Glenorchy farm becomes fulltime film set

The owner of Glenorchy’s stunning Arcadia Station has sold off all its sheep and cattle to put all its eggs into film and tourism.

Thousands of specially-bred Simmental cattle and 1800-plus Perendale sheep were sold at auction last week to farms throughout the South Island.

The 257-hectare station, bordering Diamond Lake and Mt Aspiring National Park, has been a popular location for many film shoots including The Lord of the Rings as well as countless TV commercials.

Owner Tim Edney tells The New Zealand Herald ‘‘it’s about using the land in a way that makes the most sense economically’’.

‘‘Film and tourism are where the value is for this property.’’

Film crews required minimum disruption, and that’s difficult to guarantee on a working farm, he says.

‘‘You’re either supporting filming, or you’re not.’’

Former owner Jim Veint, whose family bought the farm in 1951, tells the Herald he’d seen his cattle, sheep and horses develop over a lifetime.

‘‘Those bloodlines don’t just come back once they’re gone.’’

He preferred to see farming and filming co-exist — ‘‘the two can work together if managed properly’’.

‘‘The animals were part of the scenery, they helped shape the place as people know it.’’ They also helped with weed control and maintaining pasture, Veint adds.

‘‘Seeing it move away from farming is hard to accept, but that’s the way it’s gone.’’ 

scoop@scene.co.nz