The Making of…
Chapter 17
Elvish Boats and Lembas
I sat with Viggo, waiting for everyone else to show up on the morning that we were to be using the boats for the first time. We were sitting on one of the large, fake tree roots that make up the small dock for the boats. I eyed the small Elvish-style boats with apprehension.
“Do you think they’ll be as easy to manoeuvre as regular canoes?” I asked, looking at their narrow design.
“I suppose we’ll find out once we’re in them.” Viggo smiled as Orlando jogged over. “Hey Elf-boy!” He grinned.
“Morning.” Orlando yawned, barely noticing Vig’s new nickname for him.
The others soon arrived and Peter started talking us through what we would be doing.
Viggo, Elijah, Sean and I were to share a boat, although with that many people in it, we probably would have sunk! Luckily though, the Hobbit size-doubles would be in the boat with us for most of the time. Sean and Elijah would be getting in the boat first, so we filmed the shots of them getting in – Sean looked hilarious as the boat rocked back and forth as he got in! After Peter was happy with those shots, Viggo and I had to practice climbing in ‘gracefully’. Viggo held my hand as I stepped carefully into the boat, trying to stop myself wobbling as it rocked on the water. I got a little more confident and took another step – only to loose my balance and fall into the boat, dragging Viggo with me as it precariously tilted from side to side. Vig had landed half on top of me, and as we struggled to get up (much to the amusement of everyone watching) the boat started to tip.
“It’s tipping! It’s tipping! It’s tipping!” I cried in alarm, not wanting to end up with a soaking costume. I gripped the sides of the boat with white knuckles as it gradually stopped leaning, and Viggo and I slumped into sitting positions. I looked at him for a moment, and then we both started laughing. “Well… That went well.” I muttered sarcastically as we stood unsteadily. Viggo climbed out onto the tree roots and grabbed my hands, pulling me after him.
“I think a little more practice is needed!” Peter chuckled, “Oh, and we caught all of that on camera!”
“Fantastic.” I sighed, rolling my eyes – knowing that it would appear somewhere on the DVD…
Eventually, we got the hang of climbing into and out of the boats and were able to start filming properly. Orlando and I were doing our scene with the Lembas bread just before we climb into the boats, and we got to eat some of the wafer-like food, which tasted a lot like waffles…
“This tastes awesome!” I grinned, once the cameras had stopped rolling. “Can I have more?”
“No.” Orlando replied, holding it out of reach and speaking in a very parental manner. “You’ve already had some.”
“But I’m still hungry!” I pouted childishly as I tried to reach for it.
“How can you be? After all, one bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown man!” He grinned, quoting his line.
“Yeah? Well encase you didn’t notice, I’m not a man!” I argued, “And I haven’t had my breakfast yet…”
Our last scenes for the day were of us launching the boats. I didn’t have to do much, as Viggo was paddling for this scene. I just had to say a few lines and Vig had to paddle in front of the camera. Unfortunately, this was easier said than done. Sean – who was paddling the boat with Billy and Dom – hadn’t really gotten the hang of paddling, and would accidentally bump our boats, resulting in us spinning in all directions!
