Note: These spots were written to launch the series, The Last Ship on TNT for Loyalkaspar, a NYC-based agency.
For They Die, We Die. Tease:
| Video | Audio |
| The camera follows a shadowy form through a darkened urban landscape. There are no lights – only an occasional fire in a shop-front or burning car. All about lie what appear to be human bodies. | VO: It took 15 thousand years to build up human civilization.
|
| The figure stumbles, but gets up. His pace has slowed. His arm reaches up toward the horizon. He stumbles again, and falls, this time, for good. The camera continues forward, over the scores, no, thousands, of dark forms lying in the street- picking up speed as it goes. | VO:
It took less than a month to wipe it out.
|
| Suddenly, through a canyon of tall buildings, a tiny light appears on the horizon. The camera flys out over a body-littered beach, over the sea, to the lights on the horizon- the LAST SHIP. | VO:
Almost.
|
| The camera flies right up to the Captain and key crew members on the bridge. The LAST SHIP changes course, crashing through the waves into the pitch dark seas. | |
| A wider, higher shot of the LAST SHIP sailing into the sunrise.
GRFX: The Last Ship – June 2014 |
VO:
They Die. We die.
|
Pay Attention – Your Life Just Might Depend on It
| Video | Audio |
| In the ship’s galley of the USS Nathan James, a senior officer calls the crew together.| | Officer: Listen up. We don’t know yet what we’re up against yet, but we know its dangerous. Deadly. |
| He pulls up a yellow Hazmat Suit.
The crowd goes silent. |
Officer:
Due in part to the chemical resistance and permeation properties there is very little exchange of heat between the body and the outside atmosphere. Therefore, the most appropriate garments to be worn inside the suit will depend on the climate and the mission. In our case – skivvies (Cat calls and wolf whistles.) Officer: “You think this is a joke!” |
| The officer dons the suit in demonstration mode. | Officer: Inspect all areas of the suit for cuts or damage, including all seams, garment material and face seal area inside and out. If the suit becomes torn, or frayed, is abraded, ripped or punctured when you are in the field, notify your commanding officer immediately. |
|
The officer looks over his men, and sighs. |
Crewman: And then what? Another Crewman: |
| Cut to GRFX:
The LAST SHIP – June 2014 They Die. We Die. |
Message interrupted.
This tease campaign focuses on the communications between the crew of the LAST SHIP and their families.
| Video | Audio |
| The camera follows a ragged looking golden retriever through a modest suburban home.
The camera creeps closer. |
It is eerily still. The sound of a human voice with an electronic twinge can be heard in the distance. |
| The home is a tomb. On the floor of the dining alcove is the body of a mom- scattered about her are dinner plates she was clearing- ants cover the plate, and her leg.
The dog sniffs quickly and continues on. The camera follows the dog into the den. The TV is filled with static, on the console are pictures of a proud Navy officer surrounded by his smiling family. |
|
| Next to the TV is a small desk with a computer screen. At the desk is a small boy, looking like he has fallen asleep with his hand resting on the keyboard. We push in to the screen. On it we see a crew member from the LAST SHIP. Greeting his family in a quicktime movie. | CREWMAN: “I know 4 months seems like a long time, buddy, but daddy will be home before you know it. Remember that you’re the man of the house while I’m gone and I want you to take care of your mom, and benji, and when I get back we gonna celebrate your birthday for a whole week.” |
| The cursor jumps, movie loops – and starts again. We see that the boy’s hand has come to rest atop the keyboard.
Cut to GRFX: The LAST SHIP – June 2014 |
The audio of the Quicktime continues to play, hauntingly over the graphic. Fade to black. |
For Mankind is the Mission
| Video | Audio |
| The USS Nathan James – COMMS Officer Will Mason sits in front of his radio, hailing any ship or other mainland station. The camera pushes in slowly. | COMMS: Any station, any station, this is USS Nathan James transmitting in the blind on Channel 16 156.8 Megahertz…Over. |
| GRFX Super: 5 Billion Dead | (Open Channel Radio Hiss) |
| COMMS: Any station, any station, this is USS Nathan James transmitting in the blind on Channel 16 156.8 Megahertz…Over. |
|
| GRFX: Governments gone. | (Open Channel Radio Hiss) |
| The camera is now in a Medium Close-up- over the shoulder of the COMMS Officer. | COMMS: Any station, any station, this is USS Nathan James transmitting in the blind on Channel 16. Come back…Over. |
| GRFX: Yet Heroes Remain | (Open Channel Radio Hiss) |
| The COMMS Officer turns, sensing someone’s presence. Cut to a POV of CO Chandler. | COMMS: Nothing sir… There is nobody out there. CO CHANDLER: |
| Wide shot of the LAST SHIP crashing through waves on the high seas.
GRFX: The LAST SHIP – June 2014 |
COMMS (VO): Any station, any station, this is USS Nathan James transmitting in the blind on Channel 16. Come back…Over.
|
4th of July – Tour of ship
| Video | Audio |
| The sundrenched deck of the USS Nathan James, Brightly colored banners flap in the wind. The bright skyline of New York City is the backdrop.
A uniformed crewman conducts a tour of civilians, families with teens and small children. |
The USS Nathan James is an Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyers built around the Aegis Combat System and the SPY-1D multi-function phased array radar. With an overall length of 505 feet, displacement of 9,200 tons, and weaponry including over 90 missiles, this Arleigh Burke-class ship is larger and more heavily armed than most previous ships classified as guided missile cruisers. |
| The final sentence echoes out as scene darkens. The tour dispappears, the deck is cold and windblown. The skyline is dark and foreboding- with no signs of life. | Crewman Tour Guide: The ship was commissioned on 4 July 1995 to handle the most dangerous threats on the high seas well into the 21st century… (proudly) No matter how big the enemy, this ship stands ready to heed the call.” |
| Reverse angle. The entire scene has been a flashback. CO Chandler gazes out at the dark coastline. The irony of the tour guide’s final words is not lost on him. | CO Chandler: “No matter how big, or small, the enemy- we heed the call.” |
| GRFX: The LAST SHIP – June 2014. |
For Reclaim the World – or – Courage is the Cure
TEASE:
| Video | Audio |
| The camera flies over a churning dark sea. | Captain Tom Chandler – VO:
Nighttime came quickly for the human race. Caught everyone off guard. 5 billion dead. 15,000 years of human civilization wiped out in the blink of an eye. (correcting) |
| The camera tilts up to see the LAST SHIP cutting towards it through the waves. On its deck, the captain stands resolute against the wind- gazing towards the far horizon. Sunrise is breaking. | Captain Tom Chandler – VO:
It is always darkest before the dawn. |
| Wide shot of the last ship sailing towards the sunrise.
Cut to GRFX: The LAST SHIP – June 2014 |