I love that Peter Jackson isn’t being bashful about The Hobbit production process. We’ve all watched the Extended Editions and the hours of special features- we know the deal. We’ve seen the sets and the green screens and the make-up process, and it’s a credit to Jackson and crew that pulling back the curtain to that extent over the years has not diminished the magic of the end result.

So here’s the third Hobbit production diary, available on Facebook, and it gives us a pretty in-depth look at the troupe of dwarves and the thoughts of the men behind the make-up. We get a wide glimpse of the different shooting environments, the different scenes they’re tackling, and their training process. There are also tidbits of the scene in Gollum’s cave, and some more of Serkis doing his second unit director duties.

Going back to the dwarves, I have to say I’m even more impressed by the make-up then I expected to be. Each dwarf looks like a perfect example of the kind of extremely stylized fantasy dwarf you would see in a book illustration, and yet here they are come to life. Each looks like a living breathing creature of flesh, and yet have the qualities of a cartoon. I bet they’re going to look great in the finished product.

Peter also gets to have some fun with a goofy bit about being lost that ends with a welcome cameo at the very end. Enjoy!

Let me know on twitter, in the comments, or on the boards if you’re enjoying these diaries as much as I am!