CANNES SEES FIRST SCREENING OF 'LORD OF THE RINGS'

May 10, 2001May 10, 2001, 11:00 PM GMT+1

Three hundred film industry members and journalists enjoyed a 20-minute preview of The Fellowship Of The Ring, the first in an eagerly anticipated trilogy of cinema adaptations of JRR Tolkein’s famed The Lord Of The Rings series starring Sir Ian McKellen, Cate Blanchett and Ian Holm.

Producers filled a hill-top chateau outside Cannes with props from the film to create the book’s Middle Earth feel. After watching the screening, castmembers including Liv Tyler and Elijah Wood mingled with the guests.

The lavish event was all part of a £1-million publicity campaign to generate buzz for the film, which will open at Christmas time, just weeks after the debut of the first Harry Potter film. New Line Cinema, the production company behind the threee films, spent a reported £210 million filming the series consecutively in remote sections of New Zealand. “When they have spent so much making The Lord Of The Rings, this kind of event is just pocket money,” said one insider.

The Tolkien sequels are set to open in December 2002 and December 2003.

The lavish screening at a chateau outside Cannes gave guests and members of the cast a sneak preview of the first installment of The Lord Of The Rings

All three episodes of the trilogy, which stars Cate Blanchett, were shot consecutively - a cinematic first - in New Zealand

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