That was one of the other writers. Coleman feels that her impact was minimized because she was not present for the actual filming of the movie. Franzoni says that for the production in England they hired a consultant who was not familiar with the German background against which the scenes were set. For a film to be historically authentic, Coleman says she believes that a consultant would need to be taken on for at least a year with absolute commitment to accuracy from both sides. It's one thing to know that you're not getting it right.
Cultural assumptions are more difficult.
Franzoni says it was difficult for Coleman to evaluate not whether something had happened historically, but whether it could have happened. Coleman agrees, and says that movies present a unique challenge for scholars. The convention of using historical characters in fictional stories is well established. Franzoni says it is difficult to convince those making the movie that historical accuracy is important, partly because many of them don't understand the history. Franzoni contrasts Gladiator with The Patriot, which he says gives Americans credit for things they didn't do.