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Behind The Scenes of THE HOBBIT Inspires!

July 11th, 2011 | Posted by jasonmckinnon in Filmmaking | Movies - (0 Comments)

I CAN’T WAIT TO GO THERE AND BACK AGAIN!

The Lord of the Rings trilogy has had an enormous impact on my life. For me, goes beyond Frodo’s epic journey to Mount Doom. It’s the documentaries that tell the story of how the film was made. I’ve watched the special features on the extended DVDs more times that the actual films. They are easily the most in depth and entertaining docs you can find. The incredibly deep emotion the filmmakers show in their interviews is remarkable. It’s about their passion for the story and the sacrifices they made to pull it off. Every single crew member and actor were committed and showed such an unbelievable love for the project.

That kind of love shows up on screen as characters we have come to love ourselves battled for the freedom of Middle Earth.

XTRA | Movies That Changed Everything: The Lord of the Rings
XTRA | Why Special Features Inspire Indie Filmmakers

THE HOBBIT MOVIES

Thankfully, after a lengthy struggle, we are finally getting not one but 2 Hobbit films.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (December 14, 2012)
The Hobbit: There And Back Again (December 13, 2013)

It’s going to be a long wait to finally see these amazing stories come to life but I’m okay with it. Mainly because the behind the scenes stories have already begun to surface online.

It’s hard to believe that these movies almost didn’t happen for about 15 billion different reasons. It’s even lost a director (Guillermo Del Toro) in the process. I think fans of the series were okay with that as Peter Jackson stepped up to finish what he started years ago.

I know these movies will be great. The book is legendary and the people behind the films have already proven their love and loyalty to J.R.R Tolkien’s wonderful creation.

What fascinates me is the story behind the scenes. It looks like, once again, we will be treated to detailed and candid stories of how this project came together and what it was like to return to Middle Earth. An unexpected journey indeed.

The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey Oin Gloin Gimli's Father

I’m still blown away that we are finally getting images and news from the SET! As a fan of film and filmmaking alike, I’m always interested in following the development of movies but I don’t think there is another like The Hobbit right now. There are movies like The Dark Knight Rises that I’m anxiously awaiting but those films are so secretive. You won’t see production diaries online anytime soon starring Christopher Nolan.

For me, part of what makes the entire story of Middle Earth special is the filmmakers journey and I can’t wait to see how it all turns out.

Why Special Features Inspire Filmmakers

April 14th, 2010 | Posted by jasonmckinnon in Filmmaking | Movies - (0 Comments)

DVD changed everything by including remarkable and inspiring special features and documentaries along with the film. While Blu Ray raised the bar significantly, a simple fact remains…

Special features truly inspire the aspiring filmmaker.

I bought my first 2 DVDs the day my dad installed a DVD-ROM in our home computer. We didn’t even have a DVD player but that didn’t stop me from purchasing:

Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace
The Matrix Revisited

Why did I choose these particular DVDs over hundreds of other films?

The making-of documentaries.

To this day they are some of my favorites. I find special features captivating and enormously entertaining because they remind me of why I wanted to become a filmmaker in the first place.

Since you’re asking, I want to be a filmmaker because there is nothing more gratifying then working creatively with people you respect and seeing an audience react to your hard work.

That’s the text book response.

Basically, making movies is fun. Watching people make movies in inspiring THUS causing me to want to make more movies… Which is fun…

Still with me?

What I love about Star Wars and Revisited is how they focus on every single aspect of the production process. I love hearing about the screenwriting process but I’m also a fan of editing featurettes and having access to both along with everything in between is what it’s all about.

The best collection of special features ever?

Which brings me to my all time favorite: The Lord Of The Rings Extended Editions.

Oh man. If you’re hungry for film making documentaries these discs should be at the top of the stack. Most documentaries you find are short and only detail 1 or 2 aspects of the film. LOTR provides 50 billion hours chronicling the entire production but also the journey of those involved, how passionate they were about the project and how they became a family.

It’s profound stuff. Inspiring to anyone but super-inspiring to this young filmmaker.

I’m about to direct another short film (The Climb) and I’ve been watching my favorite special features for weeks. As a director, nothing inspires me more than watching a good documentary about making movies.

Here are some of the best special features and documentaries in the history of the world:

Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace – The Beginning & All I Need Is An Idea
Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge Of The Sith – Within A Minute
Lord Of The Rings Extended Editions – Appendices (Of Course)
The Matrix Revisited – Documentary
Signs – Looking For Signs
Overnight – Documentary (Have The Boondock Saints on standby after viewing.)
Star Trek (Blu Ray)
Hellboy 2 – In Service Of The Demon
Finding Nemo – Making Nemo
Garden State – Making Of
Hatchet – Making Hatchet
Mission Impossible 2
The Devils Rejects – 30 Days In Hell
Waiting – That Little Extra

These are just a few of the favorites in my collection. There are so many more that I left off the list. Insane amounts of inspirational featurettes and docs. I can’t get enough.

Behind The Scenes of THE HOBBIT Inspires!

I CAN’T WAIT TO GO THERE AND BACK AGAIN!

THE HOBBIT MOVIES

Why Special Features Inspire Filmmakers

Special features truly inspire the aspiring filmmaker.

The making-of documentaries.

Still with me?

The best collection of special features ever?

What are your favorite special features and documentaries?

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