The full name of this exhibition is the Wuzhen International Future Vision Art Exhibition — Weta Workshop: Dr. Grordbort’s World.
I’m not sure if everyone is familiar with the renowned Weta Workshop, a film special effects company based in New Zealand founded by the famous director Peter Jackson. Initially, it primarily served films he directed, such as The Lord of the Rings trilogy. As its reputation grew, it took on special effects work for other famous films including King Kong, The Chronicles of Narnia, I, Robot, Avatar, and Fast & Furious, as well as more recent titles like Warcraft and Ghost in the Shell. A similarly famous company is Industrial Light & Magic (Industrial Light & Magic), which was founded by George Lucas to produce Star Wars.
I’m not sure why they chose to hold the exhibition in Wuzhen, but I have to say that ever since the World Internet Conference was held there, the town has become even more popular than before; the scenic area is packed with visitors even on weekdays. The exhibition is held in a venue converted from the North Gate Silk Factory, right next to a parking lot, making it very convenient. The entire exhibition consists of two main parts:
Weta Workshop 20-Year Retrospective
Weta Workshop is a world-class team that has won five Academy Awards. This 20-year retrospective comprehensively showcases the studio’s working environment, visual effects production process, and history. Massive display cabinets from Weta Workshop have been flown in directly from New Zealand.
This section primarily uses videos and physical objects to showcase Weta Workshop’s various services, including special effects makeup, visual effects, miniature models, and costume design. Each video is quite short, so you can watch them carefully. On the adjacent wall is a timeline of all works produced by Weta Workshop.
Sculptures of iconic film characters created by Weta Workshop, including Gandalf, Gollum, and the Ringwraiths
The World of Dr. Grordbort
This marks the first time the world of Dr. Grordbort has been revealed to the public with its complete visual identity. Yet even after finishing the tour, I still couldn’t quite figure out what exactly Dr. Grordbort is. At first, I thought it was a movie, but later discovered that only a brief 7-minute concept short was released back in 2011. It isn’t a novel or a video game either; apparently, it’s an original sci-fi universe designed by Weta Workshop itself, brought impressively to life. How it will eventually be presented to audiences remains unknown—for now, the official website only sells merchandise such as gun models and other collectibles.
A massive diorama combining physical models and projection mapping
Weaponry Series
Character Designs
Environment Series
In addition, there are alsoseveral large-scale outdoor sculptures
Finally, there’s a café where you can take a break, along with related merchandise available for purchase. The exhibition is still running and will continue until the end of May. If you’re interested, it’s definitely worth checking out—crowds are light, and ticket prices seem to have dropped recently. You won’t need too much time to visit; even if you look at everything carefully, about two hours should suffice, and the descriptive text throughout the exhibit is quite engaging.
Photos taken with a SONY A5100 + 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, post-processed in Lightroom.
Support
