Military bootcamp for the actors
Senior Military Advisor Capt. Dale Dye contributes real-life
expertise to The Pacfic, guiding actors through rigorous boot-camp
training designed to bring an understanding of the realities of
war.
From writers, directors and actors to the gifted technical
team, The Pacific is brought to life by top-flight
talent, but what the viewers see on screen has to be believable for
everything to work.
That's where Capt. Dale Dye, USMC (Ret.), comes in. Dye, who runs
the production support company Warriors Inc., served as senior
military advisor on the miniseries, just as he had on 2001's Band
of Brothers.
Capt. Dye was awarded with the Bronze Star for his service in
Vietnam, in addition to three Purple Hearts. One of his specialties
is putting the actors through a rigorous simulated boot camp to
make the production more realistic, something he's been doing since
Oliver Stone's 1986 film Platoon.
Explains Dye, "As a true gesture of respect to the men who fought
in the brutal Pacific campaign, we needed to get it right. So the
featured performers and what we call the special ability extras
underwent a rigorous period of training. It was designed to give
them some inkling of what was endured by the people they were
portraying."
James Badge Dale, who plays PFC Robert Leckie, says, "Boot camp was
different than what I was expecting. It was nine days of being
pushed emotionally, physically and spiritually. Nine days is not a
long time, but somewhere around the third day, your brain and your
body would start to mess with you, and you'd feel like you were
being driven into the ground. Then the trainers would very
carefully pick us back up again. It's hard to
explain to other people, but it was an invaluable experience and
after it we went straight into work."
According to Joe Mazzello, who portrays PFC Eugene Sledge, "Boot
camp was probably the most intense experience of my life. As the
days go by, you think, 'Oh, it wasn't so bad', but it was!" he
laughs.
Mazzello continues, "But that was the point going through it and
not knowing what was to come next. It was a really emotional
experience and a really physical experience. Captain Dye gave us so
much to work with. Directors, producers and writers can only tell
you so much. When you talk to a man like that, who has actually
experienced war, you get something completely different."
Jon Seda, who plays Sgt. John Basilone, recalls boot camp as a
special time, saying, "There was a point in boot camp where we were
out on a mission and I just stopped and said to myself, 'Am I in
training for a movie, or are we really going to war?' None of us
were focusing on the acting side of it we were becoming the
characters we were going to be on film."
He continues, "In boot camp there also were times for us to sit
together and share our individual strengths and weaknesses, and we
would lift each other up. To me, that time of learning to
understand each other was the best time."
Lt. Mike Stokey, USMC (Ret.), an executive officer with Capt. Dye's
Warriors Inc., explains, "It's quite an experience for the actors.
What they go through is very similar to what Dale and I experienced
first-hand when we bonded in the Marines fortysomething years ago.
It's a rite of passage."
Concludes Dye, "These guys have been terrific. They went through a
brutal period of training, and their spirit would make the Marines
from World War II proud. And we damn sure intend to make them
proud. As long as that spirit remains in their hearts, it will come
through on the screen."
