"I have always been a fan of film. At age 13, myself and some kids in the neighborhood filmed our version of the first installment of the Star Wars Saga. Action figures were our actors, we brought them to life through stop-motion photography. Straws painted with fluorescent colors were our lasers and 'illegal' fireworks rounded out our special effects."
David D'Arcy
It was just announced the otherday that filmakers are going to bring Beaufort County's rich history to life. Most notable locations of the film will include Beaufort, Bluffton, Hilton Head and Daufuskie Island. Beaufort resident Tom Berenger has expressed interest in narrating.
Just a few weeks ago, my second book on the Civil War was just released, Civil War Tours of the LowCountry. It focuses on the Civil War in Beaufort and Jasper Counties, so I have offered my services as a technical advisor for the Antebellum and Civil War periods, maybe they will call. It will be a fun ride anyway. Enjoy the article.
Film expected to bring Lowcountry's history to life
Beaufort County's history includes important names such as Secession Oak, Gen. David Hunter and Robert Smalls, but for many Americans, the Lowcountry's past is "the greatest story never told" -- a fact two Beaufortonians are trying to change.
In 1996, Beaufort resident Gibbes McDowell vacationed in Gettysburg, Pa., the site of the largest battle of the Civil War. Having recently read "The History of Beaufort County, South Carolina," by Larry Rowland, Alexander Moore and George C. Rogers, McDowell looked at Gettysburg's historical exhibits and saw an opportunity to create similar -- but better -- interactive activities about the Lowcountry.
"(Gettysburg) had a built-to-scale 30-by-30-foot map of the battlefield, like a railroad modeler's model ... and as the narrative talked about the battle, lights would come on and off to show the movements of the troops," he said. "Beaufort's got a lot more history -- and long-lived history -- than almost any other place in the country, so I thought a modern version of that (Gettysburg) concept with lighting, film and special effects could tell the story like it's never been told before."
Nearly 12 years later, McDowell's vision is coming to fruition with a "Hollywood-quality" documentary, "The Lowcountry: America's Beginning," to be shown daily in downtown Beaufort in a theater specially designed to bring the experience to life.
"We call it a 4-D experience," said producer and director Mike Kirk of Charleston-based Gilded Age Films. "In the theater, there will be rumbling seats, rising smoke, the smell of pine. When a cannonball comes out at you, you will be able to feel the rumble and smell sulfur."
In addition, 4K-resolution cameras -- nearly four times the resolution of typical high-definition cameras -- will create image quality that will "blow people's minds," he said.
The 45-minute documentary to be shown in Beaufort will be a condensed version of a two-hour film expected to air on PBS stations nationwide.
A location has not yet been chosen for the 100-seat theater, but a deal for a 20,000-square-foot space is expected to be finalized within the next month. The theater will show "The Lowcountry" during the day and classic movies at night, and it will be accompanied by a gourmet market, a restaurant and piano bar and a gift shop full of Beaufort County-themed items of historical significance.
"It won't be the typical tour o' trash, not the same souvenirs they have everywhere else," said Scott Myers, one of the backers of the project.
"Along with the eight subsections of the story line, there will be eight subsections of retail."
Beaufort County's history goes back 10,000 years, he said, and the film will examine eight periods during that time: prehistory, French and Spanish colonialism, British colonialism, the Revolution, plantations, the Civil War, Reconstruction and modern development.
One of the documentary's narrators will be actor Keith David, who has appeared in movies such as "Platoon," "Crash" and "Armageddon" and who won an Emmy for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in the Ken Burns documentary "Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson."
Tom Berenger, who also appeared in "Platoon,"also has expressed interest in narrating, Kirk said. Berenger worked in the Lowcountry on the production of the 1983 film "The Big Chill."
Kirk estimated it will cost $1.3 million to complete "The Lowcountry," most of which is expected to be covered by grants and corporate sponsorships.
Filming is tentatively expected to begin in May, with the premiere on Labor Day.About 120 people will work on the production, including the project's "four wisemen" -- Rowland, Parris Island Museum director Stephen Wise, former Penn Center executive director Emory Campbell and Michael Taylor, author of "A History of Beaufort County."
In addition to airing on PBS, Kirk said "The Lowcountry" could end up in IMAX theaters, bringing Beaufort's rich history to audiences across the country.
"Other historic towns have successfully branded their marketing package like Williamsburg, Jamestown, Charles Town Landing," Myers said. "Beaufort history sells, and no one has ever constructed the proper vehicle to really tell the story."
"This will be the hub of the wheel of tourism. ... Everybody who makes money off tourism will benefit."
'The Lowcountry: America's Beginning'
What you can expect
"We call it a 4-D experience," said producer and director Mike Kirk of Charleston-based Gilded Age Films. "In the theater, there will be rumbling seats, rising smoke, the smell of pine. When a cannonball comes out at you, you will be able to feel the rumble and smell sulfur."
10,000 years of history
Beaufort County's history goes back 10,000 years and the film will examine eight periods during that time: prehistory, French and Spanish colonialism, British colonialism, the Revolution, plantations, the Civil War, Reconstruction and modern development.
Famous voices
• One of the documentary's narrators will be actor Keith David, who has appeared in movies such as "Platoon," "Crash" and "Armageddon" and who won an Emmy for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in the Ken Burns documentary "Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson."
• Another who has expressed interest in narrating is Tom Berenger, who also appeared in "Platoon." Berenger worked in the Lowcountry on the production of the 1983 film "The Big Chill."
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