"The Lord of the Rings required a commitment from our cast to learn how to swordfight, horseback ride, canoe, learn Elvish, climb mountain peaks and at the same time bring the magic and magnetism of Tolkien's characters to the screen. They were up to the task," commented producer, Barrie Osborne.

Liv Tyler, who plays Elvish Princess Arwen, was petrified of horses and took riding lessons to try and boost her confidence. New Zealand equestrian Jane Abbot doubled for Liv in many of the more energetic riding scenes while Arwen's mount, Asfaloth, was played by three different horses; Hero was used for the fast work while Florian, a 13 year old Andalusian bought especially for the movie, was used for close-ups and most of the stunt work. Liv's preferred mount was Odie, the quietest of all...but he kept the make-up department busy applying hair extensions needed for a lengthy fake mane! For close-up scenes of Arwen on horseback, Liv rode a barrel on the back of a tracking vehicle. The barrel was mounted on suspension shockers and covered in horsehide complete with mane which was bought from a tannery.

During the 18 months of filming, Jane Abbot fell in love with Florian but couldn't afford to buy him when he came up for sale, however a close friend put in a bid for the horse and presented him as a gift to Jane, who intends to stand Florian at stud as well as making public appearances with him, the most recent being the Wellington (NZ) 3DE. The last time Jane fronted there was when she placed third in her first novice three day event in 1997!

One dramatic chase scene involved jumping and galloping through dense forest. The horses–Bob, Chico and Zee–were trained cross country and polocrosse mounts and clever camera angles combined with placement of the horses gave the illusion the horses were weaving in between the trees. Their path had been graded and thoroughly checked pre-production for potential hazards. Before filming, the horses were walked along the path, then went through at the trot and canter until they were thoroughly accustomed to the area. Tree branches that appear to whip Arwen's face as she passes were made from foam. The chase ends when Arwen conjures up a tidal wave which sweeps away her pursuers and while it looks as though horses are being knocked off their feet to a watery grave, this scene was completely computer-generated.

Liv Tyler later commented, "Horses and I don't go so well together. I think they are the most beautiful animals...I just don't like being on them that much."

The movie begins with the Hobbit, Frodo and the wizard Gandalf, driving a horse and cart into the Hobbit Shire. Some children appear to set off fireworks in the back of the cart and these were also fully computer generated. The Ring is sought by the Black Riders known as Ring Wraiths (pictured below), whose horses wear elaborate saddlery made of leather with foam backing which had several layers of padding. The armour worn by the horses was specially fitted to them and the horses were accustomed to wearing this months before filming started.

Their riders rehearsed both with and without their hoods, so the horses got used to carrying face-less passengers! Any weapons carried by the riders were made of rubber or similar soft material. One of the Wraith's horses gets a nail in its hoof which appears to be covered in blood and mud but the scene was shot using a fake hoof doused with realistic make-up. When one of the Wraith riders chases a Hobbit onto a dock, his horse comes to a sudden sliding halt. Zee was used in this stunt and he had been specially trained to do sliding stops, also known as rodeo stops. He wore special shoes and the water around the dock was only knee deep. Zee actually slid right into the water during one take, but wasn't hurt. He was given antibiotics as a precaution in case the water was dirty but was fit to work again the following day.

A pack-horse whose movie name is 'Bill the Pony' was played by a horse named Shane and his seemingly overloaded pack was really a lightweight prop made of foam and dacron. Bill and his band cross steep slopes and get buried in an avalanche and all this was achieved using the blue screen technique, fake snow and painted landscapes. The avalanche was filmed in miniature and later incorporated into the movie. Where Bill the Pony appears to be stuck in deep snow, a 'panto pony' was used, which comprised two people inside a synthetic pony costume! Hobbits are small and the illusion of making them appear small in proportion to the horses was achieved by having them ride either very large or fake horses. In some of the shots, the horses are miniature ponies carrying fake Hobbits.

One of the biggest horse scenes involved the New Zealand township of Twizel, which played host to a film city of of around 600 cast and crew, caravans, buses and a camp of 350 horses. Horses and riders waiting for their turn in front of the cameras were accommodated in a huge heated tent complete with jukebox and video screens.

Filming of Lord of the Rings has been hounded by reports of cruelty to horses...all anonymous. Accusations such as bleaching a horse with peroxide, having a horse put down after it was hurt, having a horse deliberately shot so its hide could be used for Liv Tyler's 'barrel' horse...were all untrue. Also rife were reports of horses being deliberately frightened during auditions. What really happened is that a crew member flapped a coat near the horses as they cantered past to check how easily they spooked...a necessary test given the horses would be exposed to volatile battle scenes! Only a few horses were injured during filming, the usual stuff like strained tendons and the like. Three horses died during filming, all of natural causes (one from colic). Such were the accusations that the normally closed film set opened its horse training for inspection, which found the wranglers were taking the utmost care to protect the horses, who were very well cared for.

Fellowship of the Ring is the first of three Hobbit movies, all filmed concurrently in New Zealand. It's rated M so perhaps some of you reading this won't get a chance to see the movie for a while...but when you do, you'll know all about how the thrilling horse action was filmed!

Click here for our exclusive interview with Grahame Ware Jnr, horse trainer for Two Towers.

© 2002 Horsewyse Magazine

Photos courtesy Village Roadshow