Achilles — I

ACHILLES — Of Rage and Silence is Act I in an ongoing reimagining of Homer’s Iliad.

This project is a contemporary re-telling of Homer’s “The Iliad”, the ancient epic poem composed by Homer, translated, studied, argued over, and carried forward for nearly three millennia.

This is Act I.

The image — Achilles, seen only from behind — is treated as a canvas.
On that canvas, word is spoken.

This work uses AI-assisted image, voice, and sound tools, including music, guided at every stage by human authorship, selection, and restraint. Nothing here is arbitrary. Nothing leaves a machine without human hands on it — from the initial concept, to the prompts, to the edits that determine what remains and what is removed.

This is not a replacement for poetry, translation, or scholarship.
It is a different medium for expression — one that allows an epic poem to be encountered through stillness, voice, and atmosphere rather than spectacle.

The cadence and discipline of this project are informed in part by the work of Richmond Lattimore, whose translation of The Iliad remains a touchstone for clarity, balance, and respect for the original text.

Achilles does not face us yet. Neither do Patroclus, Paris, or Helen — but they are coming.

This project is deliberate. It is structured. And we are only just getting started.

More acts to come.

Story, Narrative, and Conceptual Art — Copyright 2025 E Maria Shelton Speller

Creative Platforms & Tools:

Artlist.io – Licensed music and sound effects
ChatGPT (OpenAI) – AI-assisted scriptwriting and narrative development
MidJourney – AI-generated concept imagery and character visualization
iMovie – Video editing and sequencing
ElevenLabs – AI-powered voice narration
Suno — AI-powered music generator that creates original songs, including lyrics, vocals, and instrumentation
Other Production Tools – Standard video/audio processing and conceptual design tools

This work contains no quoted or adapted passages from any modern translation of  The Iliad.