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Sir Peter Jackson, after his investiture as an additional Member of the Order of New Zealand, at Government House, Wellington, on 17 September 2013. Photo by New Zealand Government, Office of the Governor-General. .

Top 10 Interesting Facts about Peter Jackson

Sir Peter Robert Jackson is a New Zealand film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the director, writer and producer of the Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001鈥�2003) and the Hobbit trilogy (2012鈥�2014), both of which are adapted from the novels of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien.

Peter Jackson was born on 31st October 1961. He is the third-highest-grossing film director of all-time, his films having made over $6.5 billion worldwide.

1. He began making short films at age 8

Director Peter Jackson at the World premiere of the third part of Lord of the Rings in Wellington, New Zealand. Photo by Stefan Servos. .

When Jackson was eight years old, his parents bought an 8-mm movie camera, and he began making short films. He later purchased a used 16-mm camera and, with his friends, began work on what started out to be another short film.

It kept growing, however, and, with the aid of a grant from the New Zealand Film Commission, Bad Taste was released in 1987. The comedy-horror movie won acclaim at the Cannes film festival and went on to become a cult favorite.

2. He worked as a photo-engraver for a Wellington newspaper

When he was 16 years old, Jackson left school and began working full-time as a photo-engraver for a Wellington newspaper, The Evening Post.

For the seven years he worked there, Jackson lived at home with his parents so he could save as much money as possible to spend on film equipment. After two years of work Jackson bought a 16 mm camera, and began shooting a film that later became Bad Taste.

3. Jackson was inspired by many films growing up

Jackson has long cited several films as influences. It is well known that Jackson has a passion for King Kong, often citing it as his favorite film and as the film that inspired him early in his life.

Jackson recalls attempting to remake King Kong when he was nine. Jackson said the 1970 film Waterloo inspired him in his youth. Other influences include George Romero, Sam Raimi and the special effects by Ray Harryhausen.

4. His film Heavenly Creatures was a big win for him

Released in 1994 after Jackson won a race to bring the story to the screen, Heavenly Creatures marked a major change for Jackson in terms of both style and tone. The real-life 1950s Parker鈥揌ulme murder case, in which two teenage girls murdered one of their mothers, inspired the film.

Heavenly Creatures was critically acclaimed and was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards and making top ten of the year lists in Time, The Guardian, The Sydney Morning Herald, and The New Zealand Herald.

5. Jackson has participated in charitable donations

Photo by Mike Walen. .

Jackson has given NZ$500,000 to embryonic stem cell research. He purchased a church in the Wellington suburb of Seatoun for $1.06 million, saving it from demolition. He also contributes his expertise to 48HOURS, a New Zealand film-making competition, through annually selecting 3 “Wildcards” for the National Final.

Jackson, a World War I aviation enthusiast, is chair of the 14鈥�18 Aviation Heritage Trust. He donated his services and provided replica aircraft to create a 10-minute multimedia display called Over the Front for the Australian War Memorial in 2008.

He contributed to the defense fund for the West Memphis Three. In 2011, Jackson and Walsh purchased 1 Kent Terrace, the home of BATS Theatre in Wellington, effectively securing the theatre’s future. This is just but to mention a few events.

6. Jackson has a keen eye for detail

Jackson was a noted perfectionist on the Lord of the Rings shoot, where he demanded numerous takes of scenes, requesting additional takes by repeatedly saying, “one more for luck”. Jackson is also renowned within the New Zealand film industry for his insistence on “coverage” 鈥� shooting a scene from as many angles as possible, giving him more options during editing.

Jackson has been known to spend days shooting a single scene. This is evident in his work where even scenes featuring simple conversations often feature a wide array of multiple camera angles and shot-sizes as well as zooming closeups on characters’ faces. One of his most common visual trademarks is shooting close-ups of actors with wide-angle lenses.

7. He has made many cameo appearances in his films

Photo by Gage Skidmore.

He appears in most films he directs mostly in cameos. For instance, in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Jackson plays a carrot-chomping citizen of Bree when the four hobbits are entering the town.

In The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Jackson plays one of the dwarves escaping from Erebor after Smaug has attacked. Jackson’s eldest son, Billy (born 1995), has made cameo appearances in almost every one of his father’s films since his birth, namely The Frighteners, The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, King Kong, The Lovely Bones, and the third film of The Hobbit trilogy. His partner and daughter have also been featured.

8. He is married to Fran Walsh

Jackson and his partner Fran Walsh, a New Zealand screenwriter, film producer, and lyricist, have two children, Billy (born 1995) and Katie (born 1996). Walsh has contributed to all of Jackson’s films since 1989, as co-writer since Meet the Feebles, and as producer since The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

She won three Academy Awards in 2003, for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Song, all for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. She has received seven Oscar nominations.

9. He is an aviation enthusiast who has a collection of planes

Jackson is an avid aviation enthusiast and owns a collection of over 40 airworthy World War I-era warbirds. They are  housed at Hood Aerodrome near Masterton, and a Gulfstream G650 in Wellington. He is also interested in building scale models and owns a company that makes models of World War I aircraft.

10. Jackson co-founded Weta Digital

Photo by New Zealand Government, Office of the Governor. .

Digital, a visual-effects company that became a leader in the field. Its credits included films by Jackson and others鈥擶eta notably worked on James Cameron鈥檚 Avatar鈥攁nd it received a number of Academy Awards for best visual effects.

In 2021 it was announced that the American company Unity would be acquiring Weta鈥檚 鈥渢ools, pipeline, technology, and engineering talent鈥� for more than $1.6 billion. As part of the deal, Weta鈥檚 digital-effects teams would remain a separate entity (WetaFX) with Jackson as the majority owner.