[LordCrumb]

Hobbiton Red Tape Needs Untangling

The Hobbit film-makers are about to lose permission to film in Hobbiton, the location that bookends JRR Tolkien's classic tale – though that does not mean their quest is finished.

Documents issued under the Official Information Act show a crew of up to 450 were scheduled to descend on Hobbiton, near Matamata, for up to three weeks in February and March this year.

That was delayed after director Sir Peter Jackson required surgery for a perforated stomach ulcer.

Other speedbumps – including a high-profile industrial dispute and the departure of director Guillermo del Toro – have dogged the production, which lead actor Martin Freeman has laughingly referred to as suffering the "Hobbit curse".

Shooting of the films is now under way and is planned for next summer in Hobbiton.

The fictional Hobbiton, in The Shire, is where Bilbo Baggins begins and ends his quest in The Hobbit, as does Frodo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings. The same Hobbiton set used in Lord of the Rings has been refurbished for the two-part Hobbit movies.

Matamata-Piako District Council corporate and legal services manager Michelle Hawthorne said resource consent required that filming be completed by the end of next month.

"If 3 Foot 7 wants to film after this date they will need approval from council to do so, they have not applied to council yet, although I understand they are aware of this requirement," she said. A traffic management plan, needed for resource consent, had still not been approved by the council.

To shoot as planned next summer the production would have to get a new resource consent.

A spokeswoman for 3 Foot 7 said shooting in Hobbiton was still scheduled for next summer, but would not give specific dates.

The company would be reapplying to film at Hobbiton.

The documents, released by the Matamata-Piako District Council, show that $1.4 million was being spent constructing new hobbit holes, a new fake tree, and the Green Dragon Inn. They have been built to last more than 50 years.

The original resource consent was issued for the construction of Hobbiton, for use in The Hobbit, as far back as December 2009.