-
Day 1 Assignments
Reply to post your assignment.
-
3 Replies
-
Lois’s High Speed Writing
What I learned. I had the pieces for this scene from the previous lesson.
EXT. MAIN STREET ENTERING SKUNK HOLLOW – MORNING
KAMALI PARKER (Pakistani woman in her 30’s) drives her minivan into Skunk Hollow.
Sign: Entering Skunk Hollow, Skunk Capital of the USA. A drawing of a smiling skunk waves its tail. Trees with gold and red leaves line the roadsides. It’s Fall.
Cars on the road have “We (heart) Skunks” and “Skunks Make Great Pets” bumper strips.
Kamali’s cell phone rings. She answers hands-free. She drives as she talks.
Howland Mann
When you get to the Skunk Farm grab a piece of meteorite rock.
A Burma Shave style set of signs: We (heart) skunks. Yes we do. They come in every color. Except for Green and Blue.
KAMALI PARKER
Sure. I’ll stop at their shop.
A pet grooming shop. The Pet Poofery. Photos in the window show freshly groomed cats, dogs and skunks. A few windows down, a furniture shop has a We (heart) skunks sign.
HOWLAND MANN
It’s just a black and red rock. They’re lying all over the ground near the hen house. They don’t sell them.
An intersection where a street banner reads: Home of the Skunk Beauty Pageant. A “Skunks Make Scents” circus wagon crosses the street, playing circus music. Paintings on the wagon show dancing skunks and performing skunks.
KAMALI PARKER
I’ll ask, just to be sure.
A Billboard advertising Xerxes Pharmaceuticals, featuring a photo of Howland Mann, Owner and Inventor, brushing a long-haired skunk. “Beautify Your Skunk With Aglaea.”
HOWLAND MANN
We’re neighborly around here. Would you care of somebody took a rock from your yard?
Below the billboard is a school yard, and a sign pointing to Skunk Farm.
Kamali turns towards Skunk Farm. A river is on her left and a row of bushes on her right. She comes to a large Skunk Farm. Everything for Your Skunk sign. She parks her car and walks up the path. One building is labelled Skunk Stuff Here. Next to that are a farmhouse and further to the left a hen house.
Kamali starts to walk up to the store. Her high heels sink into the muddy path. She changes her mind. Starts to walk up to the farmhouse. Gets to the door, raises her hand to knock. But the house is silent. She heads toward the hen house. Skunks come up the path to greet her. She squats down to pet one. She sees a red and black rock beside the path. The skunk steps between her and the rock, blocking her.
KAMALI PARKER (baby-talk voice)
Sweet skunkie! Would you like a tummy rub?
The skunk rolls over and Kamali rubs its tummy with one hand. The skunk smiles. Kamali reaches for the rock with her other hand. A second skunk tries to block her.
KAMALI PARKER (BABY-TALK VOICE)
Are you jealous, my pretty poofer? I’ll pet you, too, as soon as I put this rock in my pocket.
The skunk sprays Kamali. She grabs the rock and runs back toward her minivan. tears streaming. Her heels stick inthe mud. She takes them off and carries them. Skunks chase after her.
int. Aglaea labs – day
HOWLAND MANN (pale skinned man of about 50) wears a white labcoat that flaps around him like giant bird wings. He has rows of test tubes in a rack next to vials and flasks and tubes of colored liquids, and mysterious black boxes. One tube is labeled OWL.
HOWLAND MANN
Leave it here!
He points to a spot on the nearby counter.
Kamali complies. Howland puts the rock into a mortar and slams it with a pestle as he speaks.
HOWLAND MANN (Cont)
Now leave! I can’t stand that stink!
Howland adds a few crumbs of the rock to the vial marked OWL. Kamali turns and leaves, her muddy high heels clacking against the lineoleum floor.
-
Lisa’s High Speed Writing
What I learned doing this lesson is that I already had thought about the teaser for so long it was super easy to write.
EXT. FARMER PETE’S – DUSK
Farmer Pete’s is a warehouse type building with a lovely mural of happy little animals frolicing on the farm.
CAMERA PANS ACROSS THE MURAL SHOWING A FEW ANIMALS FLOATING UP IN THE CLOUDS WEARING HALOS. FOLLOW THIR EYELINE DOWN TO A FAMILY SITTING AT A PICNIC TABLE EATING BURGERS, CHICKEN NUGGETS AND BACON. THEY’RE HAPPY AND SMILING. FOLLOW THEIR EYELINE TO FARMER PETE, WHO STANDS SMILING, WAVING AND WEARING AN APRON WITH JUST A FEW SPLATTERS OF BLOOD ON IT. HE HOLDS A HATCHET AND STANDS OUTSIDE A BARN STRUCTURE.
In the foreground of Farmer Pete’s, a group of vegans lines the street holding electronic candles looking very somber, like a funeral processional. A large truck with a trailer holding live pigs pulls up. The animals are crowded inside but some of the group of people moves in toward the trailer with water bottles. They give the pigs water. The pigs push their snouts through the holes of the truck and the people outside pet them, saying kind words and offering them treats. JANE pets one pig on the nose, the pig makes cute little noises and nuzzles Jane’s hand almost as if trying to console the crying Jane.
JANE
Oh you’re so sweet. I’m so sorry, little baby. I wish I could save you.
Jane Peers into the truck to look into the pig’s eyes. He leans his face peacefully into her hand like a sleepy puppy. The truck honks it’s horn and Jane and the others back away from the truck as it begins to pull away. The pig is immediately terrified and begins to screech in fear.
Suddenly a loud crash rings out and an angry mob runs up with a variety of signs that say things like: Meat is Murder, Food not Death, Friends not Food, etc. Some of them climb on the trailer attempting to open the trailer to free the pigs. The driver begins to drive off but in the confusion Jane ends up in front of the truck as it attempts to avoid some of the angry mob. The headlights light up Jane’s face as she is about to be run over by the truck. The scene freezes with close up on Jane’s face, the moment before she is hit.
MARC
(V.O.)
This was the moment it hit me… Well, literally Jane was the one who got hit… Maybe we should go back to the beginning.
-
High Speed Writing Rules/TEASER
This was an excellent way to begin writing the pilot. I was able to follow the teaser from my outline and was quickly able to write 4 pages!
I really love that the concept here is to get words down on paper regardless of the quality, knowing that this comes with further drafts/re-writes.
I am ready to get to the next section of my outline!
Log in to reply.