Day 17: Your a Wizard Harry

I have to admit, I've only read the Harry Potter books once. I think my brother has read them once every year since they came out, not counting the times he read them again when new titles were released. That's not to say I'm not a fan of the books or the movies. They're amazing. And today I had the opportunity to visit the England Studio set (Making of Harry Potter). It was amazing too.

Model Hogwarts used in the films

There was a lot to see and do throughout the studio tour. What really made the tour different than many other tours was the fact that the sets, props, clothing, and masks were the real items used in the movies. I'm also not just talking about trinkets and pieces of cloth. I'm talking about fully erected sets. Everything from the Great Hall to Hagrid's Shack. It was really a sight to see. 

Going along with this though, it was slightly sad to realize the secrets within the Harry Potter universe. It was almost (but not quite) like the moment you find out Santa Clause isn't real. I mean, you know deep down inside that it's really impossible that he exists, but you still hold on hope that something surreal and magical is really happening. Seeing the sets staggered and pieced together was interesting, but along with this came the sobering realization that it was all made up, computer generated, and not real magic. On the flip side, it goes to show how amazing of a job the movie studio and everyone involved did in bringing such a surreal and unbelievable story to life.

On another note, I was really impressed with the Great Hall studio set. Although it didn't have candlesticks glowing in mid-air, it was great to see all the other parts of the set brought together. It was particularly interesting to be able to compare the set to the original dining room area from Oxford university, from which it is based on (and was utilized in the first movie). I actually thought they looked quite different, but I could see some connections. 

The architectural drawings that were presented throughout the studio also really caught my attention. I came in knowing that movie productions were complex and extensive, but I actually did not know that full scale architectural drawings, scale models, and renderings where an important part of the process. It really felt like they were building an entire city. I wonder if they hire actual urban planners, architects, and landscape architects.

Architectural Drawings

It was really a fun tour, and I bought some very cool souvenirs.