For anyone who has been living under a cloud, Wētā Workshop is an award-winning creative services company based in Wellington. “Wētā Workshop is one of the largest multidisciplinary creative service companies in the world. We design and manufacture for the film, television, immersive experience and creative industries, develop video games in our game studio, make premium consumer products, and share our creativity with the world through our attractions in Auckland and Wellington.” They created props, costumes and special effects for the Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, King Kong, Avatar and literally hundreds of other films, exhibits and other projects.

Wētā Workshop was born in Wellington in 1987, the brainchild of Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger, who still run the show. Already a successful company, their business exploded when a certain Peter Jackson invited them to be involved in a movie trilogy he was planning, and the rest is history!

We spent a fun and fascinating 90 minutes touring the Wētā Cave, learning about special effects and the various processes involved in getting these kinds of films made. We even got to do a little sculpting ourselves using aluminium foil. We had been led to believe you could not take photos inside, and there are some restrictions, but there were enough places where photography was welcomed to keep a couple of shutterbugs like us happy. Of course we posed for the inevitable photo op as well. Interestingly the restrictions are because Wētā themselves don’t own all the copyright – these belong to the Hollywood studios. So here’s a glimpse inside Wētā Workshop Wellington.

I think street art is a lot like Pokémon for art nerds – it gets people who would otherwise be happy curled up with a book or enjoying a nice warm indoor art gallery outside and pounding the streets! Which is what we did this afternoon. We were in a somewhat less salubrious part of Wellington, and a fair number of murals were damaged or covered in graffiti, but then we found some that we weren’t looking for – here’s a selection of the best. Eventually we were too cold and tired and headed back to the hotel to relax – and stayed for the rest of the day.

Tripod by Weta Workshop

Milarley Naught

I walk backward into the future with my eyes fixed on my past by Keri Mei Zagrobelna & Tina Rae Carter

I walk backward into the future with my eyes fixed on my past by Keri Mei Zagrobelna & Tina Rae Carter

Wild Workshop by Cracked Ink

Bird of the Century by Kiran Parbhu

by Cinzah Merkens

by BMD

Rita Angus Tribute mural by Elliot O’Donnell, aka Askew One

by CHIMP

Everything is for the best, in this best of all possible worlds by Shane McGrath

by Dside

Bowie by Xoe Hall

Tomorrow we are taking the Northern Explorer train to Auckland. Hoping for nice weather to enjoy the scenery, and a relaxing 12 hours watching the world go by.