Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: Ape Evolution Video

Good Afternoon, extras junkies!! Today, we fast forward to a magical time in our not so distant future, sometime after we've drank our fill of a new film and had three days to process it before the super mega ultra Blu-ray combo pack hits stores at a super low discount price! On these magical disks, if we choose wisely, we'll find amazing extras, including my favorite features in the world...a look at the actors running through scenes, voicing CGI characters or, in the case of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, actually becoming the apes starring in the film. THE FUTURE IS WONDERFUUUULLLL!! Hit the jump for a sneak peek at Andy Serkis and company getting hairy...

The Hobbit Trailer

Because we love you. Happy Holidays!

From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of two films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The second film will be “The Hobbit: There and Back Again.”

Both films are set in Middle-earth 60 years before “The Lord of the Rings,” which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar®-winning “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”

The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers.

Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever…Gollum.

Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, and Martin Freeman in the central role of Bilbo Baggins. Also reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” movies are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; Orlando Bloom as Legolas; and Andy Serkis as Gollum. The ensemble cast also includes (in alphabetical order) Richard Armitage, John Bell, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Barry Humphries, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Evangeline Lilly, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, Mike Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott, Jeffrey Thomas, and Aidan Turner.

The screenplays for both “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” and “The Hobbit: There and Back Again” are by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson. Jackson is also producing the films, together with Fran Walsh and Carolynne Cunningham. The executive producers are Alan Horn, Ken Kamins, Toby Emmerich and Zane Weiner, with Boyens serving as co-producer.

Under Jackson’s direction, both movies are being shot consecutively in digital 3D using the latest camera and stereo technology. Filming is taking place at Stone Street Studios, Wellington, and on location around New Zealand.

Among the creative behind-the-scenes team returning to Jackson’s crew are director of photography Andrew Lesnie, production designer Dan Hennah, conceptual designers Alan Lee and John Howe, composer Howard Shore and make-up and hair designer Peter King. The costumes are designed by Ann Maskrey and Richard Taylor. The score is being composed by Howard Shore.

Taylor is also overseeing the design and production of weaponry, armour and prosthetics which are once again being made by the award winning Weta Workshop. Weta Digital take on the visual effects for both films, led by the film’s visual effects supervisor, Joe Letteri. Post production will take place at Park Road Post Production in Wellington.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” and “The Hobbit: There and Back Again” are productions of New Line Cinema and MGM, with New Line managing production. Warner Bros Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television licensing, being handled by MGM.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” will be released on December 14, 2012. The second film, “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” is slated for release the following year, on December 13, 2013.

Inside Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Will Rodman's (James Franco) pharmacological experiments with chimps leads to the birth of an animal with far superior intelligence and sense of self. As Caesar learns about the world and the inherent evils therein, he sees this isn't a very pleasant place for a being like him. He must make difficult choices to survive and eventually become a leader.

Joe Letteri, Senior VFX Supervisor states clearly that Caesar had to be a real chimp but we also have to see the evolution. He starts out as this happy little animal and as he grows he comes to wonder why he is different than the others and seeks to find his place in the world. Eventually this leads him to his role as a leader. The chimps need to be very life like, but be able to convey the deep drama of the story.




Andy Serkis takes on the daunting task of playing Caesar. After tackling roles like Gollem in Lord of the Rings and King King himself, this should have been a no-brainer! Serkis says this was his most challenging role to date. He remaked that it is one thing to play a chimp but another to play through the evolution of this animal with a father figure in James Franco. "It wasn't just doing the movements that feel like ape movements. He's an Ape plus!" Serkis' Caesar is based on a real chimp names Oliver who many believed may have been a cross between a human and a chimp. There was just something profoundly different about him and people could tell.

For WETA, "Rise" is a huge expansion from a film like King Kong. It's a complex set of problems to overcome from an acting and FX standpoint all at once. Serkis explains " The WOWS aren't in your face." He explains saying the realism in the emotional truth of the content has a far greater impact than any over the top set piece. "This doesn't feel like a visual effects film at all!"

As a fan of the original films, I'm at once insanely excited to see my heroes at WETA taking on the topic but still, a little wary. WETA got very caught up in the emotional content in King Kong and while the result was visually breathtaking, the result with a bit mellow dramatic. Does the movie going public want to see a modern Kong rampaging through the city streets, real as life and twice as terrifying or do they want to explore the gentle side of this great beast as he plays on the ice with his lady love? On that same note, do fans of the franchise want to see a very cerebral take on the ape Caesar discovering the evils of man before finally leading his monkey army against them? We've certainly seen the gonzo, action driven version. Now we'll get the other side. One thing is certain. If ANYONE can make us feel for a chimp, it's WETA and Andy Serkis.

Hit us back tomorrow when the full trailer premieres! You can watch the full interview and see new footage RIGHT NOW by CLICKING HERE!!