Hellenic mythology brought to life on film

This blog post is not late because I got out of  bed too late but because I literally could not get our home internet to function so I had to type this up on my phone. Needless to say, that took a little longer. If any of the links don't work, I'll come back to those when our wifi stops sucking. I'll also spell-check this then. Sorry. I also wrote a 'Z' post on my phone this morning, not realizing we had only just reached the 'Y'-s. Yes, it's one of those days. Unfortunately, I have absolutely no inspiration for a 'Y' post at the moment, plus I need to go. As such, I'm going to leave you with something else that is awesome: a Kickstarter to make a film based on Hellenic mythology that is actually historically accurate.

"Before there was shakespearre’s Romeo and Juliet, before even Britain’s Tristan & Isolde there was Greece’s Hero & Leander. A love story nearly lost to time itself, Absalon Films in Conjunction with Wild Oats media will be bringing one of humanity’s first love stories back to life. Set in it’s actual time period of ancient greece the film will be shot on location in Italy, California and Georgia. Art House film actor Tristan Erwin will produce and star in the film as Leander, and long time collaborator Ryan Droege will be brought on to helm the film as the Director of the picture. The film of Hero & Leander promises to be faithful to the original telling of the myth, with elements taken from the renowned poem of Hero & Leander by Christopher Marlowe circa 1591. With hollywood studios frequently taking liberties with the Greek Myths of antiquity, Absalon Films has turned to kickstarter to avoid the studios taking liberties with the story and allow for a faithful reproduction of the source material so that this classical story may live on in the world of film the way it was originally told."

Tristan Erwin, who started this kickstarter islooking to remake a classic in a truly authentic way. He describes the story as follows:

"Hero and Leander is the Greek myth relating the story of Hero, a priestess of Aphrodite who dwelt in a tower in Sestos on the European side of the Dardanelles, and Leander, a young man from Abydos on the opposite side of the strait. Leander fell in love with Hero and would swim every night across the Hellespont to be with her. Hero would light a lamp at the top of her tower to guide his way. Succumbing to Leander's soft words and to his argument that Venus, as the goddess of love, would scorn the worship of a virgin, Hero allowed him to make love to her. These trysts lasted through the warm summer. But one stormy winter night, the waves tossed Leander in the sea and the breezes blew out Hero's light; Leander lost his way and was drowned. When Hero saw his dead body, she threw herself over the edge of the tower to her death to be with him."

Admitted, it is not the most cheerful of stories, and the ending is already spoilered, but still. I most certainly would like to see this. The Kickstarter goal is set to $10.000,- and there are only 22 days more to go. So far, the pledging has been minimal, and I think that's a shame. Erwin describes where the amount of money that needs to be raised comes from:

"A great deal of time and money is needed to produce any motion picture. Absalon Films promises to keep the production costs as low as possible without damaging the quality of the final product itself. That being said, basic travel, food and lodging will still have to be provided to the cast and crew of the film as well as securing the necessary props and costumes for the production of the film. Film festival costs and advertising have also been taken into account. We hope you will consider contributing to this monumental endeavor of preserving one of humanity's first love stories. Principal photography is scheduled for the summer of 2014."

If you have a little money you can pledge, you can do so here. I love initiatives like these and hope many more are forthcoming in the future.