The Cooking Olympics - World's Best Kept Secret
ACTION ADVENTURE WAR DRAMA
17th Century or Earlier,18th Century,19th Century,Earlier 20th Century,1920s & '30s,1940s & '50s
Dean Jeffrey Kropp
Logline
MC Banzer created the first International Culinary Art Exhibition in 1900 Frankfurt, Germany. The German Chefs Association would be forced to join the Nazis. Hitler takes over the event and has the last culinary competition in 1937. Banzer dies in September 1945. He will never know if it continued.
Genre
Action,Adventure,War,Drama
Short Summary
Banzer is in his chef's office when he gets a phone call from Hitler's office informing him that there will be a visit from Wolkersdörfer. We go back in time showing Banzer as a young boy at his father's office where the man cuts suits. Banzer goes into the hotel business with a focus on the chefs.
After World War II, the Swiss Chefs Association hold the HOSPES Culinary competition in Bern, Switzerland where the United States is represented by a team of chefs for the first time ever. The chefs astound the world with their food. It was such a big success that a U.S. Culinary Team was formed.
Setting
Frankfurt, Germany
Based on a True Story
Yes
Plot - Premise
Overcoming Monster/Villain
Plot - Other Elements
Happy Ending
Mature Audience Themes
Language/Profanity
Main Character Details
Name: Matthaeus Carl Banzer
Age: 40
Gender: Male
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Adventurous,Aggressive,Charming,Confident,Gracious,Leader,Modest
Additional Character Details
Name: Queen Frederick (1840 – 1901) was born Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa
Age: 54
Gender: Female
Role: Mentor
Key Traits: Adventurous,Aspiring,Charming,Complex,Decisive,Engaging,Gracious,Heroic,Honorable,Leader,Blunt,Selfless,Skillful,Visionary,Romantic
Additional Character Details
Name: Baron Pierre Frédy de Coubertin (1863 – 1937)
Age: 33
Gender: Male
Role: sidekick
Key Traits: Adventurous,Aspiring,Aggressive,Charming,Complex,Confident,Decisive,Engaging,Gracious,Masculine,Skillful,Visionary
Additional Character Details
Name: Adolph Hitler
Age: 45
Gender: Male
Role: antagonist
Key Traits: Badass,Confident,Crazy,Criminal,Decisive,Leader,Masculine,Villainous,Narcisstic,Uneducated,Blunt,Power Hungry,Outspoken,Manipulative,Unapologetic
Development Pitch
The Cooking Olympics – World’s Best Kept Secret. This is not a cookbook. It’s an historically modern reenactment of how culinary competitions started in 1900 Germany. Producers want you to think that cooking competition shows on TV are brand new. They are for TV, but really they are not new. In fact, competing in cooking competitions has been around for over 120 years now. So this is the first time that you are hearing about it because this book has never been documented before in the United States. It really has been the world’s best-kept secret up until now. When food and greatness come together, it is really something to see. Chefs explain how they changed the foodscape of the United States and of the world. This book contains some Olympic Games history because the Cooking Olympics and the Olympic Games started within four years of each other. The restart of the Olympic Games in 1896 fueled the start of the cooking Olympics in 1900 Frankfurt, Germany that was the one-two punch that set the culinary world into high gear. Germany was always striving to be a super power. It took guts to start a cooking event especially with all of the turmoil that kept Europe busy for centuries. With Germany’s loss of World War I, it may have died there. But one guy with a bone to pick, marched into Germany and joyfully took it over. Hitler was able to provide a united front while working under the table to take over the world.
Genre
DRAMA
Brief
This story describes how the Culinary Oylmpics came to be. Banzer details the history of the events and his time competing.
Overall Rating
FAIR
Narrative Elements
Authors Writing Style: FAIR
Characterization: FAIR
Commerciality: FAIR
Franchise Potential: FAIR
Pace: FAIR
Premise: FAIR
Structure: FAIR
Theme: FAIR
Accuracy of Book Profile
The book profile does not accurately reflect the book. The book is more of a chronicle of the Culinary Olympics instead of a story that involves Hitler and Nazis. This book is not plot driven, it documents Banzer's research and his involvement in the competition.
Draw of Story
The story did not draw me in at all. It is very disjointed, jumping back and forth from 1900 -2020. It also talks about corona virus but is thrown in to make it current. It adds nothing to the story and is very out of place.
Possible Drawbacks
The book is not told as fiction. It reads more like a encyclopedia of the relatively unknown competition in the culinary world. It touches on historical moments and how they affected the event throughout the 20th and 21st century.
Use of Special Effects
THE STORY DOES NOT RELY ON SPECIAL EFFECTS
Primary Hook of Story
The hook is the history of the Culinary Arts Olympics told from the perspective of one of the competitiors, Banzer. This story would be interesting as a look into the Culinary world and a major competition for chefs to compete in.
Fanbase Potential
This could have a large fanbase if reworked. The story does not work as is but the Culinary Olympics as a subject for a documentary or docu-series would work. It could follow some of the contestants leading up to the competitions and during it while detailing the history of the events.
Awards Potential
This could have awards potential as a documentary. If it follows the current Culinary Olympics, showing the competition and the drama surrounding the multiple countries competing against each other.
Envisioned Budget
MEDIUM BUDGET
Similar Films/TV Series
THE CONTENDER, THE CHICKEN,THE FISH AND THE THE KING CRAB AND IRON CHEF
What’s New About the Story
The subject of the prestigious culinary competition is original, with all the worlds countries competing. The story could be more unique if turned into a competition documentary instead of a rambling list of facts. The documentary could follow the underdog as they prepare and compete.
Lead Characters
The lead character does not stand out and there is not a real sense of the character because the story jumps from all different events and time periods. Many of the stories do not involve the lead character because the story jumps around over a 120 year span.
Uniqueness of Story
This is not a rare gem and reads like the inner dialogue of the lead character. It could be improved by using the Culinary Olympics as the subject and focus on the chefs and teams from different countries. The dramatics would surround the events, time in the kitchen and the eventual winner.
Possible Formats
TV Series - Streaming, Unscripted
Analyst Recommendation
WORK IN PROGRESS
Justification
While the story has many positive points, it has room for improvement (see possible paths below). If you can't change the story at this point, my suggestion is using your notes as a guide to highlight the best aspects of it when taking the next steps, either putting a pitch page together, a treatment, or a presentation.
Tips for Improvement
To recommend, I would suggest focusing on the competition and bring it to the present. The book looks at the past but it could document the competition. This would open up for multiple storylines.