Harry Potter Fan Zone - J.K. Rowling 'Fan Site Award' winner

'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2' world premiere tomorrow!

By Andy on 6 July 2011 at 14:25 GMT

The world premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in London is tomorrow!

Harry Potter Fan Zone will be on the red carpet wearing black and blue HPFZ stickers – if you see us, come and say hey.

Live stream of the premiere event:

Stay tuned for photos and videos form the event. We'll also be updating our Twitter account with live updates from the red carpet.

Tags: Deathly Hallows Movies, Exclusives, Harry Potter Fan Zone, Premieres - Comments Off - Permanent Link

Composer Alexandre Desplat talks to fan sites, Harry Potter Fan Zone

By Andy on 6 July 2011 at 13:51 GMT

Recently, Harry Potter Fan Zone, along with a number of other fan sites, spoke with composer Alexandre Desplat.

Desplat recently scored Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (he also scored part one last year).

Harry Potter Fan Zone: When you wrote the score for the film, did you find that your ideas came to you very quickly in short bursts, or did they take a long time to develop?

Alexandre Desplat: You know these films are such huge machines–there’s such a huge expectation and so much pressure from the past because its the biggest series of the last 10 years–that you have to be very careful and double-check, triple-check that every note you write is accurate and fine, and you want to challenge yourself to be, if not as good, to approach the talent of the master that John Williams is, so it requires a little bit of attention. You can’t write a score of that kind in a short amount of time so you need to really try things over and over again. Also on these big machines now, the editing keeps changing and you have to adapt to that, so you need that time to be able to write properly and accurately.

Did you compose the soundtrack for Part 2 as a follow up for Part 1 or did you treat them as separate projects?

When I first was asked to write Part 1, it was not yet signed that I would write Part 2, so, unfortunately, I could not write thinking of the two episodes at the same time. However, there are still some themes of Part 1 which continue in Part 2 like what I call the “Band of Brothers” theme when all the friends reunite at the beginning of Part 1. We hear this theme again in Part 2 and also some of the themes and motifs of “Obliviate,” the thing that opens Part 2, that comes back also in Part 2, so there is some continuity.

Did you get to see the first half of the final film with your score added to it, and how did you feel about seeing everything put together?

I saw Part 1 finished a long time again, and it was great. I think the essence of what it portrayed–the sense of loneliness and a loss of childhood–were very strong, and I think it was a great first part.

Since Deathly Hallows – Part 2 was filmed way before it normally would be, did you got more time to score the film, and if so, did that affect your scoring process at all?

I think I had a lot of time to write, a very comfortable amount of time to write, because all together writing it and composing took about three and a half to four months for each episode. When you're filming on set, you can decide on shooting all the scenes that belong to this set and then you can still change them. It's very different with the score. I had to wait until I saw Part 2 edited to be able to start putting ideas together and try to find a sense of an arc and a dramatic sense for the film. There was enough time, and it was hard work for many months but also still very inspiring.

There are quite a few deaths in this film. Which was the most difficult to write, for and were there any that hit you harder than the others?

Death is very present in the Harry Potter story from the beginning because it starts with an orphan who lost his parents, and, actually, the theme of death is very present in this episode, since Lily, Harry's mother, is the lead character of this episode. We start the film with hearing Lily’s theme, which will kind of ghost the film all along and be the music thread that will take us from the beginning to the end of the film. So that's one element of death, the people that you miss, the people that you long for, the sorrow, and the question about death and the resurrection stone and how you cope with the death of the people you love. That’s very present in the themes that are used and you see it when you see the film and hear the soundtrack that I’ve tried to be very sensitive and emotional on these matters. The other side of death is, of course, also the battles, the duels, the final battle between Harry and Voldemort, and they are both fighting for death, and there’s no mercy. So I wrote some epic and lyrical pieces for these battle moments.

Desplat conducts the score to Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Read the full article.

Tags: Alexandre Desplat, Deathly Hallows Movies, Harry Potter Fan Zone, Soundtracks - Comments Off - Permanent Link

J.K. Rowling announces 'Pottermore'

By Andy on 23 June 2011 at 11:00 GMT

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has just announced Pottermore, a "free website that builds an exciting online experience around the reading of the Harry Potter books."

Fans can register their email address with the project now, and more information will be revealed on July 31 (Harry and Jo's birthday).

Tags: J.K. Rowling, Pottermore - 2 Comments - Permanent Link

Watch the new 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2' trailer

By Andy on 17 June 2011 at 00:12 GMT

The new Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 trailer has arrived, watch it below.

Tags: Deathly Hallows Movies, Pictures - 1 Comment - Permanent Link

'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2' one sheet

By Andy on 14 June 2011 at 22:50 GMT

Check out the one sheets for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 below.

Tags: Deathly Hallows Movies, Pictures - Comments Off - Permanent Link

Eleven new 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2' posters

By Andy on 10 June 2011 at 01:36 GMT

Warner Bros. has released eleven new banners for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

Tags: Deathly Hallows Movies, Pictures - Comments Off - Permanent Link

James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) visit 'The Wizarding World of Harry Potter'

By Andy on 10 June 2011 at 01:26 GMT

James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) recently visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park in Florida, a photo of which can be seen below.

Tags: James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Pictures, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - 1 Comment - Permanent Link

'Deathly Hallows: Part 2' featurette looks back at the Harry Potter films so far, includes first screen test

By Andy on 10 June 2011 at 01:19 GMT

Check out this featurette for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 which includes a look back at the Harry Potter films so far, some new footage from Deathly Hallows: Part 2, and the first combined screen test with Dan, Rupert and Emma.

Tags: Deathly Hallows Movies, Videos - Comments Off - Permanent Link

Bellatrix and Snape 'Deathly Hallows: Part 2' posters complete the set

By Andy on 4 June 2011 at 07:11 GMT

Check them out below. If you missed any of the earlier posters, links are also below.