Transcription - Original Idea

The Diary and Journal of Bernard Rogers

This was my original idea, with the help of Alan I have refined this idea lots to create a new idea but not straying to far from my original concept which was the poem by Sigfried Sassoon. In this first attempt at creating an idea, me and Alan spoke about trying to relate WW1 to my animation with something personal that my family experienced in the past. 

Before I started this project and this idea, I had no clue that my family had such an amazing history. Alone, I found out that my nan had ten uncles, a family of eleven boys, which didn't include their daughters. Of six of the Rogers brothers that went and battled in WW1, only four came home to tell the tale. my original idea was based on one of the brothers that fought and died in WW1, he was only nineteen years of age, three years younger than me. This made me really think about the war and how it must have effected the soldiers, their friends and their families.

Character Bio -

Name – Bernard Rogers

Age – 19

Born – 1896 – Died – 1915

Occupation During World War One – Soldier/Stretcher Bearer

Advancing troops were not allowed to stop and care for wounded soldiers. All men carried an emergency field-dressing and if possible attempted to treat their own wounds. The wounded soldier then had to wait until the stretcher-bearers arrived. There were only four stretcher-bearers per company and so it was often sometime before they received medical help. Some dragged themselves into a shell-hole for protection, but this was dangerous as many sank into the mud and drowned. One man with a broken thigh spent two days dragging himself backwards with his hands, until he reached his own trenches. Another soldier who had been shot in the chest, lasted eleven days in 'No Mans Land' before the stretcher-bearers found him.

The Rogers Family lived in Faversham, Kent, which was in the South East of England. Bernard or Bert as he was also known, joined the Army when he was 18 along with six of his brothers. Within the Rogers family there were eleven brothers in total. Tragically, of the six brothers that fought in World War One, only two of the brothers returned, leaving the family with only seven sons.

Transciption Material -

Trench Duty by Sigfried Sassoon 1886 – 1967, Kent, England

Shaken from sleep, and numbed and scarce awake,
Out in the trench with three hours’ watch to take,
I blunder through the splashing mirk; and then
Hear the gruff muttering voices of the men
Crouching in cabins candle-chinked with light.
Hark! There’s the big bombardment on our right
Rumbling and bumping; and the dark’s a glare
Of flickering horror in the sectors where
We raid the Boche; men waiting, stiff and chilled,
Or crawling on their bellies through the wire.
‘What? Stretcher-bearers wanted? Some one killed?’
Five minutes ago I heard a sniper fire:
Why did he do it? ... Starlight overhead—
Blank stars. I’m wide-awake; and some chap’s dead

• Boche – A Boche is a derogatory term which is used for Germans, it is a shortened version of the word, Caboche, or Hardhead.

I am using this poem which was written by Sigfried Sassoon and a piece of text on trench life and living to help tell a story of my great great Uncle Bernard Rogers who died at the age of 19 fighting in WW1. Bernard died in 'No mans land' whilst tending to the wounded. Like the poem, Bernard was called for duty, but tragically he was killed trying to rescue wounded soldiers whilst carrying the wounded on a stretcher.

• Act One –
• first person view of a man looking through an old Diary/Journal which lays on top of his desk.
• Clipped to the the Diary is a note...
• The man opens up the Diary revealing blogged accounts of his experience in WW1 plus photographs.
• The man picks up one of the photos and brings it closer to his face.
• Once the Photograph is in frame, it changes from a still image and takes us back in time to the actual event. 
  
  
• Act Two -
• The camera moves through the trenches past sleeping soldiers in the night, Showing the rough conditions that soldiers lived in whilst serving in the trenches.
• The camera comes to a young soldier at the end of the trench, cramped and trying to sleep in his dug - out.
• A loud artillery shell lands close to the trench shaking the earth and shaking the man from his sleep.
• He slowly rises from his dug - out, gathering himself, ready for his duties.
• The camera freezes on the man, turning it into another photograph.
• The Scene changes back to the man sitting at his desk.
• The man flicks the page, the text reads...
• Again he removes the next image from the diary and brings it upto his face.
• The Photograph goes back to the the next event which is a still shot of the man cleaning his rifle.

• Act Three -
• The man finishes cleaning his rifle and puts it to one side
• There are loud sounds of artillery whilst the man picks up a tinned portion of 'Bully Beef', which was kind of like corned beef.
• After a couple of mouth falls, a call out, “Man Down, Stretcher Bearers wanted”.
• The man Drops his food, volunteering himself to join the stretcher bearers who are already out in No mans land'.
• After gathering himself, the man halls himself over the trench, out to aid the stretcher bearers, a man down.
• Once the man is over the trench he runs over the smoky and misty darkness of 'No mans land'.
• Once obscured by the mist, an artillery shell lands near the man, which freezes the camera and goes back to the mans desk.
• He puts down the final photograph, reads the final piece of text, and closes the diary, which ends the animation.