Format: TV Series (60 min) | Genre: Geschichte, Drama
An aspiring young man, who grows up in astrict monastry, becomes the apprentice of the Renaissance thinker Leonardo DaVinci and despite orders of the catholic church pursuing him for his challenging believes.
ZOROASTRO grows up in a small village in Tuscany, as an orphan in a strong monastery. From birth he knows that his life will be one of piety and obedience to God and his masters. There is no reason not to believe that he will become anything other than a Catholic monk himself. However -- His mentor FREDERICO, a secular trader from Venice, Zoroastro is doing his apprenticeship for, talks endlessly about the glory of ancient Rome.
Over time, his mentor ignites the spark of Zoroastro's thirst for knowledge and becomes more and more enthusiastic about science and art. Especially in this context, a name continues to be mentioned. It is the name of the uncle of a business partner - a controversial painter, architect, scientist and painter LEONARDO DA VINCI.
One days, Zoroastro walks along the busy streets of Florence. He finally wants to see Leonardo Da Vinci's inventions for himself. When he finally arrives at his destination, he sees young men talking lively to one another. The setting seems unreal - a workshop full of eager scholars, incredible-looking prototypes of machines, and disorganized scrolls everywhere. Suddenly --
A soft voice that sounds like it belongs to a woman says from behind. It's Leonardo Da Vinci.
Da Vinci invites the young man to his art studio. Zoroastro looks across the room, his eyes widen. He has never seen so many inventions in one place. Some of them seem to be for aero travel while others look like they could help explore the depths of the ocean.
Zoroastro has always been a follower of God. His first and foremost desire is to follow and serve his Lord, which he does as a monk of the Church. But Zoroastro longs for knowledge and understanding, something that can only be achieved through science. As Zoroastro strolls through Leonardo Da Vinci's studio, he is confronted with a new world. There is great conflict between his previous life in the Church and his new life as an apprentice to Leonardo Da Vinci and being introduced to the world of science where nature is God.
DA VINCI
There are many ways to worship god.
The illegitimate son of pope Alexander VI Duke BORGIA invades the Romagna and Tuscany. With him comes the strict order from the Vatican. Borgia's army burns down all progress made by new Renaissance thinkers like Leonardo Da Vinci because he knows what secret treasures lay within its walls and how harmful these treasures can be to the Catholic Church. The people are glad to be rid of their old oppressors but they soon find out that there is no mercy in this new ruler who burns any opposition with fire on sight without hesitation or remorse for anything less than an appropriate punishment for their transgressions against God himself.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Our protagonist Zoroastro has always been a follower of God. His first and foremost desire is to follow and serve his lord, which he does as the monk of the church. But Zoroastro yearns for knowledge and understanding, something that can only be obtained through science. As Zoroastro becomes a student of Leonardo Da Vinci, he is confronted with a new world. There is a big conflict between his past life in the church and his new life as an apprentice of Leonardo Da Vinci and the introduction into the world of science where nature is god. Torn between two worlds, the church and the new way of thinking that he learns from his mentor Leonardo Da Vinci, that comes to life in the new Renaissance time, which is science. The big difference is that Zoroastro has something very different from others during that period: an open and pure spirit. Despite the new way of thinking he is confronted with and being a rebel without a cause, he has the willingness and courage to seek truth.
We see the genius and conflicts of the Renaissance period through the eyes of our hero Zoroastro. The screenplay is written from the view of the Renaissance Period and is thus not meant to be criticism of that period but rather a journey of Zoroastro and how the character will react to the severe conflicts emerging during that time.
The famous mentor of Zoroastro plays a central role in the script. Leonardo da Vinci's genius is portrayed in this film as seen through the eyes of the young, innocent Zoroastro. It shows both the good and the bad sides to him; it also has shades that make you feel sad for how Leonardo was at his end - left by apprentices like Jesus was betrayed by most who claimed they would be his apostle but ended up leaving instead. Da Vinci was an outsider without being truely understood by those around him - just like Jesus Christ's disciples betrayed him at their own chance for power. It becomes symbolic not only to how he felt but also what we can all learn from looking within ourselves when it seems like no one else will understand us. That could account for why there seems no better way to capture the tragedy of Da Vinci in his masterpiece "The Last Supper".