Oz hopes for ‘the hobbit effect’
Oz tourism chiefs are hoping Nicole Kidman’s new movie will galvanise tourism in the country…
The Lord of the Rings trilogy recast New Zealand as a nature lover's paradise and helped push the islands' global tourism income to record levels. Now, Australia's tourism leaders are turning to another celluloid extravaganza, the movie Australia, to attract a new wave of international visitors keen to experience the real thing.
Australian tourism operators who have looked with envy at their counterparts across the Tasman as The Lord of the Rings trilogy - which was filmed in New Zealand - helped cement the country's image as a verdant nature wonderland and attracted the trilogy's fans in droves. After the films were released, visits went up 22 per cent to 2.4 million a year and tourism now contributes twice as much to the national economy.
Visitor numbers to Australia have grown by 11 per cent and their spending by 10 per cent in the same period, reports the NZ Herald. The tourism industry hopes Australia will herald a revival and shift the focus of Australia's marketing back onto the vastnesss and beauty of its landscape.
A two hour advertisement
Set in the 1930 and 40s, Australia portrays the affair between an English aristocrat and a cattle drover, played by Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman respectively. But from the tourism industry's point of view, the real star is outback Australia; the film takes in a sweep of Western Australia, Darwin and the Top End.
Rather than using film clips, it is believed the filmmakers have agreed to global promotions and public relations initiatives, with details still to be worked out. These initiatives could involve location guides and giveaways tied to Australia and tailored to different countries.
A spokesperson for Tourism Australia commented. "The film is basically a two and a half hour ad. Tourism NZ had to tell everyone that Middle Earth was in fact New Zealand. We don't have to. We have got Australia in the title."
John Pugsley of South Coast Regional Tourism added: "There is still this mystique and vastness of our landscape that people who live in cramped conditions in Europe seek out in this country and I'm sure this film will play to that."
