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'Secrets of the Forbidden City' is a feature length drama-documentary commissioned by the BBC and The History Channel and produced by the UKs leading production house Lion Television.

Shot on location in China this astounding film draws upon ancient Ming texts, many translated into English for the first time, chronicling the creation of the Forbidden City palace in Beijing in 1417 and the powerful and terrifying ruler at its heart. Brett last worked with director Mark Lewis on 'The Floating Brothel' for Essential Viewing, for which he was nominated for Best Music for a Documentary at the 2007 APRA - AGSC Screen Music Awards.

This largely orchestral score is very lush and character driven and covers a range of emotional territory from intimate to tortured to suitably epic!

• Broadcast on BBC in the UK (2008) and on The History Channel (2008) worldwide

• Nominated Best Music for a Documentary, APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awards (2008)

Purchase the DVD View the trailer

What the Critics Have Said

“Strewn across the gleaming black floor of the imperial harem like blood-stained butterflies pinned to a board, the beautiful young concubines in Beijing's Forbidden City appeared at first to be sleeping, but the crimson pools of blood around their silken robes told a different story.” - Daily Mail, 03 May 2008

“It was an epic undertaking. The Forbidden City in Beijing, built by Yongle, the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, is the largest palace in the world. It covers 190 acres - five times the size of Buckingham Palace - and has 9,000 rooms. One million people were involved in its construction. This documentary, which is sexed up with the usual Gilbert and Sullivan-style dramatisations, tells the story of this magnificent and merciless endeavour. It seems an unimaginable achievement - until you consider that half the world's steel and one third of its concrete are being used to transform modern-day Beijing. Then, as now, with the help of a centralised economy and a one-party state, the Chinese don't mess around.” - Times OnLine, 10 May 2008

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