The Wellington region of New Zealand added to its world renown when it became the source of (and much of the outdoor location for) Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings series of movies, at the start of the 21st century.
Promoter Peter Jackson started making movies at his birthplace, Pukerua Bay, a northern suburb of Porirua City midway along the region's west coast.
His work on the film trilogy was mostly done in the eastern parts of Wellington City (which is at the south-west corner of the region), notably at Weta Workshop in Miramar, and he persuaded those who backed him to stage the premiere of the third film, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, in the entertainment heart of the city in 2003.
Wellington also contained the filming locations of Lake-town and Bree in the The Hobbit trilogy.
Exhibition
From April to August 2006, New Zealand's National Museum ("Te Papa") hosted a Lord of the Rings exhibition, including a 1:72 scale model of Minas Tirith.