Some Hobbit facts

Got an e-mail a week or so back from Film NZ, declaring NZ the winner of “Best Supporting Country” to film makers. They said:

“Today we are highlighting just a few of them, individuals, businesses and community groups like the Glenorchy Volunteer Fire Brigade and the entire population of gorgeous Otago town of Naseby,” she said.

Gisella Carr said the range of skills required to support a production with scale as large as The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, is incredible.

“We’re saying ‘thank you’ to people like the Canterbury weather planner, the resource consent expert from Ohope, the Queenstown based helicopter pilot, the Wellington sushi maker, the digger driver and his wife in the King Country – and of course those wonderful folk who kept the crew fed and fuelled.” 

They also had some interesting facts about the filming of The Hobbit:

• 99 sets were built
• 6750 domestic flights were taken
• 19 commercial properties were leased long term
• 93,000 hotel bed nights were sold
• 1800 rental cars were hired
• 1650 work vehicles  were used                                                                                            
• $380,000  was spent on coffee
• $9,180,000 was spent on set construction materials (with local suppliers) 
• approximately 16,000 days were worked by New Zealand actors
• $1,450,000 was spent with local food suppliers 

The NZ film and TV industry is now worth $3 billion a year to the NZ economy. Long may it keep growing.