Jeffrey Hunter's TV debut.
Contrary to many published references, this was not a student film, although students were recruited from Northwestern University to work in bit parts and as extras.
Due to budget restraints, only one horse could be hired per day, hence a different colored horse was filmed each day, with footage cleverly montaged and edited to create the battle scenes.
Musical director Grant Fletcher hired Chuck Zornig 72 hours before the recording date, handing him a two-bar harmonic sketch by 'John Becker' (II) and a shot list to work from. From this, Zornig produced a 32-page score, still copying parts for musicians as they arrived to record the score. Becker approached Zornig and asked him how he could read his two-bar sketch. Zornig replied, "When I couldn't I just chose the most dissonant sounds," causing Becker to roar with laughter.
The orchestra which performed the score consisted of nine brass instruments plus timpani, and was recorded in an abandoned indoor swimming pool to create echo and a large sound.
This marked the first time Charlton Heston would play Mark Antony. He would do so again twice more, in Julius Caesar and in Antony and Cleopatra, which he also directed.