Wellywood is an informal name for the city of
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...
, New Zealand. The name—a conflation of Wellington and
Hollywood—is a reference to the film production business established in the city by
''The Lord of the Rings'' film director
Sir Peter Jackson, and Wellington-based special effects companies
Weta Workshop and
Weta Digital. The businesses operate a number of film-related facilities in the Wellington suburb of
Miramar.
In March 2010, the
Wellington Airport
Wellington International Airport (formerly known as Rongotai Airport) is an international airport located in the suburb of Rongotai in Wellington. It lies 3 NM or 5.5 km south-east from the city centre. It is a hub for Air New Zealand an ...
company announced plans to erect a
''Hollywood''-style sign ''Wellywood'' on a hillside next to the Miramar
cutting
Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force.
Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the scal ...
.
After the airport considered a range of alternatives, it was announced in May 2011 that the ''Wellywood'' sign would be going ahead.
However this was met with enormous criticism, and on 1 June 2011 it was announced that a panel would be convened to consider alternative sign options.
The panel ran a binding public poll on ''
The Dominion Post'' website with the 'Wellington Blown Away' design being chosen. The sign was erected 27 July 2012.
See also
*
List of Hollywood-inspired nicknames
*
Cinema of New Zealand
Cinema may refer to:
Film
* Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography
* Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image
** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking
...
*
Park Road Post
Park Road Post Production is an international film and television post-production facility located in Miramar, a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. Built out of the state-owned National Film Unit (NFU), the new facility opened upon completion i ...
*
Weta Digital
References
External links
Joint Wellington regional initiative to support Wellywood Massey University news article
Welcome to WellywoodArticle on the premiere of ''
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King''
Original Anti-Wellywood Facebook pageWellywood Sign GeneratorWellingtonians Against the Wellywood Sign Facebook pagecreated May 2011
Cinema of New Zealand
New Zealand slang
Wellington City
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