While I was doing so, there was a choral group, with cheesy synthesizer accompaniment, singing Christmas carols in the warm Pacific sun.
What made it extra special is that every now and again, a familiar tune was sung in Maori, which makes perfect sense, in that 2/3 of the group was comprised of native islanders. They are singing to raise awareness and solicit donations to help feed the working poor in this country. Despite the fact that, for instance, restaurant workers here get a decent wage and do not depend on (nor will they accept) tips for their income, there is a certain segment of the population struggling to survive. Here, as in many countries, it is the subjugated peoples who fall into this category. Thus, the strong Maori representation at this concert.
I gotta say... despite my well-known humbuggery, it was a nice soundtrack as I blogged and uploaded photos. The Maori songs sounded especially beautiful.
The day today began bright and sunny, as opposed to last evening, which saw the fog roll in and cool things down. (Hmm... where have I experienced that before?)
After a downing a flat white and apricot danish at a nearby Mojo Coffee, I boarded the bus to Miramar, a suburb just 1/2 hour south of downtown.
There I visited The Weta Cave, which is basically a souvenir store attached to the Weta Workshop which (for the uninformed), is the company that produced The Lord of The Rings trilogy, among other cinematic works. I was there primarily for a 1 hour long behind-the-scenes tour entitled "Window on the Workshop" but that didn't stop me from geeking out in the store beforehand. As you will see, I posed for photos with a number of familiar characters. What is especially interesting is that most of these characters were wholly CGI creations. At The Cave they have been recreated in 3-dimensional form with a precision and attention to detail that is astounding but not unexpected.
The tour itself was fascinating and despite the fact that photography was not allowed, it was well worth the time and expense. All manner of sets, models, costumes, weapons armor and jewelry as well as demonstrations of VFX processes were on display from movies such as LOTR, King Kong, Prince Caspian, District 9, Elysium, Avatar, and many more. There were miniatures of cities such as Minas Tirith and also what are called "bigatures" which are created in a much larger scale and with far greater, detailed complexity, in order to to satisfy closer scrutiny by the camera.
Despite knowing that moviemaking is all stagecraft and therefore "fake", it was still a bit surprising to learn that most of the weaponry is made of urethane plastic and other lightweight materials. Some swords and armor (especially those used in close-up) are made of metal but almost all the rest is plastic, painted just so to look just like bronze or steel. Even when examined from just a foot away, most of the helmets and knives appeared to be made of authentic metal. It was enlightening to discover that the blade on Gimli's axe is made of rubber.
I could go on and on but the night and I are no longer young. I will post at least one, if not two, more blog entries before things are wrapped up. There were a number of random thoughts I never got around to expounding on ad nauseum. I do want to get to them and bring things to a conclusion. But not tonight, Josephine.
I need to get it together for the long, long day ahead tomorrow. As I stated in an earlier post, I will be flying backwards thru time. I leave New Zealand on Wed. 12/11 at 1:00 PM and arrive in San Francisco on Wed. 12/11 at 10:45 AM.
Wooooo.... My head is spinning!
"Help! Mr. Wizard!"
"Drizzle, drazzle, drozzle, drome! Time for this one to come home!"
In the meantime, here are some more pix.
First group is from Weta.
Second group is Wellington City views.
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