Berlin research

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nch5MbnvTqY

This video could help me in terms of research for my radio play through the way it tells the true events of what happened in Berlin at the time my Radio play is set. It also shows the people who were involved in the war and their day-to-day lives. 

Queen Death on two legs - Research

Words and music by freddie mercury

You suck my blood like a leech
You break the law and you preach
Screw my brain till it hurts
You’ve taken all my money
And you want more
Misguided old mule with your pig headed rules
With your narrow minded cronies
Who are fools of the first division
Death on two legs
You’re tearing me apart
Death on two legs
You’ve never had a heart of your own
Kill joy bad guy big talking small fry
You’re just an old barrow boy
Have you found a new toy to replace me?
Can you face me?
But now you can kiss my ass goodbye
Feel good are you satisfied?
Do you feel like suicide?
(I think you should)
Is your conscience all right
Does it plague you at night?
Do you feel good feel good?

You talk like a big business tycoon
You’re just a hot air balloon
So no one gives you a damn
You’re just an overgrown schoolboy
Let me tan your hide
A dog with disease
You’re the king of the ’sleaze’
Put your money where your mouth is
Mister know-all
Was the fin on your back
Part of the deal? (shark)
Death on two legs
You’re tearing me apart
Death on two legs
You’ve never had a heart (you never did) of your own
(right from the start)
Insane you should be put inside
You’re a sewer rat decaying in a cesspool of pride
Should be made unemployed
Then make yourself null and void
Make me feel good I feel good

I think these lyrics symbolise the pure greed and hate of people. These lyrics may help me through the way the lyrics can portray the words of both the Germans and the Jews. I think it also gives a clear idea about the Jewish families who lost their loved ones and the pain and hate they felt. It also could reflect the hate the German's had for the Jews and what they believed the Jews were

Muse- Lyrics research

The paranoia is in bloom, the PR
The transmissions will resume
They'll try to push drugs
Keep us all dumbed down and hope that
We will never see the truth around
(So come on!)

Another promise, another scene, another
A package not to keep us trapped in greed
With all the green belts wrapped around our minds
And endless red tape to keep the truth confined
(So come on!)

They will not force us
They will stop degrading us
They will not control us
We will be victorious

Interchanging mind control
Come let the revolution take its toll if you could
Flick the switch and open your third eye, you'd see that
We should never be afraid to die
(So come on!)

Rise up and take the power back, it's time that
The fat cats had a heart attack, you know that
Their time is coming to an end
We have to unify and watch our flag ascend

They will not force us
They will stop degrading us
They will not control us
We will be victorious

This song really did make me think about the attitude of both the Jews and the germans. Even though this song probably has a different meaning it made me think of what they were thinking and what they were told on both sides.

Ghetto (play)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghetto_(play)

This could help me for my final idea through the way Srulik- the narrator, has the memory of the last days of the ghetto and serves as the crux of the story- which can help me in terms of voice and narration. The characters in this play also show the different sterotypes of the Nazi German soldiers on how some were vicious in their treatment of the residents, but had an artistic and sensitive side and others who were selfish and power-hungry, and only interested an making a name for themselves

Research

Radio play: Alone in Berlin: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00vvwkc

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Book_(World_War_II)

This helped me with my radio play idea because undertsand both the families and the lives of people in both London and Germany. It also made me understand what the soldiers where meant to do during the war and the different scenarios and problems that happened to families and relationships

Interviews: Research into chosen idea

http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/features/the_boy_in_the_striped_pyjamas_interview

http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/features/the_reader_interview

This interview from the BBC of both the book and the film of The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas and The Reader would help me in terms of reseach through the way the film makers and the authors discuss what they think about the relationship of these two people and  about what people think about WW2 in today's society and the effect it had on people.

World War 2 Concentration camp research

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auschwitz_concentration_camp

After the war, it was estimated of the 107,000 Jews deported from the Netherlands between 1942 and 1944, only 5,000 survived. It was also estimated up to 30,000 Jews remained in the Netherlands, with many people aided by the Dutch underground. .

The Diary of Anne Frank:


Anne Frank's world famous diary charts two years of her life from 1942 to 1944, when her family were hiding in Amsterdam from German Nazis. The diary begins just before the family retreated into their 'Secret Annexe'. Anne Frank recorded mostly her hopes, frustrations, clashes with her parents, and observation of her companions. Its first version, which appeared in 1947, was edited by Anne's father, who removed certain family references and some of her highly intimate confessions.

Frank started to write at school, and planned to become a writer. When she heard from radio broadcast from London about the importance of war diaries and letters, and possible publication, she changed the style of her diaries. On May 20, 1944 she decided to rewrite her earlier texts, and in two and half months she produced 324 handwritten pages, which she entitled Het Achterhuis.
The family was betrayed before Frank finished her work. The final entry is 1 August 1944. On 4 August they were arrested. After the war Otto Frank combined her daughter's writings, earlier and later, into version C, which became known as the Diary of Anne Frank. First it did not sell well, but when the diary gained a wide fame in the United States, where it was dramatized and filmed, the lively and moving book sold most copies in the world in the 1960s and 1970s. Also Anne Frank Huis - the hiding-place - was opened in Amsterdam on the Prinsengracht 263. The house was given by its owner to the Anne Frank foundation.
The authenticity of the diary was examined in the 1980s, when neo-Nazis claimed that it was forged. All the versions of Anne Frank's texts were published in 1986. However, Otto Frank had put aside before the publication five diary pages, giving them later to his close friend, Cor Suijk. In these pages Ane Frank depicted her parents marriage, defended her mother, and hoped that nobody would see her writings. In 1995 selections of diary suppressed by Otto Frank were made public.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Frank

More research into Diaires of a Prisoner

Definace:
Jewish brothers in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe escape into the Belarussian forests, where they join Russian resistance fighters and endeavor to build a village in order to protect themselves and about 1,000 Jewish non-combatants.
They live, not only with the fear of discovery, contending with neighboring Soviet partisans and knowing whom to trust but also take the responsibility of looking after a large mass of fleeing Polish Jews from the German war machine. Women, men, children, the elderly and the young alike are all hiding in makeshift homes in the dark, cold and unforgiving forests in the darkest times of German occupied Eastern Europe

This gave me in depth research into what the Jews had to go through if they were not in the camps. It also gave me the idea of families sticking together and even love, marriage and children being brought in at this time of the battle. The theme of survival and safety also fits into this idea through the way the film tells the story of their journey. This film even showed jealousy of the Jews and how in some cases they turned against each other.

Boy In The Striped Pyjamas- Family secrets

http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2438725657/

This video clip from The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas gave me an idea about the secrecy of the soldiers of the camp and the true horror and realisation from their families once they got the news. This could help me through the way it as the theme of betryal and trust.

Diaries of a Prisoner

Romeo + Juilet : This could relate to my Radio play because its about two people who are in war fighting family who fall in love. Which could realte to my idea about the Jewish girl and the German soldier meeting and falling in love even though in WW2 that would never of happened or allowed.

The English Patient:
The film is set during World War II and depicts a critically burned man, at first known only as "the English patient," who is being looked after by Hana, a French-Canadian nurse in an abandoned Italian monastery. The patient is reluctant to disclose any personal information but through a series of flashbacks, viewers are allowed into his past. Set before and during World War II, The English Patient is a story of love, fate, misunderstanding and healing. Told in a series of flashbacks, the film can best be explained by unwinding it into its two chronological phases.
This can help me because it re visits stories of the past through someone's diary. It is also set during and before WW2 which shows the effect it had on everyone everywhere. It also has the theme of Jealousy, love, fate and trust which are the same themes that i would like in my radio play.

Diaries of a Prisoner- Notebook idea

Radio play idea: Memories re- awakening: The film opens with an elderly man reading out of a notebook to an elderly woman about a story between two young lovers, Allie and Noah. The story dates back to the summer of 1940 in Seabrook, South Carolina and re tells the story of how they fell in love with each other.
At which we are transported back to present day, where the elderly Noah and Allie sit in his room, and he says, "And they lived happily ever after," which makes Allie remember who she is and what happened: Allie appears at Noah's doorstep, and they embrace. Present day Allie and Noah embrace as well. A few years before, after finding out about her impending dementia, she wrote their story in the notebook with instructions for Noah inside: "The story of our lives, by Allie Calhoun. Read this to me, and I'll come back to you." But soon Allie relapses, and she finds herself in, to her, a stranger's arms. She yells for help, and nurses come to calm her down.
The next morning, Noah is found unconscious in bed, and he is rushed to the hospital. He goes to Allie's room later that night, and they start talking about how they were in love then Allie remembers who they are, they fall asleep together and die in their sleep holding hands.

Research: Actual Letter from Harold Porter to his parents when he was in a concerntration camp:

Dear Mother and Father,
You have, by this time, received a letter mentioning that I am quartered in the concentration camp at Dachau. It is still undecided whether we will be permitted to describe the conditions here, but I'm writing this now to tell you a little, and will mail it later when we are told we can.
It is difficult to know how to begin. By this time I have recovered from my first emotional shock and am able to write without seeming like a hysterical gibbering idiot. Yet, I know you will hesitate to believe me no matter how objective and factual I try to be. I even find myself trying to deny what I am looking at with my own eyes. Certainly, what I have seen in the past few days will affect my personality for the rest of my life.
We knew a day or two before we moved that we were going to operate in Dachau, and that it was the location of one of the most notorious concentration camps, but while we expected things to be grizzly, I'm sure none of us knew what was coming. It is easy to read about atrocities, but they must be seen before they can be believed. To think that I once scoffed at Valtin's "Out of the Night" as being preposterous! I've seen worse.

Third idea for Radio play- Final idea.

Diaries of a Prisoner: Drama/ Docu-Drama: Set in WW2: A story about a Jewish girl who falls in love with a young Germany soldier. They communicate through letters about what they are doing in their day-to-day. It could also show the struggle for survival as the German boy struggles to keep her safe in the camp.
Voice: 1st person: Diary enteries and letters. 3rd person: Conversations between the other characters:

Resarch for idea: The Reader, The Boy in the striped pyjamas, Schindlers List, The Notebook and The History of WW2 before and after.

Research into World War 2: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas:
SS officer Ralf and his wife Elsa move from Berlin to the countryside with their children, twelve-year-old Gretel and eight-year-old Bruno after Ralf is promoted to commandant of a Nazi concentration camp, without friends, Bruno craves companionship and adventure, and disregards his parents by sneaking into the back courtyard and emerges at an isolated, unguarded corner of the concentration camp, which he initially believes to be a farm.
There, he befriends Shmuel Jack Scanlon, a boy of the same age. Bruno returns frequently thereafter, bringing Shmuel food and playing games with him through the barbed wire fence. Shmuel gradually reveals to Bruno the truth of what is behind the fence, telling him that he and his family have been imprisoned, and forced to wear the "striped pyjamas," because they are Jews, although Bruno does not understand the significance of this at first. Bruno and Gretel's soon get a tutor, who in reality feeds a diet of antisemitism and nationalist propaganda.
In response, Gretel becomes increasingly fanatical in her support for the Third Reich, and flirting with SS Lieutenant Kurt Kotler. Bruno, however, is skeptical, as all of the Jews Bruno knows, Shmuel and the family's servant Pavel , do not resemble Lizt's teachings. He also witnesses savage, senseless acts of brutality that conflict with the propaganda ideal of military heroism, After this incident, Shmuel is sent to the commandant's home to clean the house's glasses.. When Kotler sees crumbs on Shmuel's lips, and accuses him of stealing, Shmuel tells the officer that Bruno is his friend, and Bruno gave him the cake. Frightened of Kotler, Bruno denies knowing Shmuel and claims that he was already eating the cake when he came in. Kotler informs Shmuel that they will 'have a little chat about what happens to rats who steal.' Bruno does not see Shmuel for several days, and when he eventually turns up at the fence, he has got a swollen black eye from Kotler. However, he forgives Bruno, with the two reaffirming their friendship by shaking hands through the electrified wire fence.
When Kotler absent-mindedly remarks on the stench from the crematoriums, Elsa realizes that Ralf presides over an extermination camp and not a labor camp as she has been led to believe. She angrily confronts Ralf over it, and eventually, they decide that Elsa will take the children to Heidelberg to stay with their aunt. The day before Bruno is due to leave, Shmuel reveals that his father has gone missing in the camp.
Seeing an ideal opportunity for a final adventure, Bruno digs a hole beneath the barbed wire the following morning, changes into prison clothing that Shmuel has stolen for him, and enters the camp to help Shmuel find his father. Inside, Bruno is horrified by what he sees: the dehumanization, starvation, and sickness; the very antithesis of the Theresienstadt-esque propaganda film that had shaped his prior impressions. While searching for Shmuel's father, they get intertwined with a group of inmates going to the gas chambers. Back at the house, Bruno's absence is noticed, and Elsa bursts into Ralf's meeting (which, ironically, is discussing the possibility of increasing the capacity of the crematorium), telling him that Bruno is missing.
. In the gas chambers, everyone there, including Bruno and Shmuel, is told to remove their clothes for a "shower". Along with the other Jews, Bruno and Shmuel are put into the gas chambers. Frightened and unknown what might happen, they take each other's hands. . The closing shot of the movie shows the changing room of used camp clothing, a reminder that the tragedy was not just the deaths of Bruno and Shmuel, but the deaths of millions of people in the Nazi Concentration Camps during the Holocaust.

This will help me with my final idea because it helped me realize what life was like for a normal German family during WW2. This film was also through the eyes of a child who is being brought up believing that everything that the Germans do is good however there is a certain sense of rebellion,friendship and adventure through the characters actions. It also gave me an idea of  a certain sense of adventure.

Family life also came into this film and the whole fact that many German families did split because of the realisation of what happened to the Jews, which also adds the theme of betrayal and secrets.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schindler's_List. This film gave me ideas through the way it showed the true reality and horror of the camps in Germany. It also showed the reality of some of the Nazi soldiers that worked in the camp and how badly they treated the jews and their journey to stay alive. It also inspired the idea of some German soldiers feeling sympathy for the Jews and saving them. It also is a sense of hope and freedom through what Oscar Schindler did which could relate to the German boy in my Radio Play idea.

Research of Diaries of a Prisoner idea

The reader:

Synopsis from imdb:

THE READER opens in post-WWII Germany when teenager Michael Berg becomes ill and is helped home by Hanna, a stranger twice his age. Michael recovers from scarlet fever and seeks out Hanna to thank her. The two are quickly drawn into a passionate but secretive affair. Michael discovers that Hanna loves being read to and their physical relationship deepens. Hanna is enthralled as Michael reads to her .Despite their intense bond, Hanna mysteriously disappears one day and Michael is left confused and heartbroken. Eight years later, while Michael is a law student observing the Nazi war crime trials, he is stunned to find Hanna back in his life - this time as a defendant in the courtroom. As Hanna's past is revealed, Michael uncovers a deep secret that will impact both of their lives. THE READER is a story about truth and reconciliation, about how one generation comes to terms with the crimes of another. Middle aged German barrister Michael Berg recollects to himself his lifelong acquaintance with Hanna Schmitz, a relationship with whom he never disclosed to anyone close to him. Michael first met Hanna in 1958, when he was fifteen, she thirty-six. The two had a turbulent summer long love affair, dictated by Hanna that their encounters would begin with him reading to her followed by lovemaking. Michael next encountered Hanna in 1966, when Michael, now a law student, attended the Nazi war crimes trial of six female former S.S. concentration camp guards, one of whom is Hanna. Through listening to the testimony, Michael comes to the realization that he is in possession of information which could save Hanna from a life in prison, information which she herself is unwilling to disclose. In deciding what to do, Michael is torn between his differing views of justice.

This could help me with my final idea because it has themes such as betrayal, trust and love throughout this film and which can be used in my radio play . There is also the fact that in this film the young Michael Berg always reads to Hanna which also helps me in terms of the letter writing and the characters reading their diaries.
I also like the quote which was used for the film: 'How far would you go to protect a secret'

Finding Wonderland - Trailer idea

Research: Spider: Telling the story through the characters eyes : the character never speaks until the memory re awakens: http://www.mymovies.it/trailer/?id=33954

Research into 5th idea- Gangsters

5th idea: Radio Play:
Set during the time of The Great Depression. Thriller/Drama : The story of 3 gangsters. You see their day to day life with their families and the struggle to keep their jobs secret. One day all 3 attempt rob a bank and confusion is caused as a woman and child attempt to see the leader of the group's face. One of the gangsters panic and shoots them both. The leader of the gang then goes over when hearing the gun shot and see's that it is his wife and child. He then flee's once he hears police sirens and tells his two hit men to run away and hide. A week later the leader calls the other gangster who didn't shoot his wife and child and he orders him to shoot the other hit man and his family for what he did. However the gangster can't do it because it is his brother who he has to kill. He then has to choose between money or his family.

Research:

In Bruges : This inspired me through the way. It's a gangster film with a twist. The characters who are in this film aren't the typical gangster type. They have families and you see that they are human and not just killers. There is also the problem with one of them shooting a child and the confusion and problems that follow from that.

Road To Perdition: This inspired me with the whole setting and time of the Great Depression and the lives of the hit men and their families around that time. It also inspired me with the theme of the relationship between father and son and the theme of violence as well.

Public Enemies: This film gave me an idea of the bank robberies that happened in America during the great depression. It made me thinking about the plots behind a gang of hit men and the risks they took every day just to get money.