The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Chronicles: Art and Design marks the beginning of a series of comprehensive and beautifully presented books created by the artists at the heart of the film-making process. The book presents hundreds of full colour conceptual drawings and paintings, along with set designs, sculpture and glorious photography across more than 200 pages. The book showcases art by the film’s concept art directors Alan Lee and John Howe, alongside work from other artists of the film’s 3 foot 7 Art Department, Costume Department and Weta Workshop. It truly is a unique opportunity to see artwork by a wide range of artists across a multitude of disciplines in the film-making community of Wellington, New Zealand and to hear directly from them about the inspiration behind their work. Included is a Foreword by Academy Award winner Dan Hennah, 3 foot 7 Production Designer for the films. The book also features commentaries by Dan, 3 foot 7 Costume Designer Ann Maskrey, Academy Award Winners Peter King, 3 foot 7 Make-up and Hair Designer, and Weta Workshop’s Design and Special Effects Supervisor Richard Taylor. In addition to artist quotes, cast members reflect on the work and share insights into their involvement in the design process.

The ultimate celebration of the first Hobbit movie reveals the culmination of the creative vision for the film through exclusive interviews with the designers, cast and crew, and more than 500 previously unpublished photographs, written and designed by the team at Weta Workshop. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Chronicles - Creatures and Characters explores the amazing cast of heroes and villains, beasts and beings that populate Middle-earth in the first chapter of Peter Jackson's film adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. Richly illustrated with behind-the-scenes photographs, digital renders and film stills, this comprehensive book goes species by species, character by character, through the film's huge ensemble of characters and bustling menagerie of creatures, both physical and digital, telling the stories of how each came to be realized for the film. In first-hand quotes from the actors, make-up artists, digital effects artists, dialect coaches, prosthetics technicians, movement coach and many other crew, the stories of the production unfold, processes are described and insights into characters shared. As a bonus feature, unique to this book, there is a special fold-out Character Size Chart, which compares all the major creatures and characters of the film, from Radagast's hedgehog friend to the towering Stone Giants! Compiled by Weta Workshop designer Daniel Falconer, and featuring a wealth of stunning imagery, this book puts the reader face to face with the Dwarf heroes of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the dark denizens of Middle-earth, such as Orcs, Goblins, Trolls and Wargs, and of course, the hobbit himself, Bilbo Baggins.