Download Greece documentary pitch

Brilliance and Bravery
The Battles of
Thermopylae and Salamis
Base Overview
• Athens and Sparta, though bitter rivals, put
aside their differences to combat the Persian
menace threatening to conquer Greece.
• As the Persians advanced, Sparta set up a
defense at Thermopylae, leading other
colonies in preparation for battle.
• Xerxes, lord of the Persians, attempted to
negotiate with Sparta…
Base Overview: Thermopylae
• Leonidas, King of Sparta, refused offers of land
and power if he surrendered, prompting the
dignitary to demand that he and his men lay
down their arms. This was the dialogue:
• Persian: “Give up your weapons!”
• Leonidas: “Come and get them!”
• Four days later, Xerxes launched his attack.
Battle Facts: By the Numbers
Thermopylae
• The Persian forces numbered 2,641,610.
• 241,400 Persian Triremes (Warships with
underwater “beaks” that could pierce the hull
of enemy ships.)
• Greeks numbered only 6,400 soldiers.
The 300 Spartans
• With Leonidas in the lead, his army-consisting of
only 300 men-slaughtered thousands of Persians.
• However, after two days, a Greek named
Ephialtes betrayed the army by showing the
Persians a path that would allow them to flank
the Greeks.
• With the Persians closing in, Leonidas sent all the
soldiers but his 300 away, promising to hold the
onslaught of Persians. Though all 300 were slain,
he allowed the Greeks to escape, and eventually
claim a victory.
Salamis
• Persia marches through and burns Athens, but
everyone has already fled.
• Themistocles, using brilliant military tactics,
traps the Persian ships in a cove and crushes
them all.
• The Greeks, against all odds, win the battle
against Persia.
Major Themes of the Movie
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Size and scope of the battle/battle strategy
Leonidas’ role in the battle
Betrayal and consequences
Athenian intelligence
Style
• The movie will be a feature-length, action
packed docu-drama.
• It will feature large amounts of Bluescreen
technology, but parts of it will be filmed on
location.
• Actors and computer animation will be
utilized.
Roles
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Leonidas: Viggo Mortenson
Xerxes: Alan Rickman
Ephialtes: Brad Dourif (Wormtounge)
Themistocles: Sir Ian McKellen
Spartan Extras: Gerard Butler
Other Greek extras: Matt Damon
Persian Extras: Samuel L. Jackson
Locations
• Salamis, Greek island for setup scenes
• New Zealand for battle scenes
• Lucasfilms studio for CGI scenes
Dialogue
• Persian Emissary: Is it really that hard to see? Lay
down your weapons and submit to Xerxes, and
you will be spared!
• Leonidas: We are Spartans! We do not surrender!
We will not take on the role of dogs! We will fight
to the last breath, and your foolish king shall see
the power of a true warrior! Of a Spartan!
• Other Spartans: YAAAAAH!!
• Leonidas: (Stabs messenger) I hope my point has
been made clear.
Movie Pitch
The greatest warriors the world has ever seen,
matched with the great intellect of the ancient
world, clashes with the Lord of one of the
biggest empires in history in two epic battles
that changed the world forever!