Post by Leanne on Oct 6, 2009 11:37:04 GMT -5
“ROME” FACT SHEET
– HBO decided to shoot “Rome” in Italy in spring 2003, and pre-production began at Rome’s legendary Cinecittà Studios that August.
– The set was designed by Joseph Bennett, and building began in November 2003. Location shooting began March 22, 2004, and the first shoot at Cinecittà began April 1, 2004. Production wrapped in May 2005.
– “Rome” is the first English-language series to be shot entirely in a non-English-speaking country.
– The Forum set is approximately 60% the size of the original Foro Romano. Twenty-five percent of the set is invisible in the form of wiring, pipes and gas to fuel its working braziers and torches. The olive trees in the Sacred Grove are over 200 years old.
– References for the vibrant colours of the temples, statues and streets, as well as graffiti and signage, are taken directly from the ruins of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Ostia.
– The series required over 4,000 pieces of wardrobe, designed by Oscar®-nominated costume designer April Ferry; 2,500 pieces were used in the first three episodes alone. Approximately 1,250 pairs of shoes and sandals were made in Bulgaria.
– All of the fabrics used in the costume design and set dressing are authentic to the time – wool, linen, cotton and silk. Fabrics came from Prato, Italy, as well as India, Tunisia and Morocco. They were purchased in their natural state and dyed on set.
– Two hundred and fifty chain mail tunics for soldiers, each weighing 36 pounds, were made in India, as well as 40 leather cuirasses for legionary officers.
– Leatherwork for the principal actors was done on set by Augusto and Giampaolo Grassi, second-generation craftsmen whose father created the body armour for “Cleopatra” and other period films shot at Cinecittà. The quality is such that many of those costumes are still in use decades later, rented throughout the world for other productions.
– Prototypes for helmets and other metal costume elements were handmade by metal designer Luca Giampaoli and replicated in India. He personally created all metal costume elements for the principal actors.
– “Rome” used a peak of 40 horses in one scene, and on the largest day of shooting, 750 actors/extras for the scene of Caesar’s triumph.
– Kevin McKidd and Ray Stevenson trained with sword master Giorgio Antonioni for one month before shooting, learning authentic Roman fighting techniques rarely portrayed on film or television.
– Fifty-five Italians were cast as “special ability” extras and sent to a two-week boot camp, living in tents, to train as Roman soldiers; 43 completed it.
– Battle scenes in “Rome” represent one of the first times authentic techniques are portrayed – for example, no large, slashing sword movements like Gauls and Celts used; instead the series featured a tightly-packed “Roman Wall” of men shoulder-to-shoulder, thrusting straight from above and below their shields. The front line rotated to the back every 30-45 seconds, ensuring well-rested soldiers in the fray at all times.
impulsegamer.com/wordpress/?p=3467
– HBO decided to shoot “Rome” in Italy in spring 2003, and pre-production began at Rome’s legendary Cinecittà Studios that August.
– The set was designed by Joseph Bennett, and building began in November 2003. Location shooting began March 22, 2004, and the first shoot at Cinecittà began April 1, 2004. Production wrapped in May 2005.
– “Rome” is the first English-language series to be shot entirely in a non-English-speaking country.
– The Forum set is approximately 60% the size of the original Foro Romano. Twenty-five percent of the set is invisible in the form of wiring, pipes and gas to fuel its working braziers and torches. The olive trees in the Sacred Grove are over 200 years old.
– References for the vibrant colours of the temples, statues and streets, as well as graffiti and signage, are taken directly from the ruins of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Ostia.
– The series required over 4,000 pieces of wardrobe, designed by Oscar®-nominated costume designer April Ferry; 2,500 pieces were used in the first three episodes alone. Approximately 1,250 pairs of shoes and sandals were made in Bulgaria.
– All of the fabrics used in the costume design and set dressing are authentic to the time – wool, linen, cotton and silk. Fabrics came from Prato, Italy, as well as India, Tunisia and Morocco. They were purchased in their natural state and dyed on set.
– Two hundred and fifty chain mail tunics for soldiers, each weighing 36 pounds, were made in India, as well as 40 leather cuirasses for legionary officers.
– Leatherwork for the principal actors was done on set by Augusto and Giampaolo Grassi, second-generation craftsmen whose father created the body armour for “Cleopatra” and other period films shot at Cinecittà. The quality is such that many of those costumes are still in use decades later, rented throughout the world for other productions.
– Prototypes for helmets and other metal costume elements were handmade by metal designer Luca Giampaoli and replicated in India. He personally created all metal costume elements for the principal actors.
– “Rome” used a peak of 40 horses in one scene, and on the largest day of shooting, 750 actors/extras for the scene of Caesar’s triumph.
– Kevin McKidd and Ray Stevenson trained with sword master Giorgio Antonioni for one month before shooting, learning authentic Roman fighting techniques rarely portrayed on film or television.
– Fifty-five Italians were cast as “special ability” extras and sent to a two-week boot camp, living in tents, to train as Roman soldiers; 43 completed it.
– Battle scenes in “Rome” represent one of the first times authentic techniques are portrayed – for example, no large, slashing sword movements like Gauls and Celts used; instead the series featured a tightly-packed “Roman Wall” of men shoulder-to-shoulder, thrusting straight from above and below their shields. The front line rotated to the back every 30-45 seconds, ensuring well-rested soldiers in the fray at all times.
impulsegamer.com/wordpress/?p=3467