Embedded Files
“Anyone who has ever looked into the glazed eyes of a soldier dying on the battlefield will think hard before starting a war.”
-- Otto Von Bismarck, Prussian Statesman, Prime Minister
Overview:
Overview:
For this project you are to take on the identities of characters set in World War I. In order to create your identities you will have to research appropriate names and roles from a specific World War I country. You will also have to understand the history of World War I to make your story more authentic. Your grade will depend on factual information as well as creativity and authenticity.
For this project you are to take on the identities of characters set in World War I. In order to create your identities you will have to research appropriate names and roles from a specific World War I country. You will also have to understand the history of World War I to make your story more authentic. Your grade will depend on factual information as well as creativity and authenticity.
The Soldier Project:
The Soldier Project:
Your group will create a film and movie poster based on the life of someone living during WWI. Your movie will integrate elements of history and fiction: you will use historical facts and storytelling and integrate themes learned from All Quiet on the Western Front. We are looking for a story that weaves together both World History and World Literature classes! Use your imagination and All Quiet on the Western Front as an inspiration!
Your group will create a film and movie poster based on the life of someone living during WWI. Your movie will integrate elements of history and fiction: you will use historical facts and storytelling and integrate themes learned from All Quiet on the Western Front. We are looking for a story that weaves together both World History and World Literature classes! Use your imagination and All Quiet on the Western Front as an inspiration!
Important: for grading purposes, Honors and College Prep students CANNOT be in the same group.
Important: for grading purposes, Honors and College Prep students CANNOT be in the same group.
The project is worth up to 50 points in both History & English
The project is worth up to 50 points in both History & English
90% of the grade is the quality of the film and the movie poster (this includes the film and movie poster)
10% of the grade is an evaluation of your participation; you and your film crew will fill out a Google Form at the end of the project
History teachers will provide in-class time to research, plan, and share ideas and check for authenticity. But you will need additional resources, information, and time outside of class to finish this project.
English teachers will also provide each of you in-class time to brainstorm, write, and to create your characters based on themes from the world of All Quiet on the Western Front. Also, you will have time to brainstorm your movie poster too.
Decide on one of the following options
Decide on one of the following options
Option 1:
Option 1:
Work in a group
Work in a group
Work in a group of no more than 3-4 people and create a 5 minute original film and a high quality movie poster and
Your group will submit your 5 minute film to the Soldier Project Completion form at the end of this webpage
Honors class and College Prep class students cannot be in the same group
Option 2:
Option 2:
Work by yourself
Work by yourself
Work by yourself and create a 1-2 minute original film trailer and a high quality movie poster and
You will submit your 1-2 minute film trailer to the Soldier Project Completion form at the end of this webpage
Starting Criteria for the Soldier Project
Starting Criteria for the Soldier Project
Scenario: this is not your choice, your History/English teacher will assign this scenario to you and your group!
Scenario: this is not your choice, your History/English teacher will assign this scenario to you and your group!
Scenarios
Scenarios
(This will be assigned to you in your class)
Gallipoli: Invasion of the Turkish Coast
Battle of Jutland: An adventure on the high seas in massive dreadnoughts
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand: murder in Sarajevo that sparks the war
Zimmermann Telegram: A secret German message for Mexico to invade the United States
The Red Baron Chivalry in the skies until his demise
Battle of Tannenberg: Battle on the Eastern Front
Battle of the Marne: A battle at the start of the war in France
Lusitania: The sinking of a famous ship by German U-boats leaves unanswered questions
Battle of the Somme: Poor tactics leads to piles of bodies
Battle of Verdun: French vs. Germans around a fortress
Battle of Ypres: First significant use of gas during war
Mata Hari: Dutch dancer who becomes a spy and is later executed
The Order of the White Feather: feathers distributed to perceived cowards unwilling to fight
Philippe Petain: French general who was a hero...
Schlieffen Plan: A massive invasion that nearly succeeds
"Christmas Truce": Soccer and singing in No Man's Land
Lawrence of Arabia: A British adventurer fights in the blistering sands of Arabia
Lenin's Journey: A secret weapon sealed in a train with money and sent back to destroy the Russian Tsar
Edith Cavell: English Red Cross nurse who helped allied soldiers and was later executed
Armistice: November 11th, 11 AM, 1918. The guns go silent
Winston Churchill: a famous leader who made mistakes at Gallipoli
Choose the genre for your film
Choose the genre for your film
Discuss this with your group and choose the genre that best fits your idea for a great film!
Action
Romance
Comedy
TV series
Mockumentary
Documentary
Animation
Thriller
Mystery
Drama
Satire
Rom/Com
Themes
Themes
Your film must clearly include the themes from All Quiet on the Western Front. This should be identified through character development and the overall message of your film.
The brutality of modern warfare (keep in mind this isn't about gore and over the top action)
The horror of modern war (again, this isn't about bloodshed and action scenes)
The futility of war
The hypocrisy of the older generation
The Lost Generation of German World War I soldiers
Camaraderie and friendship
The dehumanization of all soldiers
Develop a strong storyline
Develop a strong storyline
You have five minutes to tell a great story about World War I
This is a historical film. Make sure that your story is about the history
Your story must include a developed storyline about a main character(s)
Be sure that your story tells us about one or more of the themes stated above
You may use All Quiet and the Western Front as an inspiration for your story
Video INTRO
Video INTRO
This is a significant portion of your grade so don't ignore how important it is for you tell us what this video is about.
You will create a 30-60 second intro that tells the audience about your film. This can be separate from the story, or integrated into the story, or creatively part of the story (for example, the narrator introduces the film to us).
Your introduction must include:
The title of your video
What your scenario is and a brief historical introduction to what the scenario is about
historical date, setting or settings, and a quick historical synopsis
who the main characters are, which countries are being portrayed
and anything else that would help the audience to what they are about to see
You have creative freedom on how you want to do this
Keep in mind that the TOTAL time for your video is 5 minutes
Helpful vocabulary and idioms from the World War I era to add authenticity to your film
Helpful vocabulary and idioms from the World War I era to add authenticity to your film
USE these WWI vocabulary words to help you with your script!
WWI Vocabulary from All Quiet on the Western Front
aspirants - noun, one who seeks to attain a specific goal
barrage - noun, curtain of heavy artillery fire just in front of friendly troops to screen and protect them
billets - noun, lodgings assigned to soldiers
helter-skelter - adjective, in disorder or confusion
insubordination - noun, disobedience to authority
skat - noun, a card game played by soldiers
queue - noun, line of people
rail - verb, to scold or denounce harshly
satchel - noun, small bag with a shoulder strap
latrine - noun, a toilet used by soldiers
Daisy pusher - noun, a person who has died
cleaves - verb, to adhere firmly and closely; to be loyal
impinges - verb, to strike or dash with a sharp collision
canteen - noun, a small water container; a flask
windfall - noun, unexpected sudden gain
chasten - verb, to punish; to make humble
parapet - noun, low wall of stone or earth to protect soldiers
No Man’s Land - noun, the area between two enemy trenches
stalemate - noun, a situation where there is deadlock
Armistice - noun, a truce
mutiny - verb, a rebellion against constituted authority
Martinet - noun, rigid military disciplinarian
refinement - noun, the process of making something perfect
remonstrance - noun, a presentation of grievances or complaints
Here is a link to a Google Doc you can use for your reference
WWI Vocabulary & Idioms from specific country
(Only use words appropriate for your character's ethnicity)
Archie = anti aircraft fire (British)
Belly flopping = to hit the ground quickly during attack (British)
Big Bertha = German 420mm howitzer, named for a family member of the Krupp Arms manufacturer
Black Hand Gang = raiding party or a selected group engaged in some desperate enterprise
Boyau (literally “gut” in French) or Boy-oh (British) = communication trench
Brass hats = enlisted men’s term for officers
Coal box = shell burst, generally from a heavy gun, causing a cloud of black smoke
Dogfight = aerial combat
Fiche blanche = white ticket or non-movable casualty (French)
Fiche rouge = red ticket or movable casualty (French)
Gasper = cheap cigarettes
“Gives the willies” = be frightened, or shell shock
Go West = used when referring to a comrade who had died
Gulasch-Kanone = “stew gun” or German wheeled field kitchen vehicle (German)
Kamerad Schnürschuh = “pal with laced boots;” German nickname for Austro-Hungarian troops
Kilometer Schwein = “kilometer pig;” German infantryman (German)
Land Crabs = tanks (British)
Mothers = 5.7 inch British guns (British)
Over the Top = to attack, generally from the trenches; “In the Trenches”
Poilu Hairy one = French infantryman
Pozzy = ration issue jam (British)
Suicide Ditch = front line trench (British)
Synchronize Watches
Tommy = British infantryman, from “Tommy Atkins,” a fictional name used in instructions for filling out British military forms
Wives = 9 inch British guns (British)
Woofs = German 4.7 inch high explosive and shrapnel shells (British)
Soldier Project Tasks 1-2
Soldier Project Tasks 1-2
Follow the instructions below for what to do for the movie video and the movie poster
Task One: High Quality 11" x 17" Movie Poster
Task One: High Quality 11" x 17" Movie Poster
20 points: This grade applies only to your English class!
20 points: This grade applies only to your English class!
Li classes: you are turning this in on Google Classroom (all students must turn this in!)
Li's Room
Li's Room
Hailey Guzikowski 2017-18
For this task, you will create a high quality movie poster that advertises and persuades people to want to watch your Soldier Project film or film trailer. You will be graded on your use of rhetoric, creativity, attention to detail, as well as the information you provide. Your movie poster should look similar to ones that you would see in theatres—informative, eye-catching, interesting to the viewer, with a propaganda twist.
Task One: High Quality Movie Poster Requirements (see details to each criteria from 1-10)
Task One: High Quality Movie Poster Requirements (see details to each criteria from 1-10)
Your poster is created digitally using photo/digital enhancements (minimum 4 graphical elements)
Examples of movie posters http://www.impawards.com/
Use Adobe Spark to make your movie poster: https://spark.adobe.com/make/posters/movie-posters/
Your poster must represent the main idea of the story
Must be in full color and rendered digitally
The size of your movie poster must be 11”x17”
For best results, set the size of the document to 11"x17" and the resolution to 3300x5100 (or higher)
Title of movie and credits: actors names, writer(s), director, etc.
Release date (this is the Soldier Project Movie Screening day), your studio name, the audience movie rating
Use of Rhetorical Devices (propaganda techniques used in your overall design, taglines, critic reviews, etc.)
Include a “tagline” for the story. This should act as a “teaser”—make it short and catchy.
Examples of taglines http://www.taglineguru.com/movie_taglines.html
At least one “review” quote from a critic about the story. This should be made-up (consider using historical figures) and is intended to draw the viewer’s interest and is no more than 2 sentences.
Your movie poster must be posted onto each of your World History Google Sites WWI page
Be sure to change the view setting on the image/link so that anyone on the internet can view
You are turning this in with your video.
Task Two: 5 minute film or 2 minute film trailer
Task Two: 5 minute film or 2 minute film trailer
50 points: This grade will apply to both of your English and History class!
50 points: This grade will apply to both of your English and History class!
You will create a short film about life during World War I. You will base your story on your assigned scenario, your film genre, and your chosen perspective. Additionally, you will include what you have learned about World War I and you may draw from the themes and the overall narrative of AQWF.
We are looking for a story that weaves together both World History and World Literature classes! Use your imagination and All Quiet on the Western Front as an inspiration!
Task Two: Film Requirements:
Task Two: Film Requirements:
Maximum time: 5 minutes | 2 minutes for a film trailer
30-60 second Intro (see above criteria for instructions)
We are looking for a film with a complete story based on World War I
We expect a high quality production with:
Carefully planned video taking and editing
Your movie must be edited: it should flow, have a clear beginning, middle, and a clear ending (think Plot Diagram!)
Your sound/audio must be edited! No overly loud use of music, or muted voices
Plan accordingly! The typical ratio for a high quality video is: for every minute of a completed video you will need 45-120+ minutes of editing time
A story that is well thought out; you must pitch your story to your history class
You should have a title screen with the actors names and title of the film
Reasonable costumes and props (no logos, company advertisement, or obvious contemporary clothing)
A good tip for movie flow and view-ability is to be consistent with all of your film details and background settings
NO REAL or replica weapons of any type. We do not advocate the use of any type of gun/weapon: this includes pellet guns, bb guns, replicas and actual firearms
You may use flat cardboard cutouts that are painted/colored in black (a silhouette)
Appropriate settings for the scenes (there should not be any signs of modern life in your video)
Publish your video on: youTube, WeVideo, Vimeo, Google Drive, etc.
Hey folks, don't forget to have FUN!
Your film is due Sunday night, January 25, 2026
Any late films will be subject to 25% penalty in the overall grade.
At least one person should submit the form below to complete this assignment.
The Soldier Project Hall of Fame
The Soldier Project Hall of Fame
Some of the BEST Student Made Films at Foothill Tech since 2013-14!
Click on the image below
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