Bangkok--9 Mar--Tourism New Zealand
New Zealand’s charms and beauty once again drew a blockbuster film crew there to feature the destination as the background for the magical land of Terabithia. Similar to Narnia, “Bridge to Terabithia” is the family’s adventure fantasy film that will be released in theatres on March 15, 2007.
Bridge to Terabithia is based on the popular Newbery Award-winning novel by Katherine Paterson. The story is about a boy, Jess Aarons, an outsider at school and even in his own family, who has trained all summer to become the fastest kid in his middle school class, but his goal is unexpectedly thwarted by the new girl in school, Leslie Burke who competes and wins in the ‘boys-only’ race. Despite their awkward introduction, the two outsiders quickly become best friends. Leslie loves to tell stories of fantasy and magic. Jess loves to draw, but until he met Leslie it was something he kept to himself. Leslie opens a new world of imagination for Jess. Together, they create the secret kingdom of Terabithia, a magical place only accessible by swinging on an old rope over a stream in the woods near their homes. There, the friends rule the kingdom, fight the Dark Master and his creatures and plot against the school bullies. Thanks to his friendship with Leslie, Jess is changed for good.
The entire movie was filmed in New Zealand. Many locations in Auckland were used in the film, such as Riverhead School that was portrayed as ‘Lark Creek School’ during the summer. About an hour northwest of Auckland is the conifer grove of Woodhill Forest, which was transformed into the backdrop of Terabithia. The forest area can be found by turning left onto Rimmer Road (signposted off State Highway 16 before Helensville) and traveling into the forest. The forest also has a network of mountain bike trails for riders of all levels. A farm near Wainui, northwest of Auckland, was the location for the stream and rope swing to enter Terabithia. The indoor scenes were filmed at the studio in Hobsonville towards the west of Auckland. The crew was also granted permission to film at the Leonardo da Vinci’s exhibition in the Auckland Memorial for the school field trip scene. Auckland City Art Gallery was also used for this scene.
The scenery in Auckland did not disappoint the crew. The natural wonders of Woodhill Forest gives the feeling that there is a real magical land hidden somewhere.
Apart from the filming locations, Auckland has a lot more to offer visitors, such as Auckland Bridge Climb. After crossing the bridge to Terabithia, try the bridge climb at Auckland Harbour Bridge for 360 degree views of the city. The same goes for Auckland’s Sky Tower, the tallest building in the Southern hemisphere. For an adrenalin rush, try Sky Jump, a 200 metre jump from Sky Tower, or a bungy jump from Auckland Harbour Bridge. A more relaxing way to see the City of Sails is on a coffee cruise with Pride of Auckland. Downtown Auckland also has many shopping areas, or catch a ferry to Waiheke Island for fine food and wine, golfing and sailing.
See how New Zealand became the magical land of Terabithia in this Walt Disney film; and when you buy two movie tickets at any SF Cinema, make sure you fill out a coupon to enter the draw to win a free holiday in New Zealand, including a return air-ticket, accommodation and tours worth a total of 360,000 baht, compliments of Tourism New Zealand and Qantas Airways.
For more information about traveling to New Zealand, visit www.newzealand.com
For media inquiries, please contact:
Tourism New Zealand — 0 2670 0114-5
Suwarat Sajamark — 08 1848 1213
Click for photo release at www.thaipr.net