 | |
| Ben Wootten | |
|---|---|
| Biographical Information | |
| Born | 28 March 1969 |
| Images | Images by Ben Wootten |
| Location | Wellington, New Zealand[1] |
| Website | Cara |
Benjamin Wootten[2] (born 28 March 1969[3] in Essex, England)[4] is a Kiwi graphic designer based in Wellington[1] who worked at Wētā Workshop. He was a designer and sculptor for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
He created art for The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game and portrayed Brand for The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game. Later, as a freelancer, he created an art print of Bag End for Wētā's store and helped design the Elves of Lindon for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
History
After completely a Zoology degree, Wootten became disillusioned with the prospect of becoming a tertiary educator of the subject and chose instead to take a design course in Christchurch, where he met Jamie Beswarick. Beswarick got him interested him in sculpting and they moved to Wellington, where they would join Wētā Workshop.[5]
While working at Wētā Workshop, he and Beswarick served as a designer and sculptor for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Based on the designs by John Howe, for The Lord of the Rings film series.[6] Wootten created a sketch for a troll.[7] He designed Aragorn's Ranger sword and Glamdring, both of which were then made by Peter Lyon.[8][9] Wootten was supportive of the more minimal armour worn by Aragorn during the Battle of the Morannon and believed that the initial design of the Witch-king during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields lead people to believe he was Sauron because it was too far removed from the Nazgûl's "Black Rider" design from The Fellowship of the Ring.[10]
He created illustrations for Decipher's The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game.[11] When Decipher, with Wētā Workshop, began producing The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game cards depicting aspects omitted from The Lord of the Rings film series as part of the "Book Cards" label, Wootten portrayed Brand[12] in two cards.[13][14] Wootten greatly enjoyed playing the role and had firm ideas of how the character should be brought to life.[12]
He later left Wētā and became a freelancer.[15][5] He created illustrations for Ares Games' The Battle of Five Armies: The Hobbit board game.[16] Wootten still did freelance work for Wētā and created the "Disturber of the Peace" art print for their store.[17][5] He as an artist and art director for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, designing swords for the Elves of Lindon.[18]
Work
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 . "Ben Wootten - Resume", archived from the original on 26 May 2026. ArtStation. Retrieved 26 May 2026
- ↑ "Hadhafang: Sword of Arwen Project (Nearly Finished)", archived from the original on 26 May 2026. sbg-sword-forum.forums.net. Retrieved 26 May 2026
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20100909232650/http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=12742, archived from the original. www.pen-paper.net
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20130326204113/http://benwootten.com/?page=about, archived from the original. benwootten.com
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Meet the Crew - The Beatons", archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Wētā Workshop. Retrieved 8 January 2014
- ↑ https://www.wetanz.com/au/the-balrog. Wētā Workshop
- ↑ . "WĒTĀ WORKSHOP DESIGN STUDIO - The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring - Conceptual Design", archived from the original on 26 May 2026. ArtStation. Retrieved 26 May 2026
- ↑ "Strider's Sword - The Master Swordsmith's Collection", archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Wētā Workshop. Retrieved 8 January 2014
- ↑ "Glamdring - The Master Swordsmith's Collection", archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Wētā Workshop. Retrieved 3 February 2014
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (extended edition), The Appendices: Weta Workshop
- ↑ Scott Bennie, Jason Durall, Sam Johnson, Aaron Rosenberg, and George Strayton, 'The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game: Isengard' (Decipher, 2005)
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 . "The Making of the Weta "Book Cards": An Interview With Weta Workshop's Daniel Falconer", archived from the original on 5 March 2008. Decipher. Retrieved 5 March 2008
- ↑ "Brand, King of Dale (14R5)". The Lord of the Rings TCG Wiki
- ↑ "Last Stand (18U21)". The Lord of the Rings TCG Wiki
- ↑ . "The Hour Of Devastation Flavor Roundup", archived from the original on 16 May 2025. Star City Games. Retrieved 26 May 2026
- ↑ "The Battle of Five Armies: a first preview - Ares Games", archived from the original on 23 January 2026. Ares Gamges. Retrieved 27 May 2026
- ↑ "Art Print - Disturber of the Peace", archived from the original on 30 December 2013. Wētā Workshop. Retrieved 30 December 2013
- ↑ . "WĒTĀ WORKSHOP DESIGN STUDIO - Rings of Power S1 - Lindon Elves", archived from the original on 8 August 2025. ArtStation. Retrieved 26 May 2026