Sunday, January 27, 2013

A Visit to the World of Harry Potter

 It's no secret that I'm a bit of a Harry Potter fan.  I first came to London to work on Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone back in 2000.  It was a great thrill when Warner Bros announced that  they were going to have a Harry Potter attraction up at their Leavesden Studios in honor of this very successful film franchise that spawned 8 films over 12 years.








I managed to see 4 of the 8 films while here in London, and as someone working in visual effects, I can appreciate the numbers of artists that a fantasy film series like this can employ over a long period.












The display is a terrific tribute to the craftsmanship of the artisans that labored over this film series.




It is absolutely staggering to see how many sets and costumes were created for this series, and all of them are wonderful.















From Delores Umbridge's, creepily pink office. . .




 To Professor Snapes subterranean feeling lab.  















To Dumbledore's lofty office. 





And there are so many other sets and costumes on display. 











All are wonderous works of design, and it is a fantastic celebration of the work that goes into this type of project.





They even have Butterbeer that you can drink.  It tasted just as I imagined it would when reading the books.




 The Night bus is also there in case you drink too much of it. . .





Full sized versions of some of the creatures are on display . 



As they explain on the tour, the jewel in the crown is the scale model of Hogwarts Castle.  It is a stunning piece of design and miniature work.
It was used for many exterior shots of the castle over the course of the series only to be replaced in the final film with a CG version.













The tour ends in Olivander's Wand shop, where they have on display wand boxes with the names of the over 4000 artists who contributed to the film series over its 12 year life. 









I didn't expect to be able to find my name if it was even in there, but while looking for some of my British coworkers' names, I happened across my name on a wand box.  It was a very proud and humbling experience, and one will treasure for the rest of my life. 







It was amazing to feel a part of such an incredible piece of our modern culture. 

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