The History of the Silmarils - a serialization
Actually, Ethel, these last two episodes of Season 3 were almost entirely your work! I believe my contribution was limited to the 4th Age scenes whilst you did stalwart work with the Gorlim/Eilinel tragedy, as well as continuing your Himring storyline. I'm so glad we had you willing to tackle all the outlaws stuff because I know I couldn't have done it justice it...
Of course, during all this I was champing at the bit waiting to take over for Beren & Lúthien's Awfully Big Adventure!
Of course, during all this I was champing at the bit waiting to take over for Beren & Lúthien's Awfully Big Adventure!
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
Uh, well...seeing as I was charged with collating the various disparate offerings into a fairly cohesive whole, there were probably a few instances where I tweaked a word/phrase or two, but it really was all your work. Remember you wanted a "forgiveness" scene for Gorlim with Beren to give his character a sense of resolution? That's where I came back in on the act! I wasn't keen on the idea to start with, but in fact it works rather neatly in terms of foreshadowing...There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
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Voronwë the Faithful
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Good stuff! I like the exchange between Beren and the ghost of Gorlim, particularly Gorlim's comment about Beren not understanding love. That is good foreshadowing.
One niggling detail. I don't think that Beren would refer to an Orc as a "son of a whore" even to himself. Some other opprobrium would probably work better.
One niggling detail. I don't think that Beren would refer to an Orc as a "son of a whore" even to himself. Some other opprobrium would probably work better.
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
You're right... I think Ethelwynn suggested something "untranslated" originally. However, since the outlaws are speaking "our tongue" that wouldn't work either, so I put what my limited imagination came up with! Any suggestions on what might be more in keeping?
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
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Voronwë the Faithful
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Yeah, that is the usual epithet, and it's been used several times already so I'm looking for something different...one I came across is
"foul broodling of Melko"
but actually I think this might be better:
Beren: [under his breath] Not with my father’s sword, whilst I can still draw breath...
"foul broodling of Melko"
but actually I think this might be better:
Beren: [under his breath] Not with my father’s sword, whilst I can still draw breath...
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
"Spawn of Morgoth" would work if we were dealing with an Elf, but I can't see a human teenager saying anything so eloquent. At least, not the kids I raised or the ones I deal with at work. Yes, I patterned Beren's dialogue after what I hear from juvenile delinquents.
What if we just left it at "Not with my father's sword!" and let it go at that? I originally wanted a bit of profanity, but the shorter version might work if said with enough force.
My *untranslated* would have started with "mother", BTW. I knew even HBO wouldn't put that on screen.
What if we just left it at "Not with my father's sword!" and let it go at that? I originally wanted a bit of profanity, but the shorter version might work if said with enough force.
My *untranslated* would have started with "mother", BTW. I knew even HBO wouldn't put that on screen.
Bite off more than you can chew. Then, chew it. Ask for seconds.
And so, Season 4 finally brings us to the meeting of Beren and Lúthien, and the start of Beren’s Quest to wrestle a Silmaril from Morgoth’s possession. Although Tolkien gives no details, we felt that part of Beren’s descent through the Ered Gorgoroth needed to be shown, to as it helped to explain the dire state he was in when he ended up in Doriath – unkempt and looking far older than his years…like the wild animal of Thingol’s dream.
After I drafted the initial scene, SF suggested Beren should have an injury, to bring some gritty realism to our fantasy, so the spider bite was introduced. This also helped in that resulting fever made him seem to be hallucinating when he first sees Lúthien. I was concerned about how he might recover without medicine, but Ethelwynn supplied the know-how for Beren to treat himself!
In writing these scenes of the initial meeting of B&L I consulted the various sources of the story Tolkien wrote, particularly the Lay of Leithian, and tried to utilize as much detail as I could to incorporate into the version in the published SIL. One this that had to be condensed, however, was the protracted period between Beren’s first sight of Lúthien, and their actual first interaction. Tolkien has Beren wandering in Doriath for something like 9 months, falling faint and struck dumb, and so on, in the full version, which just would not work on film. So I condensed the scenario down to a few weeks (as Spring turns to Summer) and removed the struck dumb part, whilst still following the basic framework Tolkien provided.
The montage of clips showing Beren and Lúthien’s growing love for each other I visualized against this Lunatica song. There is no indication that the song is particularly inspired by Tolkien’s lovers, but the words fit almost perfectly!
A brief note regarding the “hands” scene: this was inspired by a suggestion from sauronsfinger regarding perhaps foreshadowing the loss of Beren’s hand later on. Whilst I was worried that could be a little heavy-handed, (if you’ll pardon the pun!) I thought there was a lot of promise in the idea, and he was willing to let me run with it in a more subtle fashion. Hope you like the results.
After I drafted the initial scene, SF suggested Beren should have an injury, to bring some gritty realism to our fantasy, so the spider bite was introduced. This also helped in that resulting fever made him seem to be hallucinating when he first sees Lúthien. I was concerned about how he might recover without medicine, but Ethelwynn supplied the know-how for Beren to treat himself!
In writing these scenes of the initial meeting of B&L I consulted the various sources of the story Tolkien wrote, particularly the Lay of Leithian, and tried to utilize as much detail as I could to incorporate into the version in the published SIL. One this that had to be condensed, however, was the protracted period between Beren’s first sight of Lúthien, and their actual first interaction. Tolkien has Beren wandering in Doriath for something like 9 months, falling faint and struck dumb, and so on, in the full version, which just would not work on film. So I condensed the scenario down to a few weeks (as Spring turns to Summer) and removed the struck dumb part, whilst still following the basic framework Tolkien provided.
The montage of clips showing Beren and Lúthien’s growing love for each other I visualized against this Lunatica song. There is no indication that the song is particularly inspired by Tolkien’s lovers, but the words fit almost perfectly!
A brief note regarding the “hands” scene: this was inspired by a suggestion from sauronsfinger regarding perhaps foreshadowing the loss of Beren’s hand later on. Whilst I was worried that could be a little heavy-handed, (if you’ll pardon the pun!) I thought there was a lot of promise in the idea, and he was willing to let me run with it in a more subtle fashion. Hope you like the results.
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
-
Voronwë the Faithful
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Yes, that's perfect.Elentári wrote:but actually I think this might be better:
Beren: [under his breath] Not with my father’s sword, whilst I can still draw breath...
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
Oh, okay...thanks, V! Hope you are enjoy the latest episode, too!
In this final instalment of episode 1 we catch up with those two notorious bad-boy Feanorians, Celegorm & Curufin, as they sense an opportunity for self-advancement and trouble-stirring in the wake of Beren’s arrival in Nargothrond. Thanks to Ethelwynn for helping to craft the opening scene from my initial ideas. We were pleased with the nod to book fans we managed to work in regarding Caranthir and Haleth. Then we witness the crucial scene in Finrod’s throne room, when the brothers manipulate the crowd against their king, as Finrod is trapped by his oath. I hope I have managed to do it justice.
Once again, we found ourselves needing to write key canon characters into our screenplay at the last minute, almost…with our initial decision to make Fëanor’s sons much younger than Tolkien intended, apart from Turgon, any marriages and relevant offspring prior to leaving Aman were overlooked, since the characters were unnecessary to the storyline at that point. But now we were beginning to find that we had certain characters needing to be in place for upcoming scenes. In particular, Celebrimbor needs to be in Nargothrond, old enough to repudiate his father’s deeds when Orodreth banishes them, a few episodes down the line. Rather than omit his part, we decided to get Curufin married off and become a father since he arrived at Nargothrond! Likewise, since we originally had plans to continue this screenplay through to the NA, and beyond, Finduilas would have needed to have been of age to be betrothed to Gwindor, so we will catch a glimpse of Orodreth’s children shortly.
In this final instalment of episode 1 we catch up with those two notorious bad-boy Feanorians, Celegorm & Curufin, as they sense an opportunity for self-advancement and trouble-stirring in the wake of Beren’s arrival in Nargothrond. Thanks to Ethelwynn for helping to craft the opening scene from my initial ideas. We were pleased with the nod to book fans we managed to work in regarding Caranthir and Haleth. Then we witness the crucial scene in Finrod’s throne room, when the brothers manipulate the crowd against their king, as Finrod is trapped by his oath. I hope I have managed to do it justice.
Once again, we found ourselves needing to write key canon characters into our screenplay at the last minute, almost…with our initial decision to make Fëanor’s sons much younger than Tolkien intended, apart from Turgon, any marriages and relevant offspring prior to leaving Aman were overlooked, since the characters were unnecessary to the storyline at that point. But now we were beginning to find that we had certain characters needing to be in place for upcoming scenes. In particular, Celebrimbor needs to be in Nargothrond, old enough to repudiate his father’s deeds when Orodreth banishes them, a few episodes down the line. Rather than omit his part, we decided to get Curufin married off and become a father since he arrived at Nargothrond! Likewise, since we originally had plans to continue this screenplay through to the NA, and beyond, Finduilas would have needed to have been of age to be betrothed to Gwindor, so we will catch a glimpse of Orodreth’s children shortly.
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
Only thing to note here is that in the Lay of Leithian where Sauron interrogates the disguised Elves & Beren, he states that Boldog has been recently slain during a battle in Doriath. There appears to be timing issues here that Tolkien had not considered: Thingol encounters Boldog on his way to confront Celegorm and Curufin regarding their imprisonment of Lúthien, Now this can only occur sometime after Lúthien runs away to rescue Beren, and this she does not do until she has had dreams of him in desperate trouble (ie in Sauron’s dungeons). Therefore, unless I’ve misunderstood something, Boldog cannot be dead before Finrod and Beren pitch up at Tol-in-Gaurhoth! So I have simply reworded the exchange to keep Boldog still alive but on his way to Doriath to capture Lúthien for Morgoth.
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
Oh, I only fell into this role because I was the one who worried about the little details! 
As sauronsfinger once put it:
As sauronsfinger once put it:
Talking of which, and whom, I must credit SF with the neat little scene of Morgoth and playful puppy Carcharoth at the end of this second instalment. We felt that Carcharoth needed some sort of set up for the audience before B & L meet him later on. The timing is still off a little, with the Boldog business, as now it appears Sauron knows Morgoth's intentions before he has thought of them himself!! But I can't think of a way to work it otherwise, for now.You have a great grasp of the over all picture and where each scene should fit in and how it relates to what went before and where we need to go. That sort of makes you our official compass and guide and keeps everyone and everything on the right track all going in the right direction in the right manner. Without that the whole thing falls apart like dust in the wind.
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
In this third instalment we find Lúthien wandering in the clutches of Celegorm and Curufin, who once again find opportunity presents itself.
I tackled the opening scene of her capture, and Ethelwynn composed pretty much the rest of the scenes within Nargothrond. She had some neat ideas, such as involving young Celebrimbor, and I particularly like the way Lúthien's foresight gives her a glimpse of his future importance.
I tackled the opening scene of her capture, and Ethelwynn composed pretty much the rest of the scenes within Nargothrond. She had some neat ideas, such as involving young Celebrimbor, and I particularly like the way Lúthien's foresight gives her a glimpse of his future importance.
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
Episode two ends with the climactic dungeon scene in Tol-in-Gaurhoth, intercut with Lúthien's escape.
This was a gift to write...great dramatic opportunities with inbuilt pacing due to the spacing of the deaths of the prisoners at regular intervals! Despite the liberal dose of gore, I hope that I have managed to wring out plenty of pathos as the Elves shed their lifeblood...
Perhaps this episode should come with a KLEENEX warning!
This was a gift to write...great dramatic opportunities with inbuilt pacing due to the spacing of the deaths of the prisoners at regular intervals! Despite the liberal dose of gore, I hope that I have managed to wring out plenty of pathos as the Elves shed their lifeblood...
Perhaps this episode should come with a KLEENEX warning!
There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes
~Diana Cortes
-
Voronwë the Faithful
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Very nice.
One thing I would have liked, though I'm not sure it would be very possible: a brief shot of Finrod walking beneath the trees of Eldamar beside his father, Finarfin, after he dies.
One thing I would have liked, though I'm not sure it would be very possible: a brief shot of Finrod walking beneath the trees of Eldamar beside his father, Finarfin, after he dies.
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."