Written by new-contact on Nov 25, 2011. Posted in On Location

Peter Jackson’s hobbit films shoot on location at Arcadia Station near Queenstown

Peter Jackson’s hobbit films have moved to Arcadia Station, about 70 km from Queenstown on New Zealand’s South Island. Around 450 cast and crew assembled on location for the short shoot, and the local economy is thought to have benefitted to the tune of more than NZD1 million.

Jackson spoke to the Otago Daily Times about his experiences of Queenstown: “We had the weekend off and walking around Queenstown, just going shopping; I'm banging into crew the whole time, so you sort of get the feeling we've taken over Queenstown.”

We had the weekend off and walking around Queenstown, just going shopping; I'm banging into crew the whole time, so you sort of get the feeling we've taken over Queenstown.

Peter Jackson

Kevin Jennings, Executive Manager of Film Otago Southland, also spoke to the paper: “During a time that's traditionally quiet, it's great to have the boost of these crews in town spending up.”

The hobbit films are shooting across New Zealand with a combined production budget of around USD500 million. Filming was delayed for much of last year due to problems with acting unions and financial issues at MGM, which holds distribution rights.