Hobbit Cam Mitchell's passion
Do you think you're Northland's biggest Hobbit fan? We didn't have to look far to find a man who thinks he is.
Cam Mitchell is an advertising sales consultant at the Northern Advocate with a huge knowledge of all things Hobbit.
Needless to say, Cam is very excited to see what Peter Jackson has in store for fans when The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey opens in cinemas next week.
Cam reads JRR Tolkein's The Hobbit as well as the Lord of The Rings trilogy at least once a year.
He says he has watched the Lord of the Rings trilogy so often that there is a collective groan whenever he suggests to his family that they watch one of his extended DVDs.
The fanbase, the support for the films, as well as the beautiful scenery make him feel very proud of the country.
"I don't think you could have filmed it anywhere else in the world," he says.
"We've got the sweeping vistas, the open spaces that you can't get anywhere else. It's also the Kiwi attitude, that even if it hasn't been done before, we can still give it a go."
A stand-out moment as a big fan was when he attended the world premiere of The Return of the King in Wellington in 2003 and went to the after-party.
Cam's collection of memorabilia is extensive, ranging from miniatures, to a large airbrushed original painting. He even has a fax that Peter Jackson sent him for his 40th birthday.
A sticking point for some international critics is Peter Jackson's decision to film The Hobbit in high frame rate, or HFR. After a 10-minute test screening, the general reaction was not positive. One critic said the HFR made the movie "too real".
Cam disagrees. He says: "I want a movie that is so real I can walk into it."
Cam is attending the midnight screening on December 12 in Auckland. When he was booking tickets, Event Cinemas in Whangarei could not confirm that they would have the updated system to show HFR 3D in time for the premiere. however they now have confirmed their systems have been upgraded.
He thinks he will see the film at least twice on the big screen.
Cam says "bring it on" to any other Hobbit fans who wish to challenge him for the status of Northland's biggest Hobbit fan.
If you reckon you are a bigger Hobbit fan than our Cam, let us know. Email reporters@northernadvocate.co.nz and tell us why.
