Assignment Four

Below is a selection of scenes that I have written for my piece ‘On Death and Dying’.  I have chosen to use this sequence of scenes as they are 'dialogue heavy' and contain very little action. 

Following these scenes I have written my reflective account of this module of the course and my references from Part Four.

ON DEATH AND DYING

Scenes 35 - 37

INT. PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE – NIGHT

GEOFFREY sits at his desk, talking to U.N. representatives Dr Kregs and Prof. Jiyad via a web conference.

                    PROF. JIYAD

          Mr Soillen this is not something

          that the U.N. can ignore.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          With all due respect Professor, if

          the U.N. had intended on assisting

          I assume you would have been here

          already.

                    DR. KREGS

          We must consider the effects of a

pandemic.

         

          GEOFFREY SOILLEN

               (laughing)

          Of course Gentlemen...one must

          protect their own.

         

          PROF. JIYAD

          Mr Soillen, this is hardly the

          time. Your country lies in ruins

          and from our reports, it seems that

          you haven't done the slightest

          thing about it.

GEOFFREY angrily stands.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          We are a country in quarantine.

          Furthermore we are a country in

          crisis.  We are losing civilians

          left, right and centre. Medical and

          military staff have taken to the

          streets rioting, or worse. Our top

          scientists are baffled by this and

          it seems that we are a nation in

          exile from the world.

GEOFFREY sits back in his seat calmly.

                    DR. KREGS

          Geoffrey...we've discussed the

          dangers of even allowing a sample

          to leave your borders.

GEOFFREY bangs his fists on the table.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          So I am supposed to watch a nation

die?

The picture on the screens fuzz and fade.  Geoffrey bangs

the screens.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          Not now....you little bastard.

MISS BLACKSON enters.

                    MISS BLACKSON

          Is everything all right Sir?

GEOFFREY rubs his eyes and walks over to his drinks cabinet.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          A drink Miss Blackson?

                    MISS BLACKSON

          Why not? It would be an

          understatement to call this a bad

          day. And please, it's Charlotte.

MISS BLACKSON sits on the sofa.  GEOFFREY hands her a glass of whiskey and sits opposite her and downs his drink.

     

              MISS BLACKSON (CONT'D)

          Are you OK? Sir?

    

               GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          It would be safe to say no Miss

Blackson.

MISS BLACKSON leans across the table touching GEOFFREY's

arm. GEOFFREY touches her hand, looking into her eyes,

                    MISS BLACKSON (CONT'D)

          Your brilliance is unparalleled

          Sir. I have nothing but faith that

          you will fix this.

GEOFFREY walks to the drinks cabinet, pouring himself

another drink.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          Your faith is quite unfounded I'm

          afraid Miss Blackson.  It seems

          that I have not quite delivered

          what I claimed in my manifesto.

                    MISS BLACKSON

               (smiling)

          I am yet to a meet a politician

          who keeps his promises.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          It seems that my work has created

          more than a little stir?

                    MISS BLACKSON

          I don't think anyone could blame

          you for this situation, Sir.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          Tell that to the U.N.

MISS BLACKSON gets up and stands behind GEOFFREY.  She puts her hand on his shoulder.

    

               GEOFFREY SOILLEN (CONT'D)

          At least I can rest assured that I'll

          be remembered.

GEOFFREY walks away and sits behind his desk.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN (CONT'D)

          Yes, my name will be printed in

          every history book across the

          world.  I can see it now....'THE

          MAN WHO DESTROYED BRITAIN IN A

          DAY'.  Quite an achievement.

GEOFFREY downs his glass of whiskey, slamming it onto the

table.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN (CONT'D)

          No Miss Blackson....my time is

done.

              

     MISS BLACKSON

          Sir, you're the reason I went into

          politics in the first place.

MISS BLACKSON pours herself another drink.

                    MISS BLACKSON (CONT'D)

          My father and I attending of your

          speeches when you were MP for

          Lambeth North.

GEOFFREY tries to take a drink, realising his glass is

empty.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN

          That was a long time ago.

                    MISS BLACKSON

          Your charm and charisma transformed

          our community.  Your 'Music

          Matters' initiative literally

          eradicated crime around the

          estates.  You ended a 15-year feud

          over the closure of the hospital in

          one breakfast meeting.

MISS BLACKSON sits opposite GEOFFREY.

                    MISS BLACKSON (CONT'D)

               (smiling)

          Not to mention your work on the

          allotments.

GEOFFREY looks at MISS BLACKSON and laughs.

                    GEOFFREY SOILLEN (CONT'D)

          That was a long time ago Miss

Blackson.

                    MISS BLACKSON

          Rubbish... you're Geoffrey Soillen. 

If you can't turn this around,

no one can.

INT. LIBRARY - NIGHT

BLAINE climbs in through a large window holding a long

metal pole. He helps SALLY through. The Library is silent

and vending machine sits in the corner.  Once in, BLAINE

places the metal pole on the floor.

                    SALLY

          I told you.  No one uses these anymore.

                    BLAINE

          Yeah well we got Wiki now. Who

          needs these dusty old things.

BLAINE picks up a book and drops it on the floor creating a loud bang.

        

           SALLY

               (smiling)

          Ssh....they'll hear us.

                    BLAINE

          Nah, I think we're pretty safe in

here.

SALLY throws her bag to the ground and slumps on the floor against a bookcase. She sighs loudly.

     

              SALLY

               (to herself)

          What a great day.

                    BLAINE

          You wanna drink?  I found us a

          vending machine.  Reckon I've still

          got the knack.

BLAINE kicks the vending machine causing the door to fly

open.  BLAINE takes two cans and two chocolate bars and sits down beside SALLY.

                    BLAINE

          Hope you like Coke and chocolate.

SALLY smiles and begins eating and drinking.  An awkward

silence falls between the two.

                    BLAINE

          Didn't you think it was a bit

          weird...Tara knowing so much about

          all that medical shit over there.

                    SALLY

          She's a Doctor, Blaine.  That's her

          job.  What are you getting at?

                    BLAINE

          I just reckon it's weird that all.

                    SALLY

          Blaine I told you before to drop

this.

                    BLAINE

          I'm just sayin'. As you said, she

          knows her shit about medicine.

          She's Austrian...

SALLY gets up and stands over BLAINE.

                    SALLY

          She's Austrian? What the hell does

          that have to do with anything.

                    BLAINE

          Well the journal was from Austria

          and she's been acting weird.  We

          don't even know her last name.

          Maybe it's Ellison?

SALLY throws her can across the room.

                    SALLY

               (angrily)

          The reason she's been 'weird'

          Blaine is because her husband and

          children died today.  She has had

          to witness countless murders,

          suicides and acts of

          brutality...all whilst carrying

          your racist arse around.  You make

          me sick.

SALLY walks over to the stacks across the room. A long

silence falls.

                    BLAINE (CONT'D)

          They drove off a bridge...

SALLY

Huh?

                    BLAINE

          My family.  They....

BLAINE begins to cry, trying to hide it from SALLY.  SALLY moves towards Blaine.

                    BLAINE (CONT'D)

          Sorry... I just... just....all

this.

                    SALLY

          It's one fucked up party.

SALLY sits beside BLAINE

                    SALLY (CONT'D)

          My parents chose the old fashioned

          rope and rafters.

After a long pause, BLAINE and SALLY begins kissing and

stripping off each others' clothing.

INT. APARTMENT HOME OFFICE - NIGHT

TARA speaks via webcam to Professor Lukas Hoffer (72).

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Tara the world is fully aware of

          the situation in the UK.  The U.N.

          are urging other countries to offer

          aid, but no one wants to risk a

          world wide epidemic.

                    TARA

          All sea and airports have been

          closed.  I guess to keep a

          quarantine.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Please tell me how I can help.

                    TARA

          Ellison.  Tell me what you know

          about a Dr. Ellison.  He was

          probably in the field during..

TARA notices a shocked look in the Professor's face.

                    TARA

          What is it?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          I know who Ellison is.  I'd rather

          not know, but I do.

                    TARA

          Who is he?  Could he be linked.

          Please Lukas.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Piotr Ellison was a Professor of

          mine for a semester.  A greatly

          gifted scientist, with a taste for

          power.

TARA

Power?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Many years after University,

          Ellison developed a technology

          involving audio-reanimation.

                    TARA

          Audio-reanimation?

TARA sits back in the chair calmly.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER (CONT'D)

          This technology had the capability

          to literally shape minds.

                    TARA

          For what purpose?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Ellison found a series of

          frequencies capable of effectively

          paralysing certain areas of the

          brain.  Depending on the

          frequencies used, it was then

          possible to use subliminal

          messaging to control the

          individual.

                    TARA

          Brainwashing?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          That's how the U.N. saw it.  Of

          course they dismissed his ideas and

          denied knowledge of their existence

          when 'side-effects' starting

          occurring.

                    TARA

          Side effects...like severe

          depression?  Leading to suicide?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Ellison's case files were never

          released, but I do know that a

          number of his test subjects

          died.

                    TARA

          It sounds to me like Ellison has

          set his sight on something a little

          bigger than the military.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          That's not possible Tara.

TARA

          It's obvious Lukas.  Somehow he has

          developed his technology to a much

          wider scale.  And as far as test

          runs go...

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          He's dead Tara.  He jumped from a

          16 story building in 1991 in

          Istanbul.

TARA bangs her fist on the table.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER (CONT'D)

          After his dismissal from the U.N.,

          Ellison was shunned by the science

          community.  His papers meant

          nothing, not even the Universities

          wanted him.  That's when he really

          changed.

TARA begins flicking through the medical journal.

                    TARA

          And became a man hellbent on

          revenge and world domination?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          A little 'comic strip'... but yes,

          that's about it.  There's a fine

          line between genius and insanity

          Tara.

                    TARA

          I must be his technology Lukas.  It

          explains everything.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          I don't see how Tara.  Those files

          were destroyed.  They never even

          saw the light of day. His research

          laboratories were seized and his

          company was dissolved.

                    TARA

          Perhaps he shared his ideas with

someone?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          I see the link Tara, but Ellison

          was a deeply private man.  Sharing

          his creations would go against his

          moral grain.

                    TARA

          The call of death makes people do

          strange things.

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Even if he had shared his

          knowledge, it would have taken an

          even greater thinker than Ellison

          himself to develop the technology

          to this level.

                    TARA

          But it's possible?

                    PROF. LUKAS HOFFER

          Tara I have seen the world's most

          brilliant scientists stumped by the

          complexities of Ellison's work.  I

          sincerely doubt anyone else could

          have even made sense of his work.

TARA rubs her forehead, frowning.

Reflective account of Part Four

Throughout this section of the course I have learnt much about the terminology, methods and techniques for writing a screenplay.

'Film economy' refers to the way a story ‘moves’ and translates to the screen. Cowgill (2005:163) writes that:

“Words, description and dialogue, must be as focused as everything else in the screenplay.  Random description of every detail in a scene will only derail it.” 

There is an overwhelming temptation for a writer to use dialogue to ‘tell the whole story’.  However, real-life conversation is short and does not describe what is happening. Thompson (2013) writes that:

“While dialogue should be rich and fully worded, useless dialogue that does not add anything to the story should find its way to the chopping block”.  

I have rewritten my scenes a number of times in order to ensure that I have an economical script.  However, my chosen scenes are 'dialogue heavy', forcing me to ensure that the dialogue is informative, but also believable and interesting enough to hold the audience's attention. 

My research into scene descriptions led me to study the screenplays of Paul Feig (Bridesmaids 2011), Hitchcock (Vertigo 1958) and Puzo & Ford-Copolla (The Godfather 1972).  In contrast to Cowgill’s (2005:163) comments on the economy of the scene descriptions, both The Godfather and Vertigo contain meticulous descriptions of the scene.  However, Bridesmaids provides little scene description, allowing the director more freedom over the story.   I question whether this may be more a sign of modern filmmaking, given the time difference between the release dates of each film.

Imagery and symbolism can also be used effectively to portray story events and character traits. As Smith (2010) suggests:

"Words can communicate at one level. But if you want to reach down into a person's soul or touch an audience in a profound way, you need to use Symbols, Images, and Codes". 

Use of symbolism is evident in the iconic 'rose petal' scene of Sam Mendes’ American Beauty (1999), where the falling of the coloured petals juxtaposes the innocence and sexuality of youth.  Imagery and symbolism also play an important role in the opening scenes of Oliver Stone's Platoon (1986) with the cleanliness and enthusiasm of the new GIs symbolising their innocence, whilst the image of the veterans handling dead bodies in such a detached manner symbolises their acceptance of the horrors of war.

Whilst researching travelling and establishing scenes I found an interesting idea by Romanek (2013) who suggests that sequence scenes are the foundation of the story itself, with each ‘sequence’ showing the characters overcoming an obstacle, which in turn leads to a larger obstacle. This contrasts with the more accepted definitions of ‘scene sequences’.  For example, Cowgill (2003) writes, “A scene sequence is a group of scenes linked around a single idea or action."  I feel that Romanak’s ideas provide an interesting way of structuring story events, obstacles and sequences. 

On the suggestion of my tutor, I spent some time researching ‘reversals’.   The Screen Writing Glossary (2013) describes reversals as:

 “A place in the plot where a character achieves the opposite of his aim, resulting in a change from good fortune to bad fortune”. 

Whilst it is important to maintain ‘believability’ within a story, it is also essential to create drama, and reversals serve as an excellent way to create a realistic but unexpected change to normal circumstances.  Reversals can refer to a character or an action and provide an opportunity to enhance and move the story forward whilst maintaining audience interest.   John Deme’s adaptation of Thomas Harris’ Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Sam Mendes’ American Beauty (1999) both helped to me gain a deeper insight into the use of reversals.

I have enjoyed this section of the course and feel I have learnt much about how to create a good screenplay. Using the story I have been working on over the previous two modules, I have been able to apply what I have learnt in order to begin to develop my story into what I hope will be an engaging and believable screenplay.