**This is the treatment I wrote for an approximatly 10 minute long documentary on Civil War Re-enactors. For those of you who don't know the lingo, a treatment is basically a proposal for a project, with only some detail. This particular Treatment got me a 4.0! For more on the project, check out the Script.**

Every other weekend, a small group of dedicated people get together and leave the comforts of modern life to spend a few days reliving the 1860’s, the time of America’s Civil War. These people are driven by a love of history and a fear that we will repeat our mistakes if they are allowed to be forgotten. They call themselves Civil War Re-enactors. The subject of this documentary will be to take a look into what they do, and more importantly, why?

The piece will include a look at what the re-enactors have to do to accurately depict the time of the Civil War, roughly 1860-1865. This will include a look at the wardrobes that these people spend hundreds of dollars on and countless hours researching to assure period-correctness. The weapons and military strategies of the time are also carefully researched and exhibited. The food, shelter, and dialects of the time period are all painstakingly copied so that one enters an encampment actually believes they have just travel 150 years back in time.

The piece will not only look at what these people do, but more importantly, why they do it. Through a series of interviews with select members of the group, both in character and out, the piece will show what people were like 150 years ago, as well as a glimpse into the minds of the people who refuse to let us forget our heritage.

The documentary will be approximately ten minutes long and will be shot on ¾" or SVHS-C video tape. Some shooting will be on location at a Civil war encampment, including a mock battle and a look into the day to day happenings of camp life. Additional shooting, the interviews with individuals, will take place in a studio setting, although the people will be in full garb.

In making this documentary, I hope to show not only the hard work and attention to detail of the re-enactor, but also their dedication to preserving a part of our national heritage.