It was the backdrop for fictional battles between orcs and elves in "The Lord of the Rings" movies, but now New Zealand echoes to the war cries of very real foes — film producers and actors’ unions.
What began as a local skirmish over performers’ conditions on the set of Peter Jackson’s latest film "The Hobbit" threatens to "go nuclear" — in the director’s words — forcing the production out of New Zealand.
Hollywood studios, the New Zealand government and international acting unions have all flexed their muscles as a frustrated Jackson attempts to reproduce the success of his "Rings" trilogy with another Middle Earth saga.
"It sure feels like we are being attacked simply because we are a big fat juicy target, not for any wrongdoing," the Oscar-winning director said last month when the dispute erupted adding, "We haven’t even been greenlit yet!"
The production has already been stalled for years by wrangling over distribution rights, reported budget blowouts and financial woes at the MGM studio, prompting director Guillermo del Toro to quit earlier this year.
Jackson and film experts say it is not only the fate of "The Hobbit" that is on the line, but the future of New Zealand’s film industry.
The country provided a stunning location for "The Lord of the Rings," which helped establish a thriving screen industry, boosted New Zealand’s tourism profile and catapulted Jackson to the A-list of Hollywood directors.
"The film industry’s grown exponentially since ‘Lord of the Rings’," the head of Auckland university’s film school, Laurence Simmons, told AFP.
"In the 1990s, only a really small number of feature films were being produced."
New Zealand now boasts one of the world’s top digital effects studios, Weta, and has hosted shooting for blockbusters such as "The Last Samurai" starring Tom Cruise, the "Narnia" chronicles and James Cameron’s "Avatar."
The capital Wellington even considered erecting a giant "Wellywood" sign overlooking the international airport earlier this year until lawyers from Hollywood threatened a lawsuit for trademark violation.
Jackson says the longer the row continues, the higher the chance of the notoriously footloose studios moving production elsewhere.
Alternatives including Scotland, Australia and eastern Europe are already being scouted.
"If The Hobbit goes… look forward to a long dry big budget movie drought in this country," Jackson said.
The crux of the dispute is union representation. NZ Actors Equity says Jackson has refused to negotiate with it over minimum conditions for actors.
Jackson says that is the role of the New Zealand producers’ association, not individual filmmakers, and the big-budget "Hobbit" should not be used to set an industry precedent that would cripple small filmmakers.
Equity, supported by the global unions such as the International Federation of Actors and the US Screen Actors Guild, have slapped a ban on "The Hobbit" urging members not to work on the movie.
New Zealand Prime Minister John Key has urged unions not to hold the movie to ransom, echoing Jackson’s warning about the film industry’s future.
"This is a three-billion-dollar (US $2.3 billion) industry," he said. "It employs a lot of people. It’s great for New Zealand. If you can’t make ‘The Hobbit’ here, frankly, what movies are you going to make here?"
New Zealand’s Council of Trade Unions says the refusal to talk to NZ Equity is "absurd," arguing that when the Hollywood glamour is stripped away, it is an everyday case of workers trying to get fair conditions from an employer.
Every drama needs a villain and Jackson points the finger at Australian unions which helped set up NZ Equity.
"I can’t see beyond the ugly specter of an Australian bully-boy using what he perceives as his weak Kiwi cousins to gain a foothold in this country’s film industry," Jackson said.
Unions and the Screen Production and Development Association reported "productive" talks at a meeting last week but failed to break the deadlock, meaning Jackson’s epic quest to make "The Hobbit" continues.
