Back to Middle Earth

A little under a decade since he 'wrapped' the last of his Lord of the Rings trilogy, and two years after he was dubbed a Kiwi Knight in the Queen's New Year's Honours, Sir Peter Jackson is about to unveil the first in his latest Tolkien tryptych.

The Hobbit: A Unexpected Journey is to be this year's Royal Film Performance - the 65th since A Matter of Life and Death in 1946 - on December 12 ahead of its release in 2-D, 3-D and IMAX two days later.

With Martin Freeman (below) creating the central role of Bilbo Baggins, the film and its sequels, The Desolation of Smaug and There and Back Again, to be released annually until 2014, will also signal the return of many old favourites from the earlier films.

These include Sir Ian McKellen (Gandalf), Cate Blanchett (Galadriel), Elijah Wood (Frodo), Hugo Weaving (Elrond), Sir Ian Holm (the elder Bilbo), Christopher Lee (Saruman) and, of course, Andy Serkis (Gollum).

Silver goes for gold

Previous winners of Toronto International Film Festival's People's Choice Award have included The King's Speech and Slumdog Millionaire, which both went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture.

So the Fest's presentation this year of its prestigious prize to David O (The Fighter) Russell's Silver Lining Playbook (pictured below) is perhaps the strongest hint yet of where we should start looking for Academy Award nominations come early next year.

Starring Bradley (The Hangover) Cooper and Jennifer (Hunger Games) Lawrence, the dramedy deals with mental illness and co-stars Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver as Cooper's parents.

Runner-up at Toronto was Argo, directed by and starring Ben Affleck, while the Midnight Madness Award went to Martin (In Bruges) McDonough's Seven Psychopaths, co-starring Colin Farrell, Christopher Walken and Woody Harrelson.

Feeding the Hunger

Fans of the blockbuster hit The Hunger Games won't be surprised to hear that a sequel is prepped and ready to roll. Subtitled Catching Fire, Part Two of the futuristic saga will be be shooting soon near Atlanta, Georgia, and on location in and around the beaches and jungles of Hawaii.

Directed by Francis (Water for Elephants, I Am Legend) Lawrence, the new film co-stars Jennifer Lawrence (above), Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Lenny Kravitz and Woody Harrelson. Also cast are Stanley Tucci, Elizabeth Banks, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Donald Sutherland.

The distributor, Lionsgate, has also announced a global set visit sweepstakes. Running through to October 10, there's a chance for 12 lucky fans to visit the set and interact with the cast and crew. Full rules and regulations are posted on the contest Facebook tag and at www.catchingfiresweeps.com.