Acropolis Powerpoint Pitch

Idea

When the modern and ancient worlds collide, Esme Carter is catapulted into the life of Goddess Athena, she is in situations she could’ve never imagined.

Plot

Esme Carter is a carer for her mum who has MS, but she has booked a holiday after finishing university to go to Rome and then on to Athens for the Epidaurus festival. She arrives in Rome and goes to all the sights, The Vatican City, Victor Emmanuel Monument, Trevi Fountain and Colosseum. At the airport she meets a fellow classmate and they fly to Athens together. The first day they are there they go to the festival and join in with the culture. The second day she visits the Acropolis and Parthenon, in the Parthenon she starts to hear ghostly sounds, and starts seeing things. That night in her dreams she travels back to Ancient Greece, she finds out she is Goddess Athena, they dress her and put a beautiful necklace round her neck. Over the course of the dream she does things Athena is most famous for – blinding Tiresias, giving advice to the people, winning patron deity of Athens over Poseidon and trying to stop the Trojan war, during the Trojan War she is knocked down and Esme wakes up and is in a state. She flies home that day and tells her mum all the things that happened. During a hospital appointment for her mum, Esme sees an advertisement for a job on an archaeological dig in Athens, Esme applies and months later she hears back and leaves for the dig. While there she is pulled towards a certain spot, they dig there to find a necklace, the one they put on her in her dream when she was Athena in Ancient Greece.

Set

This programme will be set in the modern day, in modern Bath, Rome and Athens but also has to go back to Ancient Greece. To be able to write accurate descriptions I will look at current programmes such as Atlantis, also set in Ancient Greece.
With the setting it has to look realistic however you can have a set in Parthenon for Ancient Greece and then move out of Athens into rural countryside and I think you’d be able to get an accurate setting.

Characters

•Esme Carter – main character

•Juliet Carter – mother of Esme

•John Carter – brother of Esme

•James Wright – classmate of Esme

•Athena – Goddess in dream

•Poseidon – God in dream

•Tiresias – Prophet in Dream

Ideal Stars

• Esme Carter - Amanda Seyfried - would be perfect for the role as she looks sweet and has the character description, she has been in a number of travel films and I think using her will bring in an overseas audience.
• Juliet Carter - This woman would be great for the role as she looks like an older version of Amanda Seyfried and so it wouldn’t be unbelievable. She would wear fashionable but comfortable clothes.
• John Carter - Chris Pine -  would be good for the role as the brother of Esme as they look the similar and I think he is great for a role as a caring family man. He would also bring in an overseas audience.
• James Wright - Alex Pettyfer - is a well spoken English man so I think he would make a good choice for the character of Esme’s classmate as he can look sophisticated and would bring in a younger audience.
• Athena - Angelina Jolie - would be good as Goddess Athena, she has previously played a role as a Goddess in Ancient Greece so would know the role. She would also bring in the American audience. She has the right look for the character also.
• Poseidon - Patrick Gorman - is old and has the ability to look exactly like Poseidon would have and I think his acting with other films would be very well demonstrated in this programme.
• Tiresias - Bertrand Bonello - has previously played this role before so he knows the traits and correct movements for the character  and looks mysterious.

Target Audience, Genre and Time Slot

My target audience is 25-50 year olds, this is because it’s not an action or comedy which I think would suit a younger audience more, but is a historical drama which, through research, I have discovered that 25 – 50 year olds are interested more in that genre. Of course other ages would also be interested in the programme and watch it but the audience I am primarily targeting is adults (between 25-50) as I think they would be more intrigued and inclined to watch it.
My screenplay is a (historical) drama and it would be a one-off special. A 1 hour episode at 9pm on a Friday on Channel 4; I have chosen this slot because it has passed the watershed so any swearing or violence would be allowed, although I’m not planning for there to be any, there may be some scenes younger children could not watch and so beyond the watershed would be a better timeslot.  Channel 4 is known for showing documentaries and historical action dramas, such as Labyrinth, so I think my show would fit in nicely with the current running and previously shown programs.

Overseas Interest

Britain is my target nation as I think we are more interested in historical dramas than any other country, this is because we are interested in history, culture and travel. However I think, due to the use of American actors, it will interest Americans who are enthusiastic about travelling and Ancient Greece and also a fan of the actors I have used.
I think other countries in Europe would also be interested however not as much as the Americans and English. Still the target audience would be 30-50 as I think it’s a more calm, slow paced type program with no comedy, just a serious drama that’s not fast paced.

Digital Tie-In

• Social Networking: Facebook – as the majority of 30-50 year olds have Facebook but no other social network, so this could be promoted on there.
• Television: adverts on channel 4 between the times of 5 and 10 as this is the most popular time period for this age range to watch television. They could watch the advert and be reminded every day until the programme is shown.
• Radio: I think promotions and advertisements on Radio 2 would be most useful as this is the most popular station for adults, advertising here would bring in a wider audience from the nation.

What makes it different

• It is different as unlike other shows similar to this, it is not fast paced or action
• It is targeted at an older audience than usual for these type of programs.
• It’s also about travel and culture