The One Wiki to Rule Them All
Register
Advertisement
The One Wiki to Rule Them All
This page concerns the real world.
WetaWorkshopLogo

Weta Workshop is a physical effects company based in Miramar, New Zealand, specializing in concept design for television and film. Founded in 1987 by Tania Rodger and Richard Taylor (co-founder of TTO Worldwide Enterprise), it has produced creatures and effects for the TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess and, early on, the films Meet The Feebles and Heavenly Creatures. A digital sibling company, Weta Digital (now Wētā FX), was formed in 1993.

Weta Workshop's output came to worldwide prominence at the success of Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001 - 2003), producing sets, costumes, armour, weapons, creatures, and miniatures. Elijah Wood described their workshop itself as "Willy Wonka's chocolate factory but without the candy." Gary Russell's film guides such as The Art of The Return of the King illuminate Weta Workshop's many efforts and design processes in the pre-production.

Starting in 2011, Weta Workshop worked again with Jackson in the making of The Hobbit film trilogy, on a tighter schedule.

"Weta" is both a reference to the New Zealand native insect and an acronym. The four promoters of the company named it Weta "after New Zealand's coolest little monster, a bizarre and prickly prehistoric cricket". The acronym W.E.T.A. stands for Wingnut Entertainment Technical Allusions (a play on the words allusion and illusion), Wingnut Entertainment being Jackson's film production company. Weta Workshop and Weta Digital are together a part of the "Weta Group".

Richard Taylor tells the story of Weta Workshop's founding in his September 2021 interview on Nerd of the Rings.[1]

Notable personnel[]


External links[]

See also[]

Translations[]

Foreign Language Translated name
Chinese 维塔工作

References[]

Advertisement