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Newswire || ||

Wranglers Say 'Hobbit' Animals Suffered Gruesome Deaths On 'Death Trap'-Ridden Farm

Wranglers Say 'Hobbit' Animals Suffered Gruesome Deaths On 'Death Trap'-Ridden Farm

Let us weep for Rainbow the miniature Hobbit pony, whom animal wranglers on Peter Jackson's Hobbit trilogy say was the first of 27 animals to die while being housed on a production farm filled with "death traps."
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Festival Coverage || ||

SXSW: Melissa Leo Considers Post-Oscar Offers, Animal Ethics, and Her Minimalist Tour de Force Francine

Francine (2012) - Melissa Leo

Despite nabbing an Academy Award last year with her self-financed and controversial “Consider” campaign, Melissa Leo says that neither life, nor the frequency of juicy Hollywood offers coming her way, is much different now that she's an Oscar-winner. “The projects you think have been offered to me have not, I guarantee you,” she told Movieline this week at SXSW in Austin, where she and directors Melanie Shatzky and Brian M. Cassidy screened their minimalist character study Francine to critical applause. Still, Leo perseveres. And as the intimate acting showcase demonstrates, there’s plenty of reward to be had in smaller and more daring projects.
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