It has also been sung by New Zealand singers Hayley Westenra and Yulia Townsend for their albums. The song was conceived as a bittersweet Elvish lament for those who have sailed across the Sundering Sea. In the commentaries and documentaries accompanying the extended DVD edition of the movie, director Peter Jackson explains that the song was partially inspired by the premature death from cancer of a young New Zealand filmmaker named Cameron Duncan whose work had impressed Jackson and his team. The first public performance of the song was at Duncan's funeral.