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As a teacher, I am always looking for ways to enhance my curriculum. One piece of literature that I work with is the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf. In doing a random search for material, I came across a website about unique project with the goal of raising $1 million dollars for the American and Norwegian Cancer Organizations. This project, Beowulf: Prince of the Geats, is a motion picture that was made by David Garrison Productions, produced by Scott Wegener, and filmed with a cast of five hundred volunteers. As the film was produced with a zero budget, all profit from this wonderful undertaking will be donated to the American and Norwegian Cancer Societies. The film is based on the 10th century Anglo-Saxon poem written in Old English, Beowulf. Beowulf, the peerless hero, is a prince of his people and a conqueror of all enemies that cross his path. He is thoroughly consumed by an unquenchable desire to rid the land of an evil that no respecter of persons, an evil that is always waiting in the darkest part of night where nightmares lurk. This particular interpretation of the story of Beowulf, in telling the tale of an ancient evil that lives on fear and death, can be looked upon as a parallel to the fight against another monster (in and of itself) - cancer: a dark, seemingly unconquerable force that unreasonably takes away life like a thief in the night. Wegener said, "[…]about the symbolic connections between Beowulf's battles and fighting cancer […]That concept/idea carried many of our cast and crew through the rough parts of production!" Mr. Wegener makes it very plain that this is not a typical Hollywood production; the project is a heroic adventure not just into the story of an ancient battle against good and evil, but also into the hearts and minds of people who are willing to give their all to fight the battle against cancer; it is a movie that he hopes will "kick cancer in its teeth." At the end of the film, along with the usual credits, runs a very long list, a list of the relatives/friends who the cast and crew have lost to cancer. When the list gets to the W's, one sees three people with the last name of Wegener. Obviously, Mr. Wegener is taking tragedy and making it into a crusade against a marauding monster that has decimated his own "tribe." Beowulf slew the evil; he was the hero – We (buyers of the DVD) can also be heroes stepping in to fight the valiant fight against an evil that knows no boundaries. Be a light. Be a hero. Join us in this epic battle.
Sincerely,
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