In the 18th century both Common Sense and The Rights of Man sold more copies than any other printed works in history. And perhaps no other writer of The Enlightenment remains as relevant to the issues and debates of our own times.
Paine’s words as spoken will breathe life into his tracts and ideas. No other voice from that time spoke as passionately about social justice, human rights, and the benefits of secular constitutional democracy.
Through a series of vignettes expounding both his writings and his obscured role in our history, the film will seek to renew our connection to a sense of citizen engagement, one that established his place as the “Father of the Founders” (in the words of Thomas Edison).
Interwoven with the readings, quick background narratives will cover such topics as the history of printing technology, English parliamentary history, religious philosophies (Quakers, Methodists, et alia), and the intersection of science & religion in the wake of Isaac Newton. The context is the Enlightenment.
The film will be a free form graphic dissertation, inspired by scientific dioramas and illustrations, with graphical layering of documented period objects (e.g. a working antique printing press, printed pamphlets, maps, paintings, etc.) that will supplant the artificiality of the feigned character of “recreated” documentary.
