Ryan Katzenbach
Member
TITANIC: SINKING THE MYTHS DEBUTS SUNDAY, JAN 8.
• Controversial docudrama, starring Ed Asner & Frances Fisher, challenges the conventional story that has been told
On Sunday, January 8, Reelz Channel will debut Titanic: Sinking The Myths. The story of the ill-fated White Star Liner has been thrust into the public forefront in recent days with the release of a new UK documentary that asserts that a bunker fire was a key factor in the ship's demise. Myths debunks this new documentary, while also delving into great detail about the impact that the fire did have while revealing other reasons why some researchers now believe that there was hidden damage to the ship as a result of the collision with ice.
The Reelz docudrama is based on the 1995 book by Florida author Diana E. Bristow. "Diana Bristow was the first author to ever study the original source material and transcripts to provide a very precise analysis of how the bunker fire came to be, and what impact it had upon the sinking," says Ryan Katzenbach, the show's writer, director and producer. "Her research and findings were known in 1995 when the book was published, and the fact that there was a bunker fire is far from breaking news. However, some new studies and research are able to expand tremendously upon her work, and that is what we'll be presenting on Reelz," he added.
Titanic: Sinking the Myths shatters the long-held beliefs, as seen in many of the popular movie depictions, that Titanic’s crew fired regulation distress rockets. The show also demonstrates how Titanic turned away help from a German liner out of concerns for piracy. The documentary will also explore how cost-cutting efforts made in the design process led to structural deficiencies in the ship and how the captain of another nearby ship ultimately took the fall as the scapegoat of a disaster that cost the lives of 1,503 men, women and children. The story made so familiar in the movies is juxtaposed against world politics and the impending outbreak of WWI, which had both direct and indirect bearing on the tragedy.
Titanic: Sinking the Myths recounts the incredible story of Bill Müller who survived the disaster and who had an intimate connection to the ship. Seven-time Emmy® Award winner Edward Asner portrays a 96-year old Müller, telling his true account of the disaster for the first time to author Bristow who is portrayed by SAG Award nominee Frances Fisher (who also starred in the 1997 blockbuster Titanic) during her quest to find the truth. Müller served as secretary to a Dutch traffic inspector whose job was to inspect ships for insurance and investment firms and was an invited guest aboard the Titanic from the ship’s owners. The interviews between Bristow and Müller will show viewers events as they unfold above and below deck and, ultimately, to the morning of April 15th, 1912 and the sloping decks of the mortally wounded liner.
Titanic: Sinking the Myths is produced by KatcoMedia and directed by Ryan Katzenbach. Katzenbach also produced and directed the 2014 REELZ true-crime docudrama The Amityville Horror Murders.
• Controversial docudrama, starring Ed Asner & Frances Fisher, challenges the conventional story that has been told
On Sunday, January 8, Reelz Channel will debut Titanic: Sinking The Myths. The story of the ill-fated White Star Liner has been thrust into the public forefront in recent days with the release of a new UK documentary that asserts that a bunker fire was a key factor in the ship's demise. Myths debunks this new documentary, while also delving into great detail about the impact that the fire did have while revealing other reasons why some researchers now believe that there was hidden damage to the ship as a result of the collision with ice.
The Reelz docudrama is based on the 1995 book by Florida author Diana E. Bristow. "Diana Bristow was the first author to ever study the original source material and transcripts to provide a very precise analysis of how the bunker fire came to be, and what impact it had upon the sinking," says Ryan Katzenbach, the show's writer, director and producer. "Her research and findings were known in 1995 when the book was published, and the fact that there was a bunker fire is far from breaking news. However, some new studies and research are able to expand tremendously upon her work, and that is what we'll be presenting on Reelz," he added.
Titanic: Sinking the Myths shatters the long-held beliefs, as seen in many of the popular movie depictions, that Titanic’s crew fired regulation distress rockets. The show also demonstrates how Titanic turned away help from a German liner out of concerns for piracy. The documentary will also explore how cost-cutting efforts made in the design process led to structural deficiencies in the ship and how the captain of another nearby ship ultimately took the fall as the scapegoat of a disaster that cost the lives of 1,503 men, women and children. The story made so familiar in the movies is juxtaposed against world politics and the impending outbreak of WWI, which had both direct and indirect bearing on the tragedy.
Titanic: Sinking the Myths recounts the incredible story of Bill Müller who survived the disaster and who had an intimate connection to the ship. Seven-time Emmy® Award winner Edward Asner portrays a 96-year old Müller, telling his true account of the disaster for the first time to author Bristow who is portrayed by SAG Award nominee Frances Fisher (who also starred in the 1997 blockbuster Titanic) during her quest to find the truth. Müller served as secretary to a Dutch traffic inspector whose job was to inspect ships for insurance and investment firms and was an invited guest aboard the Titanic from the ship’s owners. The interviews between Bristow and Müller will show viewers events as they unfold above and below deck and, ultimately, to the morning of April 15th, 1912 and the sloping decks of the mortally wounded liner.
Titanic: Sinking the Myths is produced by KatcoMedia and directed by Ryan Katzenbach. Katzenbach also produced and directed the 2014 REELZ true-crime docudrama The Amityville Horror Murders.
.
