Alan (left) and Michael Perry confer with Sir Peter Jackson on the finer points of Turkish tactics.
Alan (left) and Michael Perry confer with Sir Peter Jackson on the finer points of Turkish tactics.
Thousands of toy soldiers have been made and painted for Sir Peter Jackson's giant diorama of Chunuk Bair, to be unveiled in Wellington on Anzac Day, writes Kurt Bayer.
Sir Peter Jackson has re-created his most epic battle scene yet, with a giant Gallipoli diorama.
Thousands of tiny toy soldiers have been made for the scene depicting one of New Zealand's most famous battles, Chunuk Bair.
The vast lifelike diorama set up in Wellington's old Dominion Museum building will be unveiled to the public on Anzac Day.
Last year, Sir Peter commissioned Perry Miniatures - expert toy-soldier sculptors Alan and Michael Perry - to make 4500 New Zealand and Turkish soldiers.
He asked New Zealand wargamers to help paint the 54mm (1:32 scale) pewter figurines over the following months.
Former head of the Defence Force Lieutenant General Rhys Jones, who has spearheaded the mammoth undertaking, was stunned by the response.
More than 140 wargamers "from Whangarei to Balclutha" came forward.
"If these figures had been painted overseas, the diorama would not have meant as much to New Zealand as it does now," said General Jones, who led the country's armed forces from 2011 to 2014.
"Each painter has probably spent a couple of hundred dollars of their own money to participate in this.
"But there are plenty of projects around New Zealand like this at the moment, like women knitting poppies, for example.
"It's really heart-warming to see people do this. They realise the significance of it and are all incredibly proud to be a part of it."
ANZAC troops depicted in Jackson's epic diorama
Steven Hill, from Balclutha, who proudly claims to be the "southernmost painter", has painted 20 Turks and 20 New Zealanders.
"I really enjoyed contributing, even in a small way," he said.
The mountainous terrain of the Gallipoli peninsula was built by Weta Workshop - the multiple Oscar-winning Wellington special effects company behind many of Sir Peter's blockbusters.
ANZAC troops depicted in Jackson's epic diorama
Three sculptors from Britain arrived this month to assemble the model. They were helped by more local wargamers, who spent hours painstakingly painting more figurines, sandbags, trenches and landscapes before the creation was moved to the Dominion Museum building last weekend.
General Jones did not want to give the exact size of the diorama, except to say it was "big".
"We want to give visitors a surprise when they come in. It's pretty impressive."
Weta has also played a key role in the development of a new exhibition opening to the public at Te Papa national museum tomorrow.
"Gallipoli: the scale of our war" was created by Weta Workshop co-founder Sir Richard Taylor and combines the worlds of movies, model-making, and museums to take visitors on a journey back to the Turkish peninsula.
A Te Papa spokeswoman said the show "brings together the creative artisans of Weta Workshop with the curatorial research and expertise of the national museum to create an exhibition like no other".
