HOBBIT UPDATE: Production Diary #13 And Middle-Earth Chrome Experiment Live

A Journey Through Middle-earth

Tim here and Peter Jackson has brought us the 13^th production diary for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is out! First, BEWARE OF SPOILERS! There's a lot of great Behind the Scenes footage in here, and it's wonderful if you're curious about the filmmaking process, but that doesn't mean that if you're trying to preserve your viewing experience that you'll walk away without getting some undesirable information.

We also get an amazing view of the 3ality Technica 3D rigs holding Jackson's Red Epics that are shooting in HFR 3D (High Frame Rate - 48 fps). Love it!

There's a wonderful amount of humor contained in this production diary. It's funny seeing Bilbo and the dwarves playing table tennis while on break. We get some Laketown BTS that includes Stephen Fry, who might have been some of the best casting along with Sylvester McCoy. Another thing clear is how huge the sets were in these massive sound stages. Amazing to hear how much virtual water and gold the VFX guys at WETA Digital had to make. Alright, there's a lot in this one, so I won't hold you back much longer. Enjoy it below, and be sure to read after the video for information about the Google Chrome Middle-Earth Experiment:

Additionally the Chrome Experiment I wrote about a few months ago has hit the web! It's an interesting interactive map of Middle-Earth and has a few fun games and places to explore. Currently you can explore the Trollshaws, Rivendell, Dol Guldur, Thranduil's Hall, and Laketown, with The Lonely Mountain to be unlocked soon. I wish it was a little more like Google Earth in that you could zoom in to all the Middle-Earth locations and map out the land. It would be especially awesome if they had Hobbiton and the Shire. Maybe in a future update that will be possible. It's a good start for now. I'd like to be able to visit some of the locations from Lord of the Rings as well. You can check it out here: http://middle-earth.thehobbit.com

On December 13^th The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits IMAX 3D and RealD 3D screens in HFR and SFR. THIS IS A WEEK AWAY!

THE HOBBIT: Preview And Explore Middle-earth With Interactive Map On Chrome!

A Journey Through Middle-earth

Tim here. There is a cool Chrome Experiment coming to the web this fall for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. It's an interactive map! Designed by Google… that's right: Google! The best mapping company on the planet (sorry Apple) is bringing Tolkien fans a Middle-earth map experience unlike anything experienced before.

Part of Google's Chrome Experiment this interactive map will be best experienced in the web browser Chrome. The experiment uses WebGL and the Web Audio API on Chrome for Android to bring Middle-earth to life in the browser with 3D Trolls, interactive musical experiences, and more. Obviously these experiments are ploys to boost the popularity of Google's browser and mobile platform, but some of the past experiments have been proven to work on other browsers. Generally, however, they work best on the Chrome browser.

Below is a preview video of what we can expect to experience:

Keep an eye out for the entire experience coming later this year. Visit thehobbit.com/middle-earth for the experience when it hits the web. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits IMAX 3D and RealD 3D theaters December 13^th.