Patty Loew:
An independent movie is being produced by the owners of Albion Swords without the help of Wisconsin's film tax credit. The movie is called "2012:  De-evolution." It features their sword manufacturing facility and other locations in southern Wisconsin. More about the movie in a moment. But first reporter Andy Soth shows you this cutting edge business with its trademark swords in New Glarus.   

Andy Soth:
New Glarus, America's Little Switzerland, has long kept European traditions alive. It's a good place then for these medieval enthusiasts to practice an ancient craft.

Eric McHugh:
We’re not just making any swords, but we’re making medieval swords in a modern context.

Andy Soth:
The modern context is provided by Albion Armorers, a specialist in the manufacture and sale of historic replica swords.

Amy Waddell:
Who buys swords? They're one of the most unnecessary things you could purchase.

Andy Soth:
Albion's CEO, Amy Waddell, admits people have an unusual first reaction to her business.

Amy Waddell:
Then they see them and they hold them and they buy them, because they really are -- they're just fantastic pieces of history.

Andy Soth:
The pieces come together in a former meat processing plant. It starts with a blank, the basic shape of a sword, cut from a steel plate by a computerized milling machine.   

Eric McHugh:
We do have the benefit of modern equipment. They wouldn't have used that back then. But if they could have, they would have.

Andy Soth:
A heat-treated blank is sharpened to make a blade. The challenge is to make a weapon that is sharp, but strong. The test for this blade puts the old Ginsu knife to shame. This steel drum is the same gauge as a suit of armor.  

Eric McHugh:
If this was used against an armored opponent, Jason could just take a hone and remove that damage and put it back into service back in the time of medieval times.

Andy Soth:
This test demonstrates the blade's flexibility.

Eric McHugh:
So that you get a really strong edge that has the ability to stay sharp, but a blade that will be able to be flexed and take the shock of battle. There he goes. Finally. We would call this a very successful blade.   

Andy Soth:
The sharpened blade gets a cross guard and a pommel that counters the weight of the blade in the user's hand.

Carl Croushore:
Both the guard and the pommel were design elements. The medieval, the Renaissance, the dark ages, they were a way for the swordsmith or the cutler to express themselves in the sword-making process.

Amy Waddell:
If you just look at it, it's just such a remarkable piece of engineering, and it's frightening. It's deadly and it's beautiful at the same time. And that's a rare occurrence.

Andy Soth:
It would be a rare occurrence for anyone to actually need a sword made to such exacting standards given that today people are rarely called upon to slay dragons or join the crusades. Why put so much effort into making what may only be an oversized letter opener?

Eric McHugh:
We want to do the best possible job that we can do to get the best possible performance out of the sword, even though most -- 99% of the people who purchase our swords just buy them and look at them and then put them on a display on their wall.

Andy Soth:
That authenticity is essential because the customer is not just buying a sword. They're buying a tool to help them travel back in time.

Amy Waddell:
In today's extremely stressful times, people need an escape. And fantasy and history are an escape. And they want to feel chivalrous, knightly. They want to experience what a knight would have experienced.

Andy Soth:
That experience can be as powerful as one of these weapons.

Amy Waddell:
We've had customers write to us and say that when they opened up the box, they broke into tears. They name them, they sleep with them. They hang them on their walls. It's fascinating. It’s very inspiring for all of us.

Patty Loew:
The owners of Albion Swords are writing and producing the movie "2012: De-evolution" shot on location in New Glarus. The movie explores what might happen on December 21, 2012, when the earth's solar system aligns with the core of the galaxy for the first time in 25,000 years. The movie is expected to be released in independent theaters next October and already has international interest.