its
"100% Middle-earth, 100% Pure New Zealand" campaign.
It comes as the country is drawing ever nearer to the world
premiere of the upcoming epic motion picture The Hobbit: An
Unexpected Journey, a production of New Line Cinema and
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), on November 28 in
Wellington.
New creative and an interactive Middle-earth feature have been
introduced to newzealand.com, Tourism New Zealand's
website for engaging with potential visitors.
Exclusive new illustrations have been created by three talented
designers at Weta Workshop and will be used across Tourism New
Zealand's 100% Middle-earth, 100% Pure New Zealand campaign
material.
The illustrations take scenes from Tourism New Zealand's television and cinema
advertisement launched on August 23, and transform them into
the world of Middle-earth.
Kevin Bowler, Chief Executive of Tourism New Zealand says it has
been a fantastic experience to work alongside Weta Workshop on this
project.
"Working with Senior Concept Designers Paul Tobin, Nick Keller
and Gus Hunter has enabled the campaign to take a step further into
the cinematic world of Middle-earth.
"We know that over the coming weeks, hundreds of millions of
people are going to see coverage from the premiere in Wellington
and that New Zealand will be firmly in the spotlight.
"This next phase of our campaign continues to leverage that
attention and seeks to convert interest in New Zealand, into
travel.
"People can check out newzealand.com and see for themselves how
the cinematic fantasy of Middle-earth is in fact the reality of New
Zealand - and that there is a whole world of experiences to be had
and people to meet within the movie-scene style landscapes."
Paul Tobin, Weta Workshop Concept Designer says: "Typically our
designs are focussed to the moments of the journey that are touched
upon by the script. With 100% Middle-earth we had the pleasure of
venturing off the script and capturing aspects of Middle-earth
inspired by New Zealand's beauty and moments that may be happening
off camera."
Execution of the campaign shows the illustrations that feature
the characters and cultures of Middle-earth, and transform them
into real New Zealand scenes and experiences, to illustrate the
reality of a New Zealand holiday.
The pages of newzealand.com also invite viewers to take a
journey though the cinematic Middle-earth via a new feature that
showcases key filming regions, Middle-earth-themed holiday
itineraries and exclusive content from Weta Workshop.
Rik Athorne, Weta Workshop Design Studio Manager says it's been
a pleasure working with TNZ on the 100% Middle-earth
campaign.
"Having the opportunity to explore more areas of Middle-earth
has been wonderful experience. We really feel that the 100%
Middle-earth campaign captures the fantastical magic of New Zealand
and hope it will continue to inspire people to visit and experience
it for themselves."
The new creative and content will appear across a range of
marketing campaign executions including newzealand.com, online
advertising and real-world displays - the most prominent of which
is an installation at Auckland International Airport due for
completion on November 22.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and the second and
third films of The Hobbit Trilogy are productions of New
Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), with New Line
managing production. Warner Bros. Pictures is handling
worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international
territories as well as all international television distribution
being handled by MGM. The Hobbit: An Unexpected
Journey will be released in New Zealand on December 12,
2012.