The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Now It's Narnia: New Zealand stands in for another fantasy world.
In the minds of millions of movie watchers around the world, New Zealand is the embodiment of Middle Earth. Next it will become Narnia.
Over fifty years ago, C.S. Lewis wrote a series of books set in a magical world discovered beyond the back of a wardrobe by a group of children. Narnia was a fabulous and sometimes frightening place populated by a diversity of beings - some familiar and others drawn from myth, fairy tale and the author's imagination. It was images of some of the central characters haunting C.S. Lewis's imagination that led to the creation of the books: "a faun carrying an umbrella, a queen in a sledge, a magnificent lion."
Now New Zealand's stunning natural scenery is being employed to bring this imaginary world to life. Battle scenes, for example, have been shot on the alpine grassland and glaciers around Flock Hill Station in the Southern Alps near Christchurch. Other scenes have been shot near Oamaru. Fresh from directing the hit animated movies Shrek and Shrek 2, New Zealand director Andrew Adamson has been charged with bringing C.S. Lewis's much-loved tales to life.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is scheduled to open in theatres in December 2005. Don't miss your chance to see New Zealand playing a starring role on the big screen once again.