A TALE OF RECKONING©️
BUDGET
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Cost est. $6,000,000 net at LED volume/ICVFX virtual production sets in many US states.
NOTES
This drama has the following elements:
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Inspired by history
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High adventure
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Character driven
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Love story
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Political
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Indigenous elements
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Visceral
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Revenge
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Rural
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Buddies
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Strong female/male leads
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PG-13 rating
Copyrighted May 4, 2014 by MICHAEL LANCE RITTER (USA) ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
No portion of this work may be performed, published, reproduced, sold, shared or distributed by any means, or quoted or published in any medium, including any web site, without the prior written consent of Michael Lance Ritter. WGA Registry 2344183, U.S. Copyright #PAu3-727-265
LOGLINE
Set against brutal challenges in the cutthroat western frontier, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau—the learned half-Shoshone son of Sacagawea—must reconcile his fractured identity while being hunted by an assassin as he searches for his lost family.
SYNOPSIS
Born to guide Sacagawea on the legendary Lewis and Clark expedition, half- Shoshone BAPTISTE is a man of two worlds, but with a home in neither. Fluent in languages and refined in the arts, a devastating personal tragedy drives him into the lawless American wilderness.
As a young man in St. Louis he planned a future with his first love, MICHELLE, but is sabotaged by the very society that raised him. He bolts to the Rockies, becoming an elite mountain man during the violent fur trade. He leads expeditions and scouts a war road to California.
Stalked by the assassin RUBLETTE, a vicious brute from his fur trade days, Baptiste navigates the frontier from the Rocky Mountains to the "Devil’s Anvil" of the Mojave Desert, and becomes a post-Mexican War Alcalde trying to save enslaved Indians.
While in San Diego he discovers a second chance to simply have a family. It’s the one he thought he’d lost forever — his first love and her son. Rublette tracks him down for his day of reckoning. Viewers will get hooked on the characters in this visceral, compelling story.
As a Cherokee academic historian (M.A., Ph.C) who wrote Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, Man of Two Worlds©, I move beyond history to capture the untold friction of his conflicts, leading to a stunning reckoning. Today’s cinema viewers will strongly identify with the characters in this unforgettable story.
It’s a visceral, gritty story of a man on a mission. Think Killers of the Flower Moon combined with the intimate, identity-driven survival of The English.
POST SCRIPT
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau died of tuberculosis in 1866 near Danner, Oregon, age 61. His gravesite is a National Historic Monument.
Sacagawea died in 1812. In 2000, her image — carrying the infant Jean Baptiste -- carried on her back — was placed on the United States Golden Dollar.
Jim Beckwourth died in 1866; he was a Crow Nation war chief. Beckwourth Pass in the Sierra Nevada bears his name.
Toussaint Charbonneau died in 1838 at age 81; he is buried near Fort Mandan and serves as a guided and translator.
William Clark died in 1838 ehile Superintendent of Indian Affairs in St. Louis. He watched over the Charbonneau family most of his life.
Michelle Charbonneau died in 1866 of tuberculosis, age 61; she is buried near Auburn, CA.
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