My Earth Toy

Weta Cave, Wellington

웨타 케이브

Weta Cave, Wellington
Photo: Kristina D. C. Hoeppner (Flickr user 4nitsirk), CC BY-SA 2.0 · source

Wētā Workshop is a creative studio in the Miramar area of Wellington, New Zealand. It designs and builds props, costumes, creatures and other physical special effects for films and television. Its visitor space, the Weta Cave, lets fans see the craft up close.

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At a glance

Country
New Zealand
Location
Wellington, New Zealand
Built
1987
Type
Museum

Quick answers

Where is Weta Cave, Wellington?

Weta Cave, Wellington is in Wellington, New Zealand.

The visitor space of Wētā Workshop, the studio behind props and effects for The Lord of the Rings.

The studio became famous for its Academy Award-winning work on The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. It also runs visitor attractions in Wellington and Auckland, and it makes board games, books, big public sculptures and collectibles. Beyond films, the company has also moved into video games and immersive experiences. It is privately owned by its co-founders, Sir Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger.

How it began

Richard Taylor and Tania Rodger founded the company in 1987 under the name RT Effects. In 1993 filmmaker Peter Jackson and film editor Jamie Selkirk joined as partners, and it was renamed Weta Workshop. Early work included creatures and make-up for the TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess, plus effects for Peter Jackson's early films. In 1993 the founders also started a separate computer-effects company, which later became Wētā FX.

What does the name mean?

The company is named after the New Zealand wētā, one of the largest insects in the world. A separate company, Wētā FX (formerly Wētā Digital), makes digital effects and shares the same roots. Wētā Workshop is independent from it. Macrons, the little bars over the letter e, were added to both names in 2021. The studio became known worldwide for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies.

Fun facts

  • Wētā Workshop won Academy Awards for its work on The Lord of the Rings.
  • The name comes from the wētā, one of the world's largest insects.
  • Co-founder Richard Taylor personally won four Oscars across two Lord of the Rings films.
  • For The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, the studio made the real sets, costumes, armour, weapons, creatures and miniatures.

On the globe

The model shows the Wellington visitor space of the effects studio behind The Lord of the Rings props.

Nearby on the globe

Sources

Updated: 2026-10-14