Research for a movie script

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hekainu

New Member
I am writing a film script for a movie set in the trenches of France in the first world war. The project is still in early stages and I am throwing ideas about until I can pull something coherent out of it all. I would like to know if there were independent, almost mercenary or opportunistic groups taking advantage of the chaos, without particular loyalty to either side? Were there such things as sharp shooters or rifle skirmishers or proto-snipers? What was the maximum deadly range of the best rifle available during the war? Any help would be very welcome!
 
There is some information available in wiki onWW1 snipers.

During the First World War, snipers appeared as deadly sharpshooters in the trenches. At the start of the war, only Imperial Germany had troops that were issued scoped sniper rifles. Although sharpshooters existed on all sides, the Germans specially equipped some of their soldiers with scoped rifles that could pick off enemy soldiers showing their heads out of their trench. At first the French and British believed such hits to be coincidental hits, until the German scoped rifles were discovered. During World War One, the Germans received a reputation for the deadliness and efficiency of their snipers, partly because of the high-quality lenses the Germans could manufacture. Soon the British army began to train their own snipers in specialized sniper schools. Until the end of the war, the British tried to close the gap between the German and their own snipers. British and German sniper teams operated in pairs, with one sniper and one spotter with binoculars.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sniper

I think one of the first snipers were the Saratoga sharpshooters in the American war of Independence.
 
hekainu said:
I mean like an early (proto) long range rifleman.
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well if you mean a "prototype" of a sniper, well try looking 115 years earlier to the British Riflemen. Snipers were not new in WW1, and secondly, the range we are talking here is nothing huge. Consider how far apart (on average) the trenches were apart.
 
AussieNick said:
well if you mean a "prototype" of a sniper, well try looking 115 years earlier to the British Riflemen. Snipers were not new in WW1, and secondly, the range we are talking here is nothing huge. Consider how far apart (on average) the trenches were apart.
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I don't agree certainly sniping has been around a while but the birth of the professional sniper (sniper schools, specialised equipment, two man teams) was very much within WW1.
 
In the US, the first I recall reading of Snipers was in the Civil War. General Grant used to walk around in a Privates uniform to avoid being targeted by Snipers.
 
Thank you very much. What would the specific weapons that they used be or would they be modified or specially made? Were there separate units of them? What about groups of independent opportunists?
 
hekainu said:
Thank you very much. What would the specific weapons that they used be or would they be modified or specially made? Were there separate units of them? What about groups of independent opportunists?
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One suggestion would be to find a book called...

Out of nowhere: a history of the military sniper By Martin Pegler

It gives a good write up on the development of the sniper from the American war of independence through to WW2 and has quite large sections WW1 and WW2.

Alternatively there is..

The Military Sniper Since 1914 By Martin Pegler, Ramiro Bujeiro

Which concentrates on the development of the modern sniper.
 
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Thanks a lot. The main things is that although the overall idea for the film will have strong fantasy elements, I want to it to have grounding in reality as nothing is more annoying than distortion of the truth. But the basic premise which I am trying to scope out the feasibility of is of a group of eastern European bandits/looters etc who are paid or at least allowed to roam freely by the Germans in exchange that they harass Opposition trenches and disrupt their communication. Is this totally unbelievable? I am trying to figure out what the maximum distance they could be from a trench to fire at it is.
 
If its fantasy you are looking at then I would suggest something along the lines of what happened at the start of the movie League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and move the time line up a bit that way you are not bound by anything more than the weapons of 1914-18, you wouldn't have to worry about to much in the way of historical fact.

:)
 
hekainu said:
Thanks a lot. The main things is that although the overall idea for the film will have strong fantasy elements, I want to it to have grounding in reality as nothing is more annoying than distortion of the truth. But the basic premise which I am trying to scope out the feasibility of is of a group of eastern European bandits/looters etc who are paid or at least allowed to roam freely by the Germans in exchange that they harass Opposition trenches and disrupt their communication. Is this totally unbelievable? I am trying to figure out what the maximum distance they could be from a trench to fire at it is.
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Yes it is unrealistic.
Firing on a trench.... limited by 2 things, visibility and range of the weapon... and the ability of the firer.
 
I am thinking more along the lines of a certain extraterrestrial hunter who shall go unnamed but who starred in two very bad sequels recently...
 
Non Military Groups. At one time Britain had problems with German Snipers setting themselves behind Large steel plates in no mans land, their answer to this was to use British Large game hunters with Elephant guns that would shoot through the steel plate and this ended that problem

Now another group used where British miners to sap under the German lines

Another Independent Group and that earned themselves a place on the Remembrance day Parades in London at the Cenotaph were the London Bus Drivers. It was found at the start of the war that Britain did not have any modern road transport so they they commandeered thousands of buses to move the troops around the front and bring the walking wounded back. As it was in those days more of a skilled job they asked the drivers to go with the buses which they did. They played such an important role in WW1 that king George V held a special ceremony where they where all presented with their medals and awarded them the right to take part in the Remembrance day Parades.
 
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