On a warm Tuesday afternoon, the stars of The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim gathered at the iconic Green Dragon Inn on the Hobbiton movie set in Matamata to celebrate the film's New Zealand premiere.
The highly anticipated anime epic, directed by Kenji Kamiyama, seamlessly blends Tolkien's rich lore with the artistry of Japanese animation, and features an impressive voice cast, including Brian Cox, Gaia Wise, Luke Pasqualino, Miranda Otto, and the archival voice of the late Christopher Lee.
Set 183 years before the events of Peter Jackson's acclaimed live-action trilogy, The War of the Rohirrim chronicles the story of Helm Hammerhand (voiced by Brian Cox), the ninth King of Rohan, and his brave daughter Hera (Gaia Wise), as they face a fierce civil war fuelled by the vengeful Wulf (Luke Pasqualino).
Luke Pasqualino voices the film's antagonist Wulf. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
As the stars approached the red carpet, rolled out among the hills, they were welcomed with a powhiri and the cheers of hundreds of invited guests, which included industry titans like Jane Campion, Cliff Curtis, and Jermaine Clement.
Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
The Rohirrim crew signed autographs for fans as an endless array of drinks and food platters flowed out from the pub - but not before speaking with RNZ on the red carpet.
From Hollywood to Hobbiton. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
Executive produced by Jackson, the film takes a bold step into new territory for Tolkien's world. He told RNZ that it was important The War of the Rohirrim offered fans something new.
"After The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies, we didn't really want to do anything remotely similar to that. We thought it would be interesting that if we were going back to Middle Earth, to try different formats, tell shorter stories within that world in ways you haven't quite seen before. This particular film is an anime film but it feels like a Lord of the Rings film for sure. It's a different form of storytelling, and I think it's interesting to revisit a familiar world in an unfamiliar way."
Executive producer Peter Jackson wanted to revisit Middle Earth in a new medium. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
Phillipa Boyens, the award-winning screenwriter behind the Lord of the Rings trilogy, returned to The War of the Rohirrim as a producer. She says despite how different the visual styles are, storytelling in animation and live action are "surprisingly similar".
"You've gotta tell a good story on film, whether it's an animated film of a live action film. But what's interesting, what I've learned about anime, is it's bit more of a dance.
Peter Jackson and producer Phillipa Boyens spoke with RNZ on the red carpet. Photo: RNZ / Liam Swiggs
"Obviously the characters can't perform in the same way as a live-action performance, so it requires the director to be really interesting in the way he moves the camera, the cutting, the backdrops, all of those sorts of elements. And Kenji Kamiyama is a visual master, he's done a beautiful job, as has our incredible voice cast.
"We were so lucky ... starting with the incredible Brian Cox, but also Gaia Wise, this is one of her first lead roles in a film and she's just beautiful as Hera, she's given us a whole new heroine for Middle Earth."
Director Kenji Kamiyama brought his anime expertise to The War of the Rohirrim. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
Director Kenji Kamiyama, a legend in the anime world, is renowned for his work on iconic projects like Ghost in the Shell, Akira, and Kiki's Delivery Service. In The War of the Rohirrim, the animation style masterfully blends traditional 2D hand-drawn characters with a richly detailed, three-dimensional world.
Speaking to RNZ through an interpreter, Kamiyama said it was important the film visually aligned with the cinematic legacy of Middle Earth.
The War of the Rohirrim masterful blends anime art styles with Lord of the Rings lore. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
"We wanted it to be as real as it can be, even though it's animation, because it's a continuation of a story, there's a sequence from Rohirrim to The Lord of the Rings. Animation is something we're really strong in in Japan, so we began with that ... we used 3D for the backgrounds, creating these beautiful moving snowstorms and fire sequences and environments.
"I've very proud of every scene, and I really love all of it, but particularly the last scene, it's Hera and Wulf fighting and it changes from night to dawn. It's just a beautiful transition of time. We've worked on large scale movies before, but I know how big audiences are worldwide for Lord of the Rings so we just really wanted to show how much we can contribute, as much as the original trilogy. Of course we felt pressure but still, we worked really, really hard, and Phillipa Boyens and Peter Jackson really supported me to do this story."
Brian Cox and director Kenji Kamiyama arrive in Hobbiton for the film's New Zealand premiere. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
The new film features Cox as the voice of King Helm - a proud and hot-tempered leader of Rohan, whose warmth for his children consistently shines through his tough exterior.
For Cox, a master of voice acting and radio, it didn't take long to tap into the complexity of Helm's character.
"It helps if you've got children, I have a daughter so I know what that's all about, so a lot of that goes into it. When I'm in the studio, I've got nothing to relate to except what's on the page, and I like that. That's a discipline of years and years of doing radio.
"When you do radio, you have to bring a performance, you have to open yourself up to what's going on and just allow it to happen, so if you see me in the studio, I'm probably being a bit physical with the performance, and then it gets distilled to the actual words. With a character like Helm, it's very easy because he has such a range."
Gaia Wise says the most challenging scenes to voice were intense fighting sequences. Photo: Olivia Horrocks / SONNA STUDIOS
For Gaia Wise, the voice of Helm's daughter, Hera, the most challenging scenes to voice were the intense fighting sequences.
"With anime fight sequences, they're quite specific, so having Kenji there was an absolute dream because obviously he's a legend in the anime world, and he really helped me. But you can't move, and as an actor, you rely quite heavily on your physicality to bring out your character, so you really had to find it within the depths of your soul.
"I think it's going to be quite a beautiful thing for everyone to see - the history of Rohan, the origins of the shield maidens, and the ancestry of characters we already love, it's magical."
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim releases in cinemas on Thursday.
