Dead Tree Given New Life on Narnia Film Set
Greta Gerwig’s upcoming adaptation of The Magician’s Nephew may just have found its most unlikely of big-screen stars yet… a dead tree.
According to a report by Buckinghamshire-based local newspaper The Bucks Herald, the long-deceased maple tree was acquired by the Narnia production team last September from Startop Farm near Marsworth on the border of Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire in England.
Known locally for its twisted, lightning-scarred silhouette, the tree was carefully dismantled by contractors, with some branches cut and numbered so it could be reconstructed exactly on set.
The Bucks Herald
The dead maple tree was apparently spotted by a member of the production team at the Marsworth Steam Rally back in June, before being taken away for use on the Narnia film set a few months later.
According to farm owner Josie Kempster the tree will star as “one of two apple trees in the wood”, although the Bucks Herald’s paraphrasing and editorializing make it unclear as to whether they are referring to The Wood Between The Worlds or to the Tree of Protection and its associated real-world twin that is planted by Digory at the end of the book.
The image above shows the tree being carefully dismantled and raised onto a flatbed truck by staff from Greens Team Ltd; a company previously linked to The Magician’s Nephew that specializes in plant-based set dressings for film and TV productions.
Greens Team Ltd recently posted a video of a very similar looking dead tree on their Instagram account which shows how they transform the branches of dead trees to create realistic looking “live” trees; in this case for an Alice in Wonderland themed display at the recent Pinewood Studios Futures Festival.
Thanks to Kahina on our Discord server for the heads-up!
Alas!! There’s a positive about this film! Jokes aside, I dont think its wise to make judgements based off unconfirmed rumors. Looking forward to an official look at this film which releases in just 288 days!!
Given the lightning damage I wonder if it will be the one in Digory’s garden – that one does get wrecked in a storm, if I recall.
Future wardrobe I think!
Cool find! I second the comments saying this looks like the tree that gets blown down and becomes the wardrobe.
Looks like the silver apple tree, cool to see use of an actual in camera prop than a cgi tree, with some leaves on, so probably those scenes would have been shot in the later half of production. They are the most emotionally weighty, so that makes sense too
Interesting! Could be one of 4 tree-ish options (if this is Magician’s Nephew!):
1. A Tree, of a bunch of trees, in the Wood Between the Worlds
2. The Silver Apple Tree in the Garden in the Western Mountains
3. The Tree of Protection in Narnia
4. The Apple Tree planted in Digory’s backyard in London at the story’s end, which, eventually becomes the basis of The Wardrobe.
But Wait! There could also be a 5th option, which would be yet another lapse in faithfulness to the source material, but could work for the story if executed well: A dead tree in Charn.
@JFGII Oh I actually really like that 5th option! I was wondering why they would get a dead tree that looks ominous if they were just going to give it leaves. But having it be a tree in Charn would make sense why they got a dead tree instead of filming around a nice alive one. It would be especially cool if the tree is important and Digory & Polly interact with it, because then it becomes a literary allusion to the Silver Apple Tree and/or the Tree of Protection (like an ‘evil’ counterpart), being a reflection of Digory’s choices in each world.
Not to throw tinder on small flame and thus encourage rumor, but…
This fifth option idea is interesting. I think the tilt may be noteworthy. This is not exactly how I imagine the Tree of Protection; more tall, upright, strong, fierce. It could just be an artistic choice, but with the deliberate directer Gerwig is known to be, I don’t think the shape is an accident. If indeed there is going to be some sort of tree in Charn, it might look exactly like this. I think the tilt elicits age. And add to that the gnarly fingers, and broken off bits (see the stub branch to the top left, right above the tree line), and I don’t think it’s the best choice for Narnia’s natural protector… of course, that’s my opinion, and Gerwig clearly has an mind of her own. 🙂
On the other hand, if Gerwig is looking to create a classic fairytale feeling, it would make sense for the central tree to have this flare. It’s certainly an emotional tree.
If Josie Kempter got it right, then either (1) Gerwig is going to change yet another element of the story (albeit, this time not super important) and place the Tree of Protection, Digory’s garden, or a Charn tree in a wood, or (2) she’s going to stay faithful to the book, and put the tree in the Garden on the hill (only place where an apple tree is in a wood, if I remember correctly). It certainly will be exciting to see where she puts it… assuming I get that far into the film.
Nice headline ♥️
Okay that will actually be really cool! I’m excited to see what it is, and the fact they’re using a real tree other than just CGI-ing one in is a plus! Real always looks so much better. We’re nearing the finishline, folks!
This tree looks pretty dramatic and awesome! Craggy and twisted!
I know we normally say welcome to Narnia for new actors joining but for a tree? Well… Welcome to Narnia, Dead Tree! Enjoy your time! 🙂
The tree looks so ancient and intriguing! Whichever tree in the book they use it for, I think it will be really interesting. 🙂 My guess is that it will be used as the wrecked apple tree in Digory’s backyard because of its “twisting, lightning-scarred silhouette,” but it would also look amazing in the Garden. They’d have to digitally add leaves and fruit, naturally, but the contrast between the somehow already-aged tree and the fresh new world would be cool to see!
We should be about to enter week 3 of 10 of the directors cut, so I’m curious if we will only get a message around April when the directors cut is delivered
I agree book girl, welcome to the team dead tree