In the Lord of the Rings films, the scale illusion was accomplished by playing hobbit or dwarf actors further away from the camera than Ian McKellen, but still live on the same set. This time, however, the illusion had to be accomplished by having the other actors on a completely different set, while McKellen performed his, all alone, on a green-screen set, with only an earpiece connecting him to the performance being provided by the rest of the cast. McKellen ended up feeling lonely and frustrated, to cheer him up, the cast and crew sneaked into the tent he stayed in during breaks, and decorated it with mementos from the Lord of the Rings films, and stocked it with records and a player so he could listen to music.