Wednesday, February 07, 2007

New ways of presenting history on TV

An enjoyable and detailed look at history and archaeology as presented on TV, and how advances in computer applications and technologies have advanced this: "Producers are using different approaches to revisit historical events in a new slate of documentaries.
'The only thing new in the world is the history you don’t know.' The truth of those words from former American President Harry S. Truman is evident today on television screens around the world, as documentary filmmakers dig up—literally, sometimes—new pieces of history that reveal unknown stories and use new techniques to explore and explain the events that changed the world.
Producers and distributors of historical documentaries say demand for their wares is strong. The short explanation, told before in these pages and elsewhere, is that cheaper and better computer-generated imagery along with greater skill in staging elaborate reenactments of historical events have made documentaries more attractive and entertaining to mass audiences."
See the above page for the entire article, which offers examples of shows that have been aired, and quotes film makers. One of the examples given is that of Pyramid, about the building of the Great Pyramid at Giza, told from the perspective of a fictional worker called Nakht - and attracted 11 million viewers.

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