8 EMMY AWARDS
The Pacific was nominated for 23 Emmy Awards in the 2010 Primetime Emmy Awards

WON
Outstanding Miniseries
Outstanding Art Direction For A Miniseries Or Movie
Outstanding Casting For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special
Outstanding Makeup For A Miniseries Or Movie (Non-Prosthetic)
Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special
Outstanding Sound Editing For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special
Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Miniseries Or Movie
Outstanding Special Visual Effects For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special

DVD BONUS FEATURES
To the filmmakers' credit, a number of real WWII veterans are on hand to share their memories, both in a 49-minute featurette on disc 6 and during the short introductions to each episode narrated by Tom Hanks.

Profiles of The Pacific
Delve into the lives of the real Marines featured in The Pacific

Making The Pacific
Go behind the scenes and take an inside look at the making of the miniseries A  22-minute "making of" piece

Anatomy of the Pacific War
Explore the historical influences and cultural perceptions that led to the merciless brutality in the Pacific theater of World War II
A brief but interesting description of the cultural differences that made the conflict between the Japanese and the Americans even more brutal than it might have been.

OTHER WAR SERIES TO ADD TO YOUR COLLECTION

GENERATION KILL ***** Following their massive critical success dealing with Baltimore crime in The Wire, writers/producers David Simon and Ed Burns have turned to Evan Wright's portrait of the Iraq War, Generation Kill. The seven-part series follows the course of one Marine Recon Battalion as they roll up and down the Iraqi landscape, gathering information while dealing with enemy forces and garbled messages that have trickled down the chain of command. Unrelenting and unvarnished, Generation Kill shows the harsh day-to-day of war without politicizing or imposing standard Hollywood drama. Read more

OVER THERE ***** (First Season: 13 Episodes) From producer Steven Borco (NYPD Blues, L.A.Law and Hill Street Blues) comes this riveting series. It is the first scripted series set in a current, ongoing war involving the United States in Iraq. Read more

BAND OF BROTHERS ***** If there is one set you should be the proud owner of, it's this exceptional Golden Globe-winning mini-series that shows the strengths and weakness that make humanity tick under the strain of war. Read more

Background
Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg have long since shown that they can spin a good World War II yarn. But while their previous collaborations (Saving Private Ryan, which they starred in and directed, respectively, and Band of Brothers, for which they were part of the producing team) were set in Europe, The Pacific is their first look at the conflict with the Japanese on the other side of the world--and the two executive producers, along with an outstanding cast, an able crew, and a slew of top-notch writers and directors, have done a superb job.
In making a 10-episode HBO miniseries (on five discs, with a sixth containing bonus material) that combines real events and participants with other dramatic elements newly created for the project, the filmmakers took a personal, experiential approach, focusing in particular on three marines, all of them real individuals: Robert Leckie (played by James Badge Dale), an aspiring writer who sees his first action at Guadalcanal, falls in love while on leave in Australia, and later suffers serious war wounds; John Balisone (Jon Seda), who performs heroically at Guadalcanal, earns a Medal of Honor, and is then sent home to help sell war bonds, only to return to action at Iwo Jima; and Eugene Sledge (Joseph Mazzello), who enlists later than the others, but not too late to witness and take part in some unimaginable horrors (books written by Sledge and Leckie about their experiences were used as source material for the miniseries).
Of course, no one who's never been in combat can understand what it's really like, but through these three, and other men as well, we get some idea of the debilitating effects of war, both physical and psychological, and how those who managed to survive it might cope.
As Leckie would write, "There are things men can do to one another that are sobering to the soul. It is one thing to reconcile these things with God, but another to square them with yourself."

The Producers
The Pacific television series is produced by HBO, Seven Network Australia, Sky Movies, Playtone and DreamWorks, that premiered in the United States on March 14, 2010.
Nine Network has previously broadcast the HBO productions of Band of Brothers. Nine had a broadcast deal with HBO's parent Warner Bros., but then HBO started to distribute its own productions separately.
The Pacific is a sister to the 2001 miniseries Band of Brothers.
The Pacific was spearheaded by Bruce McKenna (co-executive producer), one of the main writers on Band of Brothers. Hugh Ambrose, the son of Band of Brothers author Stephen Ambrose, served as a project consultant.

The Pacific is based primarily on two memoirs of U.S. The miniseries features well-known battles with Japan involving the 1st Marine Division, such as Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Peleliu, and Okinawa, as well as Basilone's involvement in the Battle of Iwo Jima.
Hugh Ambrose wrote the official tie-in book to the miniseries, which follows the stories of the three men featured in the miniseries as well as stories of their fellow Marines. It was published in the USA and UK in March 2010.
The Pacific was produced by Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Gary Goetzman in association with HBO Miniseries, Playtone, Dreamworks, Seven Network and Sky Movies. Seven invested in the project for the right to broadcast it in Australia.

Comments
A number of episodes depict the characters at home, on leave, or otherwise away from the field of battle, but the greatest impact comes from the extraordinarily powerful fighting scenes in which the marines--exhausted, half-starving, riddled with malaria, and enduring the appalling conditions (from extreme heat to relentless, torrential downpours) of an impenetrable, unforgiving jungle--battle an implacable, fanatical foe who would much rather die than surrender or be taken prisoner. A sequence in Part Five, when we're with Sledge as he lands at Peleliu for his first real action, is especially gripping; battles at night and in the rain at Cape Gloucester in Part Four, on Iwo Jima in Part Eight, and on Okinawa in Part Nine are also wrenching, but really, all the fighting sequences manage to convey the sheer, visceral terror the men experienced.

Product Description
The Pacific is an epic 10-part miniseries that delivers a realistic portrait of WWII's Pacific Theatre as seen through the intertwined odysseys of three U.S. Marines - Robert Leckie, John Basilone and Eugene Sledge. The extraordinary experiences of these men and their fellow Marines take them from the first clash with the Japanese in the haunted jungles of Guadalcanal, through the impenetrable rain firests of Cape Gloucester, across the blasted coral strongholds of Peleliu, up the black sand terraces of Iwo Jima, through the killing fields of Okinawa, to the triumphant, yet uneasy, return home after V-J Day. The viewer will be immersed in combat through the intimate perspective of this diverse, relatable group of men pushed to the limit in battle both physically and psychologically against a relentless enemy unlike any encountered before.

Budget
The lavish and epical miniseries had a budget of more than $150 million, with an estimated AUD $134 million of that spent in Australia, and is thought to be the most expensive television production ever made in Australia.
The Australian newspaper Herald Sun estimates that it brought 4,000 jobs and generated AUD $180 million for the Australian economy.

Filming locations
From August through November 2007 filming took place at locations in and around Port Douglas, Queensland including Mossman, Queensland; Drumsara Plantation, Mowbray National Park and beaches at Rocky Point, Queensland.
Production then moved to rural Victoria. in the You Yangs near Lara, Victoria (from November-December 2007), then at a sand quarry on Sandy Creek Road near Geelong, Victoria till February 2008.
Melbourne city locations were used in late 2007 and through 2008 including Central City Studios at Melbourne Docklands (March 2008); Flinders Street (between Swanston and Elizabeth streets; 1-4 February 2008);the intersection of Swanston and Flinders streets (February 2008);Flinders Street Station (2-3 February 2008).
Other suburban locations included Bundoora, Victoria, specifically the Ernest Jones Hall at the La Trobe University campus, Bundoora (late May 2008);^[the Railway Hotel, South Melbourne (December 2007);Scotch College, Melbourne (December 2007);Melbourne High School (December 2007);Mornington Railway, Melbourne;^[ Rathdowne Street, North Carlton and Victoria Park, Collingwood


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THE PACIFIC - The Story outline


PART 1: Guadalcanal/Leckie
Directly following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Seargent John Basilone ships out to fight the enemy somewhere in the Pacific, and a young journalist called Robert Leckie enlists in the Marine Corps. Sidney Phillips ships off to boot camp after saying farewell to his friend Eugene Sledge, who cannot go with him due to a heart murmur. Eight months later, Phillips and Leckie, having completed boot camp are sent to secure a airfield on Guadalcanal, and to help defend it against counterattack.

PART 2: Basilone
By October 1942, the Marines on Guadalcanal are fighting hunger and the jungle as well as the Japanese. The arrival of an Army unit helps somewhat but the Marines realize just how under-equipped they are by comparison. The Japanese are reinforcing their troops with ease and the men are facing nightly attacks at Henderson Field. Sgt. John Basilone takes charge during a particularly powerful Japanese attack and is recommended for a medal. He loses a close friend however. Back home Eugene Sledge, no longer needing his father's permission to sign up, announces he is going to enlist in the Marines.

PART 3: Melbourne
After four months of combat on Guadalcanal, the 1st Marine Division is relieved and the men are transported to Melbourne, Australia. Shocked and befuddled by the heroes' welcome they receive, the men soon find that they are in something akin to paradise with plenty to eat, drink and an endless number of beautiful women to keep them company. Sid Phillips meets a young girl, Gwen, whose grandfather makes sure he understands the rules of behavior when it comes to his granddaughter. Bob Lechie meets Stella Karamanlis on a tram and is soon taken in by her family who see in him the son they never had. Bob and Stella are soon lovers but the war and the never-ending pall of death casts a shadow on their relationship. John Basilone is awarded the Medal of Honor and soon realizes that he can no longer act like he did before. He also has to leave his men when he's asked to return to the US to help sell War Bonds.

PART 4: Gloucester/Pavuvu/Banika
The men of the 1st Marine Division leave Melbourne and on the day after Christmas 1944, land on the beach at Cape Gloucester. They encounter little initial resistance - reminiscent of their landing at Guadalcanal - but the jungle and the weather work against them. It rains almost constantly affecting the men's morale and their health. Bob Lechie has been assigned to the battalion Intelligence officer but like the others, feels that the jungle is closing in on him. They are eventually evacuated to Pavuvu where Lechie falls seriously ill. He spends some time at the hospital in Banika before eventually returning to his unit. Back in the US, Eugene Sledge undergoes training at a Marine camp in California.

PART 5: Peleliu Landing
Basilone's celebrity grows as he travels across the country on the war bonds tour. On Pavuvu, Sledge, assigned to the 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, is briefly reunited with Phillips and Leckie rejoins his company. Sledge then gets his first taste of combat as he, Leckie, and the rest of the 1st Marine Division meet fierce Japanese resistance while landing on the intricately and heavily defended coral island of Peleliu.

PART 6:  Peleliu Airfield
The battle on Peleliu goes on as the Marines continue towards the airfield. It's only the second day of fighting on the island but water is in short supply and the heat is excruciating. They are under constant bombardment from Japanese artillery located in the Peleliu Hills but the only way they can get there is to cross the airfield, a vast, open expanse. Bob Lechie is wounded and subsequently evacuated to a nearby ship. Sledge proves to be a steady hand in the battle. Back in the USA, Sid Phillips drops in on Eugene Sledge's parents.

PART 7:  Peleliu Hills
Although they now control the airfield, the battle continues on Peleliu with the Marines trying to dislodge the Japanese from their hillside fortifications. The Japanese are well entrenched and are proving difficult to get at. Sledge continues to do his job well, but is profoundly shaken by the death and destruction all around him. All of the men are affected when one of their officers is killed. Back in the US, John Basilone is still making public appearances and selling war bonds.

PART 8: Iwo Jima
The men have been relieved on Peleliu and return to Pavuvu where they are resting and awaiting their next assignment. Sledge sees something being thrown out in the trash and decides to keep it. Back in the USA, John Basilone requests re-assignment from his bond promotion duties and is transferred to Camp Pendleton as an instructor. There he meets Sgt. Lena Riggi, who is in charge of the mess hall. She's no pushover and it takes several attempts before she will even go out with him. Basilone's enlistment is up in a few months and he must decide if he is going to return to civilian life or sign up for another tour and accompany his men to Iwo Jima, their next assignment. He and Lena decide they are going to make the most of the time they have together.

PART 9: Okinawa
The 1st Marine division is now on Okinawa and coming ever closer to defeating the enemy. The weather and the heat are still proving to be difficult but the physical conditions reflect their own mental state. Constant stress from never-ending fighting results in a variety of reactions from the men. For the first time, the men also have to deal with the presence of Japanese civilians, who are being given safe passage through the US lines to safety in the rear. They arrived on Okinawa on April 1, 1945 and in early August they hear that a special type of bomb has been dropped on Japan.

PART 10: Home
The war is over and the men wonder what the future might hold for them. Robert Lechie returns home to his cold family and gets his old job back. His main purpose is to see if he can start a relationship with Vera who lives across the street. Eugene Sledge makes it home some six months after VJ Day and is met by his old friend, Sid Phillips. Eugene is having trouble settling into civilian life and cannot quite understand why some men like himself survived with no physical injuries when so many others died. Lina visits John Basilone's parents and has something of John's she thinks they should have.

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