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Post Day 7 Assignment Here
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Charles Ferrell’s High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned from doing this assignment is how to transfer into beats, keeping it super high level and moving.
ACT 1
INT. Classroom – Day
Duncan see the little asian girl while teaching, no one else can see her. Disturbing!
INT. Duncan’s APT – Night
Sleep deprivation from nightmares is starting to affect his performance and make him question what is real or a dream.
INT.Teachers Lounge – Day
Duncan begins asking about a secret camp and has details that spark the wrong interest.
INT. Chancellors Office – Day
Duncan is put on notice about his performance and conspiracy theories. His mental state questioned, suggests a therapist.
ACT 2
INT. University – Day
A picture of the Old Sargent is mailed to him, showing building rubble in the background where the lake is now.
INT.University – Day
Duncan please on student radio for people to come forward with info about the Sargent, The picture is posted all around campus.
INT. Chancellors Office – Night
Chancellor puts his position on suspension and threatens his phd candidacy, Required to see a therapist.
ACT 3
EXT. Lake – Night
He decides to search the lake for himself, borrowing a boat each night. More sleep deprivation
EXT.Lake – Dawn
He is arrested for theft of the boat and his car impounded. He spots the pol science professor watching.
EXT.Jail/ University – Day
Gets out of jail, he has been fired, lost his campus housing apt, kicked out of phd program….all is lost
INT. Coffee Shop – Afternoon
He has a new insight, the Pol Science professor is the Old Sargent. Maybe tattoo.
ACT 4
EXT. Construction Site – Dusk
Take a stand, he steals a backhoe from the construction site. Starts to dig into the levee holding the lake.
INT. News Studio – Morning
The freeway has been flooded by a break in the levee, helicopters are on the way to the scene.
EXT.Lake/Highway – Morning
Exhausted Duncan is arrested for a second time watching the lake drain in a stupor.
EXT. Lake – Morning
Helicopters spot the foundations of a complex of buildings in the mud. Was he right?
INT. Pol Sci Prof office – Day
The professor is found dead from suicide. Signed letter detailing the facts of the events along with a box of pictures and evidence.
INT. Chancellors office – Day
Duncan reinstated job & phd program. All charges are dropped
INT. Therapist office – Day
Under hypnosis, Duncan learns that he was the little asian girl in a past life. This was his plan for this life.
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Robert Wood’s High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned doing this assignment is a different approach to structuring beat sheets. It’s a logical extension of the approach taken in this course so far and I’m pleased with it. I will definitely use the High Speed Writing Rules to get this script done at record speed, and am excited to start!
ACT 1:
INT. CAR – DAY
OPENING: In car, driving to dad’s house, talking to sister about what he must do. Edgy and agitated. He doesn’t want to do this or be responsible for it.
INT./EXT. GAS STATION – DAY
Stops at gas station – buys cigarettes. Has a smoke before getting back in car.
INT. CAR – DAY
Driving up to the family house – lots of memories.
INT. FAMILY HOUSE – DAY
Uses his key and goes in. Quiet. Looks around a bit and goes into the…
INT. FAMILY HOUSE – DEN – DAY
The office is still full of Ogopogo stuff.
INCITING INCIDENT: Dad (Bert) shows up. They chat.
INT. FAMILY HOUSE – KITCHEN – DAY
TE 1: Time to make dinner – Matt brought some food. Matt is quick to judge / Bert’s critiques – although unintended – cut deep. Matt realizes his relationship with his dad hasn’t changed.
EXT. FAMILY HOUSE – DOCK – NIGHT
TURNING POINT: Drinks & talking outside on the dock about old times leads to decision (Bert urging / Matt relenting) to go out on one last exploration trip tomorrow.
ACT 2:
INT./EXT. CONVENIENCE STORE – DAY
NEW PLAN: Morning – Matt & Bert are getting supplies at convenience store / sandwiches / water. Matt’s doing this trip is to appease his dad, but really it’s to avoid the task he’s there to do.
EXT. BOAT RENTAL PLACE – DAY
Boat rental & embark on their final adventure together …
EXT. BOAT ON LAKE – DAY
PLAN IN ACTION: Calm day on the water. No sign of the creature – It’s futile / Matt’s not as enthusiastic but keeps going for Bert’s sake. But better head toward where he lives… Rattlesnake Island / Squally Point.
Searching as they go… Arrive at island.
EXT. RATTLESNAKE ISLAND – DAY
TE 2: There – going to have lunch on the island. Gets close / drops anchor / throws pack over to land and cellphone and cigarettes fall out mid-air and drop into the water. Matt dives in after the phone, but it’s trashed. Has lunch on island.
EXT. BOAT AT ISLAND – DAY
MIDWAY TURNING POINT: Boat motor won’t start again. Struggles with it – no luck. Someone will come by, but no…
EXT. RATTLESNAKE ISLAND – NIGHT
Matt and Bert spend the night on island.
ACT 3:
EXT. RATTLESNAKE ISLAND – MORNING
RETHINK EVERYTHING: They wake in morning to storm squall blowing through. Quick rain with thunder and lightning – dangerous here in the summer! Matt is starting to be put to the challenge by events he can’t control.
EXT. RATTLESNAKE ISLAND – DAY
NEW PLAN: Engine still won’t start… more criticism from Bert. They’re gonna have to hoof it!
EXT. RATTLESNAKE ISLAND / LAKE – DAY
Matt and Bert swim across the short distance from Rattlesnake Island to shore. Long walk ahead, heading north toward Kelowna…
EXT. LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
TE 3: Not long after they start off, they see that lightning started a fire up on the mountain above – it’s starting to come down. Must go faster. Smoke increasing. Bert knows how much danger they could soon be in.
Getting smokier / fire is moving faster than they are and is getting closer.
EXT. LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
Matt waves to water-bomber / helicopter but isn’t seen.
EXT. LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
TURNING POINT: Matt falls/slides down ravine – twists ankle. Just a sprain, hopefully. Bert encourages him. Matt manages to climb back up and out. Has to use a stick to walk.
EXT. LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
TE 4: Matt struggles, perseveres, and realizes he has become much closer to his dad through the adversity they’ve faced.
ACT 4:
EXT. LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
CLIMAX: They come to the worst challenge yet: their path is blocked by fire – there’s nowhere else to go! Is this the end? Matt and Bert are gonna have to swim around a section of land.
EXT. LAKE / LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
TE 5: Matt and Bert swim around the section of land on fire then get back to shore, hopefully past the worst of it. In the water Matt sees something he can’t explain.
EXT. LAKE SHORELINE – DAY
Ashore, Matt and Bert talk about what they saw, and Matt is re-opened to believing and now finally understands his dad.
EXT. LAKESHORE ROAD – DAY
Matt decides to change his life, stay in the family house, and follow his dreams in the wine industry. Finally get to end of Lakeshore Road, struggling along, but now at peace with each other / their bond fully healed.
EXT. LAKESHORE ROAD – DAY
RESOLUTION: They encounter an emergency vehicle / park Ranger helping ensure everyone’s evacuated from the fire. Ranger helps Matt into the passenger seat and they head off… There was no one else with him – Matt was alone the whole time, and now is going to follow his dreams.
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PETER BIRDSONG’S HIGH SPEED BEAT SHEET
WHAT I LEARNED: High-speed writing! This is a game changer for me. I hope it stays that way. I never thought I could have a beat sheet like this ready so soon!
EXT. YACHT – DAY
PROLOGUE: A sail backlight by a rising sun fills with air. Voice Over of Carly explaining the one direction a sailboat can’t go — up wind. This causes the boat to stall and is called “In Irons.”
—— ACT 1 ——
EXT. SCHOOL – DAY
Opening: The bell rings but Carly’s busy composing her first selfie of the day. Classmates rush past her to make it to class on time. Approaching her class, she notices the principal and her teacher standing just outside. Their faces are grim. They tell her there’s been an accident. What follows is a montage of events ending at her Father’s funeral.
INT. HOME – DAY
Inciting Incident: Getting her husbands affairs in order, Carly’s mother discovers the boat purchase, and that the new yacht is near completion. They travel to Europe.
INT. PLANE – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Something here about the boat, and speculating why he bought it. Carly hates the ocean. “I hate the beach.” >> puts in earbuds.
EXT. SHIPYARD – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: First time seeing/touring the boat. A family photo hangs inside, by request of Carly’s father.
I/E. YACHT – DAY
EVENT: The yacht builder takes them on a demo cruise to show off the boat. Carly, tries to upload a selfie, but discovers she doesn’t have service.
EXT. MARINA – DAY
EVENT: A coworker of Carly’s mom (a member of the board) expresses interest in the boat, but needs it brought back to the states. Mom sees an opportunity to influence the vote for the next CEO. The board member already supports her, but maybe he’d be willing to push the rest.
INT. HOTEL – NIGHT
EVENT: Carly’s mom speaks to builder about delivering boat. This doesn’t work out. She decides to sail it there herself and bring Carly along.
EXT. SHIPYARD – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Carly protests!
I/E. YACHT – DAY
Turning Point: They set sail from the harbor.
—— ACT 2 ——
INT. CARLY’S CABIN – DAY
New Plan: Carly commits to locking herself away the entire trip. Mom tries keeping her penthouse-like decorations from crashing to the deck as the boat rocks.
INT. CARLY’S CABIN – DAY
Plan In Action: The confines of a yacht cabin wear on Carly. She’s feeling sea-sick, and struggles against the constant rocking.
I/E. YACHT – DAY
EVENT: Carly comes out. Topside hasn’t faired much better as she sees her mother’s things are all over the place. The salon is a wreck. Her mom, asks her to take the helm. At the helm, she finds herself completely lost and unsure of anything. Autopilot does the job, but she’s uncertain of anything she’s looking at.
I/E. YACHT – NIGHT
EVENT: Dinner is very humble — canned food — with little talking. Carly discovers her mom’s book on sailing. She takes it to her own cabin.
I/E. YACHT – DAY
PLACE HOLDER: The first time Carly can’t see land. She’s surrounded by water.
I/E. YACHT – DAY
Midpoint Turning Point: The wind has died down and they are adrift at sea. Not wanting to use their gas they find themselves stuck. Carly blows up. “YOU’RE NEVER AROUND! I DON’T NEED YOU”
—— ACT 3 ——
EXT. YACHT – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Mom alone outside. Asking for help from her late husband. The wind returns.
INT. YACHT – EVENING
EVENT: Carly sits in the salon. Only the red nightlights are on. On the horizon she sees a storm, and watches it. For the first time she tries to take a picture that doesn’t include herself.
INT. YACHT – DAY
Rethink Everything: Carly exploring the boat. Learning. She’s halfway through the book, skimming through different sections. She’s testing herself with a line to tie certain knots. She finds a sailing chart at the nav station and opens it. She peeks at the Atlantic — the trip they are on — and then unfolds the map further. There is SO much more out there. Her trip seems so small!
EXT. YACHT – DAY
EVENT: Putting what she has learned to use, she hoists a sail on her own. It grabs the wind and feels powerful. She photographs it. Mom watches from inside.
EXT. YACHT – DAY
New Plan: They try fishing, and make a catch! Carly takes the helm as her mother wrestles in a monster!
EXT. YACHT – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Gutting a large fish! Laughter, but gross!
INT. YACHT – NIGHT
Turning Point: Huge Failure/Major Shift: Carly’s mom reveals the buyer; a board member in her company. He’s offered cash and she’s hoping this seals the vote for her to become the next CEO. Carly lies saying she hates the salt water — pretending she doesn’t care.
—— Act 4 ——
I/E. YACHT – DAY
EVENT: Land ho! They prepare the boat for the marina. Carly gets her first notification on her phone. She’s flooded with unanswered texts and social media notifications. It’s too much, and she turns her phone off.
I/E. YACHT – DAY
Climax/Ultimate Expression of the Conflict: Carly forgives and asks for forgiveness.
EXT. MARINA – DAY
Resolution: They reach the shore. Carly asks for a loan to buy the boat.
EXT. YACHT – DAY
Epilogue: Carly has been sailing for a while. She’s barefoot. Her skin is freckled and tan. Her hair is sun-bleached and decorated with beads from whatever island she has been to along the way. The next marina is ahead and she’s preparing the lines and fenders; singlehanded. She calls out behind her “Okay!” As if she’s ready.
Her mother is at the helm. Confident and beaming.
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Janeen’s High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned doing this assignment is that my story (from the Action class) is morphing as I rewrite the beats for this assignment. It went fast, though, so I’m following the high speed writing rules. I also found that I am loathe to not put action details in when they are clear to me and I’m likely to forget them. I need to learn to not do that. I’m not ready to “kill my darlings” in a beat sheet and simply summarize the beat. I’ll regret it later, I’m sure.
ACT 1
INT. NICK’S APT – MORNING
Nick relives the failed military mission in the war zone, Grizzly helps him morph it to a love scene and then wakes him.
INT. MALL – DAY
A rogue FBI agent accompanies the President’s parents and their Secret Service agent (Ivy) to the mall.
INT. MALL – CONTINUOUS
Nick recognizes Ivy as the woman from his dream.INT. MALL – CONTINUOUS
Nick sees the mercenary draw a gun, Ivy get shot, parents being abducted. He goes into rescue mode and kicks butt. Then he grabs the FBI agent’s radio and tries to sort it out.
INT. MALL – CONTINUOUS
Nick sends the parents to a mall entrance, gets his go-bag, (maybe fights more bad guys), and escapes with the parents in his car.
ACT 2
EXT. NICK’S CAR – DAY
Nick realizes they are being followed, does a daring car chase which wrecks the bad guys’ cars and decides he needs a new plan.
INT. MALL – DAY
The rogue FBI agent (Dasher) rises from the rubble, bruised and beaten, and calls the FBI to get help finding the parents by tracking Santa (Nick) who he says kidnapped the parents.
INT. FBI HQ – DAY
The FBI launches an all-out search – APBs, BOLOs, whatever – to find Nick so they can find the kidnapped parents.
INT. MALL – AFTERNOON
Ivy, rising from the rubble, tells the mall cop her vest took the bullet and she hit her head on a kiosk. Asks what happened. Finds Nick has the parents.
INT. DOG SITTING APT – DAY
Nick gets the parents clothes from a client’s closet and makes them change everything since he hears about trackers in their gear on the FBI radio.
EXT. CAR LOT – DAY
Nick leaves his old car near his apartment and uses cash to buy an old clunker (with no electronics) at a used car lot since his car and plates have been id’d (again, via the FBI radio)
EXT. DOG SITTING APT – AFTERNOON
Nick hustles the parents into the car, tells them he’s taking them to his great aunt’s lake cottage — no phones, trackers, GPS, etc. They should be safe.
INT. TERRORIST’S HQ – AFTERNOON
INT. DASHER’S CAR – AFTERNOON
Intercut as necessary. On the phone, Dasher lies and says he has the parents. Intercut with Terrorist’s HQ, he tells his carload of mercenaries that they’ll do have them since they know where they are holed up – Nick’s apartment.
INT. IVY’S CAR – AFTERNOON
Ivy calls Joy at the SS office, has her track down Nick. She watches him buy the new car, but loses him in traffic.
INT. TERRORIST’S HQ – AFTERNOON
INT. WHITE HOUSE – AFTERNOON
Intercut a phone call as needed. Interrupting international negotiations, the terrorists call the president, make their demands.
INT. WHITE HOUSE – CONTINUOUS
An aide who wants the negotiations to continue, tells the president that his parents are safe the the terrorists have his parents’ doubles. The FBI are all over it.
INT. DASHER’S CAR – EVENING
Dasher, tracking the FBI radio that Nick has, follow him cross country, knowing the president’s parents must be alive and well.
INT. NICK’S 2ND CAR – NIGHT
The parents need a bio break and food so they stop at a gas station to fuel up and use the bathroom in the convenience store. Nick is careful.
EXT. GAS STATION – NIGHT
Dasher’s car pulls into the lot. He and the mercenaries enter the convenience store.
Ivy has been tracking the parents using her own methods — finding/following Nick, unsure if he’s a good or a bad guy. She sees Dasher and his goons enter the C-store and deflates the tires and has their car disabled. She puts a tracker on Nick’s car.
INT. CONVENIENCE STORE – NIGHT
Nick battles the agents at a rest stop. Again, Nick defeats those who followed them and escapes.
EXT. CONVENIENCE STORE – NIGHT
Nick a tracker on his car (put on by the SS agent) and escapes. Ivy follows him onto the highway.ACT 3
INT. NICK’S 2ND CAR – LATER
Nick pulls into an abandoned farmstead, alarming the parents. He says he needs a bio-break. Grizzly is in the car. Soon after Nick leaves, Ivy taps on the window and they roll it down. Delighted, Ivy tells them about the FBI radio’s tracker. Grizzly jumps out to pee. The parent tell Ivy about Nick’s cottage plan, Grizzly comes back in and Ivy leaves, saying she’ll see them at the cottage. Nick comes back to the car, asks Grizzly if she needs a break and she doesn’t. When they get back on the road, the parents tell him about the radio tracker. Nick says they need another plan, but tells Grizzly the parents are alright.
New Plan: Trade cars again, change clothes again. When Nick goes for phones and food, he misses having the folks around. Grizzly pees on the FBI radio, but Nick stupidly keeps it. They go to the lake house, When they get to the cottage, the SS agent is already there and they fight, eventually the parents defuse the situation and they all join forces. They hide out, get word to the President on a private line the parents have. Nick sees how kick-ass Ivy is when they fight at the cabin, how much she cares for the parents and that even Grizzly likes her and he allows himself to fall for her.
EXT. SMALL TOWN HOUSE – NIGHT
Nick sees an older car for sale, stops, buys it with cash, makes them change clothes again, this time in ridiculous Christmas outfits. Grizzly pees on the FBI radio, but Nick keeps it??
INT. TERRORIST’S HQ – MORNING
Leader says the FBI agent was an idiot, heard how he screwed up at gas station. Orders hit men to clean up everyone at the house — they know where it is. (We don’t know yet how they know)
EXT. LAKE HOUSE – MORNING
They arrive at the lake house. Nick hustles them in. Grizzly is excited (happy) to see Ivy hiding behind something and Nick sees her when she’s trying to get Grizzly to leave her. They fight, holiday style, with the parents trying to stop Nick and Ivy merely defending herself since she knows he’s a good guy now. Once calmed down, Ivy says she needs to call the President on the parent’s private number to let them know they are ok. She immediately realizes that she has her own phone on her. She’s screwed up big time.
ACT 4
INT. LAKE HOUSE – DAY
INT. WHITE HOUSE – DAY
Nick tells her to call the President and fill him in. He tells them to hole up until he can get it all sorted.
EXT. LAKE – DAY
Nick is in a kayak with Ivy’s phone. He takes it to the middle of a lake, sets it afloat in a milk bottle and goes back to the lake house.
INT. LAKE HOUSE – DAY
Ivy says Rudy needs his HBP med. He says they need to move and grabs a couple of keys from his aunt’s key rack, telling the parents to fill in the rack with other keys. He hands a set of keys to Ivy and tells her to look for meds in the house next door, but don’t get caught.
INT. LAKE HOUSE 2 – DAY
Ivy raids the medicine chest for meds and leaves.INT. LAKE HOUSE 3 – DAY
Nick raids the refrigerator and pantry, putting things in a grocery sack and takes keys from the key rack. He leaves.
INT. LAKE HOUSE – DAY
Nick returns, tells them to grab anything they think will be useful. They are going to another house.
EXT. DINGHY – DAY
Bundled up and dressed as Santa and his elves, the parents and Ivy get in a dinghy. They hear car doors and Nick runs down the iced over canal, pulling the dinghy. Later, we see Ivy pulling the dinghy and finally both of them. They stop at a boat ramp, help the parents out. A snowmobiling group shows up, they ask for a lift and ride to Lake House 4 (or thereabouts).
INT. LAKE HOUSE 4 – LATER
Ivy is cleaning up the kitchen after a meal. Nick is sleeping like a baby, Grizzly cuddled between his shoulder and ear. Holly and Rudy doze in chairs. Holly catches some sleep too.
INT. LAKE HOUSE 4 – EVENING
Holly turns the TV on. The TV says the search is going house to house. The TV shows the assassins intermingled with FBI agents. They have to hurry. They set about creating McGyver- isms with whatever holiday stuff they can find.
EXT. LAKE HOUSE 4 – NIGHT
The assassins show up. The ultimate Christmas weapon fight rages with Ivy and Nick doing the heavy hitting outside the house, leaving one after another of the assassins trussed up like turkeys. Grizzly tries to help, but it looks like she’s been killed. Nick flies into a rage, undeterred by anything the assassins throw at him. They are successful. Nick jingles another set of keys. There is another house yet.
INT. LAKE HOUSE 5 – MORNING
Ivy has breakfast cooking, the WH calls to tell them all is well. They should meet a private jet at the airport – with clothes.
INT. PRIVATE JET – DAY
Holly and Rudy are in regular clothes, but Nick is dressed as Santa again. Ivy comes out of a dressing room dressed up beautifully and says sorry they didn’t bring anything that would fit him.
The captain hands him a phone – the president wants him to join his parents’ security detail. He says sure. All celebrate, Ivy and Nick kiss, the parents wink as though this was their plan all along.
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Andrea Cabañas, High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned from this is to remember how simple it is to make a beat sheet. I was even tempted to put in extra scenes (more than I already added), but I held back and worked with what needed to be done at the moment. This creation process has been crucial for my development as a screenwriter.
ACT 1
INT. BEACH HOUSE BEDROOM – DAY – DREAM
OPENING: Zoe dreams of having sex with a woman; her father watches them holding a bible in his hands. She wakes up with an orgasm.
TE 1: Zoe battles with her feelings toward Paula while James sleeps at her side.
EXT./INT. KATRINA’S HOUSE – DAY
James says goodbye. A new job proposal is cancelled. Katrina reacts, tells Zoe this happens because she’s not good enough.
PLACEHOLDER: Zoe tells Georgia that she told James she loves him. We learn Zoe’s a bit ashamed of being bisexual.
EXT. CAFE – DAY
Zoe, Georgia and Paula meet. Paula encourages Zoe to start her own business and helps her financially.
INT. KATRINA’S HOUSE – DAY
Katrina rages, knowing her daughter is having sex with another woman. Zoe denies.
TE 1: Katrina yells at Zoe between arguments showing her dominant power over the daughter
INT. PAULA’S OFFICE – DAY
Zoe accepts Paula’s help, and both make plans for Zoe’s website. Zoe gains confidence and celebrates with Georgia in a pub.
INT. KATRINA’S HOUSE – DAY
INCITING INCIDENT: Police investigators go to Katrina’s house and question Zoe about Paula, who has connections with a drug dealer from the Sinaloa Cartel and is in Australia.
PLACEHOLDER: Zoe talks to Georgia, who’s speechless but also excited. She had never met a drug dealer before.
EXT./INT. RESTAURANT – DAY
TURNING POINT: Zoe meets with the Mexican drug dealer Juan, who introduces himself to her as Matias, a new client.
TE: Matias (aka Juan) pretends he’s a client looking for a project for his house
PLACEHOLDER: Paula sees Zoe having lunch with Matias/Juan. Paula needs to act and protect Zoe.
INT. PAULA’S HOUSE – DAY
Juan talks to Paula; wants revenge after leaving the jail. Paula owns him money.
PLACEHOLDER: Juan gets into Paula’s house unnoticed, and when Zoe leaves after a loving night, he threatens Paula of using Zoe as bait.
ACT 2
INT. KATRINA’S HOUSE – ZOE’S BEDROOM – NIGHT
NEW PLAN – with Matias/Juan’s project, Zoe tells her mother she’ll leave home soon. Katrina starts to blackmail Zoe whenever she can emotionally. Juan pressures Paula.
PLACE HOLDER: Georgia’s trying to make her final gender confirmation surgery, and Zoe wants to help her financially? Act 1?
INT. JUAN’S HOUSE – DAY
Zoe goes to oversee Matias’ house. He arrives and invites her for dinner. He seduces her, but she leaves.
INT. CAFE – DAY
Zoe tells Georgia she feels great and tells her that Matias is flirting.
PLACE HOLDER: Georgia meets Matias/Juan before (?). She asks about Paula. It makes Zoe get confused about her feelings; being 35 years old, she needs to ‘settle’.
INT. JUAN’S HOUSE – BEDROOM – NIGHT
PLAN IN ACTION – Zoe feels confident and sleeps with Juan.
PLACEHOLDER: Days later, Zoe goes on a weekend trip with James, but an accident happens, and they need to turn back. Weakened, Zoe can’t leave the house much. Katrina takes the opportunity to persuade her daughter to put her ‘freedom project’ aside.
PLACEHOLDER: James picks up Zoe, Paula appears suddenly. Zoe’s distress, they argue, and she leaves with James. Juan causes the accident to warn Paula (?). A mixture of feelings. She discovers her feelings for James are dissipating.
INT. PAULA’S OFFICE – DAY
MIDPOINT TURNING POINT– Juan pressures Paula and threatens to use Zoe as bait. Juan gives another chance to Paula: either pay one million dollars in cash or facilitate an entry for a cocaine shipment at the airport using her connections.
ACT 3
INT. KATRINA’S HOUSE – DAY
RETHINK EVERYTHING – Katrina changes; she suddenly becomes a loving mother and persuades Zoe to forget about the plan to leave her. Zoe is touched. Matias (aka Juan) puts aside his project.
PLACEHOLDER: Juan has other plans for Zoe to threaten Paula.
INT. GEORGIA’S ART STUDIO – DAY
A NEW PLAN – Zoe’s convinced that staying with her mom is the best. Georgia tries to convince Zoe to keep ahead with her project.
INT. KATRINA’S HOUSE – DAY
TURNING POINT: HUGE FAILURE/MAJOR SHIFT – Zoe and Katrina are kidnapped in their own house; when Georgia is there, the guys knock Georgia down, left between life and death for Zoe’s despair. In captivity, Zoe’s shocked, knowing that Matias is Juan.
TE: Zoe stands up to protect Georgia when she’s verbally abused/bullied for being trans.
ACT 4
INT. ABANDONED HOUSE – DAY
CLIMAX/ULTIMATE EXPRESSION OF THE CONFLICT – Juan tells Zoe that Paula will be killed as soon as he receives the cargo he’s waiting for. Paula manages to release the cocaine from the airport but traps Juan. Katrina argues with Zoe. Zoe almost kills Juan. The police seize the house. Paula vanishes.
TE: Juan hits Katrina and Zoe, bringing up memories of her violent childhood. Zoe rages to protect her mother.
INT. ZOE’S STUDIO – DAY
RESOLUTION: Katrina becomes the mother Zoe has always missed; Zoe forgives her mother. Katrina and Georgia help Zoe pack her stuff and go to her new apartment.
TE: Zoe receives one million dollars in cash with a note from Paula. She secretly enjoys what she reads.
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Vic Valleau Assignment #6-7 High Speed Bat Sheet
What I learned: Sailing in uncharted waters was my experience of this. My story is about trust so I Trusted the directions and simply did the assignment.
Pro: CONCEPT: Doesn’t trust men.
ACT 1 SETS UP AND SEES OLD WAYS.
1. Uses sex to dominate men, flashes her breasts, open necklines in business dinner with several ogling men. Talking nonsense, just to keep eyes and attention on her.
2. Meets JT, too attracted to him. He’s on a date, she pulls him into ladies room, whispers a sexually propositions him.
3. Dialogue Pro: This is your lucky day! He: Every day is my lucky day! She: I’ve heard, you have party clothes? He don’t worry, I’m circumsized. She hears he’s sterilized.
4. FLASH FORWARD SCENE WITH GF. Scene with gf arguing with her: How can you trust him? you can’t even trust yourself to wait for right man. You seduce any good looking man you see. Back to scene:
5. They have hurried sex, in ladies stall, women look under door, sees his business shoes. Nancy is sitting, straddling his lap to hide her feet from onlookers.
6. She wants more. Gaggle of curious women come and go in restroom. He’s terrified when his date comes in, complaining about his absence, telling her friend she plans to seduce him tonight.
7. He loses his erection from fear.
8. His date hears them struggling with no erection, having sex in ladies room, offended, leaves.
9. He leaves follows but loses her.
10. Nancy comes back in ladies room with another man for sex, to satisfy her needs, where he failed.
11. INCITING INCIDENT She Pees on stick, tests pregnant. That bastard, he said he was sterilized or was it circumsized?
12. MEETS HIM. TRIES TO TRAP HIM INTO FATHERHOOD with DNA test that backfires. He’s father.
13. ACT 2 CHALLENGE OLD WAYS
14. INT. GYM – DAY
15. Buddy talks. Guys are muscling up. Not enough gym workouts for two women in one night! I want to have sex and propose to her tonight, but now this.
16. He’s a lawyer, she’s a visionary medium and artist but earns money by corporate consultations as a psychic visionary, has gallery showing to connect with big wigs.
17. He asks forcefully for 10<sup>th</sup> time, gets swab of his DNA, tests prove baby’s his. She hides it, Doesn’t tell JT. Pushes to date him more sex but he’s courting another girlfriend and several opportunities.
18. Be honest, do you really know what you want in a man?
19. GF narrates as we watch: Reality is: Women in a bar hit on the same lucky sap over and over.
20. GF talk: You don’t stand a chance landing him, unless you just offer easy no strings sex in ladies room. Another woman is waiting in front of the line. Don’t fool yourself. Use those visionary medium powers to help yourself get a man, the right man.
21. Admit your mistakes, see other women’s mistakes. How are you different? I’m not, women in love are fallible creatures. Driven by emotion, not rational, logical but feelings of the moment. How else can I live, wporks for me, at little, atr least.
22. Do you want marriage, family? What do you vision for yourself. What makes you happy, enthusiastic?
23. Brainstorm to have your life perfect, exactly how you imagined it to be, living your dream.
24. Nancy: I tried and I failed. I’m too complicated, never understand myself or what I want beyond giving into impulse, like chocolate all the time.
25. TURNING POINT
26. I’m weak worthless, no reason to go on.
27. Suicide attempt? Are you living a life worth living? What gives you motivation, passion, desire to live fully
28. His old ways are to philander, decides to focus on her.
29. her old ways are to philander, decides to continue, despite his objections he wants to be faithful and only her, only them together.
30. She throws his too many dates history in his face, when they’re in coffee shop, three dated women come up to them.
Baby scheme fails.
31. HAS ABORTION.
He finds out upset, even though she hides it from him, then pretends doesn’t know who father is..
ACT 3 WITH MIDPOINT CHANGE, OLD WAYS DROP OFF, PROFOUND MOMENTS LEAD TO NEW WAYS
32. Abortion? Or better in Act 2?
33. Watching and condemning JT breakdown over abortion,
34. Tells him test results were unclear, doesn’t really know it’s his. He believes , thinks, knows she has another boyfriend so she’s lies to get away from him.
35. He spies on her, looking for evidence of another boyfriend, cigarettes.
36. What are new ways that come from profound moments?
37. She cares he doesn’t believe her.
38. She sends flowers and apology, asking for his trust.
39. She doesn’t trust him fully yet but each tries new ways to discover, develop and earn trust.
40. (insert trying to trust scene)
41. Insert new ways to earn trust.
ACT 4 TEST CHANGE IN CHARACTER, PROVE THE NEW WAYS
WHAT IS HER CHANGE? TRUSTS MEN? FIRST TRUST HERSELF.
She listens as Friends push marriage. She comes back,
42. She gets close then moves away, flip flops,
43. He reverts back to insensitive.
44. She hardens to men’s efforts.
45. His best friend interest in her ripens as gap between them widens.
46. Best friend courts her flowers, gets in fight with JT.
47. JT says she’s a slut, very divisive to them.
48. JT apologizes but she’s out with best friend who’s proposing.
49. NOTE: build this bf character from beginning.
50. Uses her new learning to ask questions on their date.
51. Likes his answers so She Gets committed to another man.
HIM
JT CHARACTER: Playboy with ideas of marriage
1. Act 1
2. INT. RESTAURANT – NIGHT
3. On Setup blind easy date, he’ not attentive.
4. JT TABLE – CONTINUOUS
Date is flustered, goes to ladies room. He flirts with waitress, asks for better table near Nancy’s table.
5. Fascinated, he watches, admires skill of
6. her skin show to corporate men.
7. Date calls his phone but on silent, and too busy watching the Nancy show.
8. His date comes back, can’t find him, leaves restaurant.
9. Nancy walks by dangles her hand on him, whispers something.
10. Act 2
11. INT. COFFEE SHOP
He overhears her tell lllgf she is pregnant 6 weeks
12. Gets her pregnant
13. Claims she tricked him.
14. Act 3
15. INT MENS LOCKER ROOM – NIGHT
16. Claims its not his, leaves.
17. She wakes up, begs to get him back.
18. Act 4 THERAPIST OFFICE/ BAR/ SAILBOAT???
19. He hardens.
20. Blames her for pregnancy
21. He challenges her to show positive change in attitude toward others.
22. She fails in his mind, finds a better man, becomes loving and emotional master.
ADD these transformational
events to your four act structure -
Subject line: Daisy Ridgway Khalifa’s High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned doing this assignment: In creating the beat sheet, I have learned to just keep going, to put my head down and to write. I have also learned to believe that things will fall together, and that, out of nowhere, it gets exciting. But, I have to take the stress and the “dips” along with the joy.
Commitment to my fellow classmates: I will intentionally use the High Speed Writing Rules throughout the rest of this program.
Act 1
EXT. LOS ANGELES – DAWN
Opening: The Northridge Earthquake of 1994 strikes Los Angeles.
INT. LOS ANGELES – HOUSE OVER THE OCEAN (PINECLIFF) – DAWN – CONTINUOUS
Key Scene 1: We see a family flee an oceanfront house, known as PINECLIFF, that is rupturing from the ground up as they escape. TE: Major earthquake in 1994 causes protagonist’s childhood home, Pinecliff, to get severely damaged.
INT. PINECLIFF – DAY – ABOUT 20 YEARS EARLIER – 1973
At the same house 20 years earlier, we meet MIA PAULEY, 8, who is saying a sad farewell to a friend/her caretaker, TINA, while her parents, BRUCE PAULEY and KATRINA PAULEY look on sadly.
EXT. PINECLIFF – GARDEN – SAME
TE/Key Scene 2/Inciting Incident: Little Mia Pauley meets CHARLES LAUGHTON, who also lived in the house but 25 years earlier, in 1947, in the garden of the house. They are from different points in time. It is NOT the first time they have met*.
EXT. SIDEWALK – 1973
Little Mia leaves Charles and goes next door by climbing over the wall in the yard. She interacts with neighbors. Meet CARLOS TOBALINA and his daughter, LINDA.
EXT. PINECLIFF – GARDEN – CONTINUOUS
Charles puzzles over the child, can’t tell where she disappeared to, and at the same time hears his name called out. He returns to the house.
EXT./INT. PINECLIFF – DAY – 1947 (CHARLES’ WORLD)
Follow Charles back into his world. He walks onto the same terrace but it is the late 1940s and is decorated beautifully, according to Charles- arts, sculpture, books. He is greeted by his wife, ELSA LANCHESTER and his manager, PAUL GREGORY.
EXT./INT. PINECLIFF – DAY – SAME
Charles is greeting students, SHELLY WINTERS, ROBERT RYAN, among others, as they arrive for acting class he teaches at Pinecliff.
INT. PINECLIFF – DAY – CONTINUOUS
PLACEHOLDER: Charles and Elsa have a run-in over parked cars and one of his students, as Elsa is trying to leave for the Turnabout Theater for her work. Charles takes a lot out on Elsa.
INT. MIA PAULEY’S APARTMENT – WASHINGTON, DC – MORNING – 1997
TE/Key Scene 3/Protagonist reacts: Mia, 33, who lives as an adult in Washington DC, is woken up by a ringing phone, and told by her sister, CARRIE PAULEY, of the damage to her house.
INT. MIA’S WORKPLACE – WASHINGTON, DC – MORNING
Meet Mia’s colleagues, her work life and Ian Gardner, 34, a close friend and work colleague on whom she relies to help her navigate this odyssey, as he is just quirky enough to believe her—and he loves her.
INT. GEORGETOWN BAR – NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Mia tells Ian the stories about the encounters (plural!). We glimpse her shame about her family. There are a few flashbacks, i.e. the two Christmas Parties; the garage sale; and when they both realized they had to move from Pinecliff.
INT. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS -DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Ian, a very good researcher by trade, teaches Mia how to navigate the Library of Congress. They research Charles and Elsa and find all sorts of papers, and Mia finds some curious clues. Ian, of course, pulls all of the Elvis documents he can find and veers off into numerous directions b/c he loves this stuff.
INT. MIA’S APARTMENT – NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Mia and Ian are getting to work on researching Charles, while also smoking weed, talking, laughing and probably falling in love. They learn that Charles hosted an Ed Sullivan show when Elvis was guest, and Ian asks Mia to ask Charles for an autograph.
EXT. WASHINGTON, D.C. – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Mia’s “lover”, JOHNNY GATTO, a married man, asks her to accompany him to California. She accepts in order to visit Pinecliff.
EXT. PINECLIFF GARDEN – DAY
TE/Key Scene 4/Turning Point-Lock in the Journey: When Mia visits the abandoned house, she encounters Charles again as an adult. She is scared and flees, but knows there is a reason for these cosmic encounters and that she must talk with him.
Act 2
EXT. PINECLIFF – DAY
Key Scene 1/Reaction to turning Point/New Plan: Mia prepares for seeing Charles again-fix this scene.
INT. PINECLIFF – DAY – 1947
PLACEHOLDER: Meanwhile, Charles and Elsa are being told, again, by a geologist, MERLE PRICE, that they must move because of the threat of earthquakes, as well as mudslides, like the one they just went through. No insurance company will insure their valuable paintings, art collection, antiques, nothing.
EXT/INT. LOS ANGELES LOCATIONS – DAY – 1997
PLACEHOLDER (s): Mia sees old friends in LA; she goes to library to research Charles; she does some investigating; she talks to her mother; she encounters an older Carlos Tobalina, the former neighbor.
EXT. PINECLIFF GARDEN – DAY
Key Scene/Plan in Action, Executed: Charles and Mia meet again days later and their encounter changes fate. Mia tells him things. She convinces Charles she is from the future. She asks for Elvis autograph, “because you are going to guest-host a show for Ed Sullivan”. Charles has been so happy at Pinecliff, teaching, enjoying nature, embarking on a reading tour, that he longs to stay. He gets the skinny on earthquake history.
INT. MIA’S LOS ANGELES HOTEL – NIGHT
Key Scene/Not only does it fail, but/PLACEHOLDER: Mia and Ian talk by phone. Ian is not as interested in their project, given she is with Gatto. Mia promises to get the Elvis autograph
EXT. PINECLIFF – NIGHT – 1947
TE/Key Scene/Midpoint /Turning Point: Charles is convinced and he decides not to move from Pinecliff, based on Mia’s information about earthquakes.
INT. MIA’S HOUSE – WASHINGTON, D.C. – MORNING – 1997
TE/MIDPOINT: Mia is woken up by a ringing phone and a call from her sister, Carrie, but when she wakes up, she is in a whole different reality. She learns she is even in a little house that she owns. Carrie, sober, is a successful industry agent. Mia is in DC, but she has to cobble together how she got there, and why, and learn what she does for a living. Mia is seeing a whole new existence for herself but is aware of her previous life; she must manage it with composure. What did Charles and she do?
Act 3
EXT. WASHINGTON, D.C. – DAY – 1997
Key Scene 1/Rethink Everything: Mia sorts our her new reality, and while she actually likes her own new outcome and her family seems to be in a better place, she has different job, and different people and friends in her life. Funny sequence as she figures out where she works, and how much money she has in the bank.
INT. MIA’S WORKPLACE – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Mia is living in a new reality, but something is amiss, and it only gets worse. There is no Ian, and she is in a different workplace. Mia discovers she is an influential fundraiser in Washington, with her own company. She can do what she wants.
INT. MIA’S HOUSE – NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Mia talks with family. They are all well, kooky, but well. Dad is woo-woo. Mother is a cat lady who cooks very well and sells her sauces. Amusing.
EXT. GEORGETOWN BAR – WASHINGTON, D.C
PLACEHOLDER: Mia returns to some the haunts she knows. They are different. It is as if she was never born, but she is known and has friends—just to different people in different places. Among other new/altered cultural phenomena, she sees that John Lennon is performing with Mark Knopfler. And that Teddy Pendergrass is the biggest star ever. She has to find Charles, but has no idea how, until she goes back to Pinecliff.
PLACEHOLDER/Key Scene 2/New Plan: Mia is deciding what to do. Leave it all alone and go one living this incredibly functional, successful life, or return to the old life? She decides to go to Library again, where she and Ian did research.
INT. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS – DAY
Key Scene 3/Things go Well Until: In doing some research she also comes to discover horrifying things. Mia never lived in the oceanfront house in the new reality; how will she correct things and ever find Charles? And, worst of all, Charles died alone. Elsa moved out of Pinecliff, while Charles stayed—and taught. He never went on reading tour (which earned him a lot of money). Paul Gregory moved on to other clients. Charles never directed Night of the Hunter, and he was never in Advise and Consent. *(maybe show this in scenes as she is researching).
INT. MIA’S WORKPLACE – DAY
Mia “asks permission” to go to California. Her employees think she is acting weird but they are focused on work. They say she will miss a big pitch. Mia asks: “Well, how much am I needed?” Amusing, but she leaves.
EXT. LOS ANGELES – DAY
Placeholder(s): Mia returns to LA. Sees//or at least looks for the same old friends, neighbors. So much is different.
EXT. PINECLIFF – DAY
TE/Key Scene 4/Turning Point/Lowest Low: Mia gets to Pinecliff, which is still abandoned but it looks different. When Mia finally figures out how to reach Charles*, they spar over what to do. Charles won’t move and Mia appears to be shut off from Charles. (Is it still 1947? Figure this out) but Mia kind-of likes her new life too?
Act 4
EXT. LOS ANGELES – DAY
PLACEHOLDER/Key Scene 1/Reaction to Turning Point: Mia has to decide what to do and force Charles’ hand. Scene: TK-something with Ian, his father, altering the other things Charles wants to alter.
EXT. PINECLIFF – DAY
Climax/Ultimate Expression of the Conflict: Mia figures out how to get to Charles and walks him through his life that won’t be, and what she saw versus the great legacy he is supposed to leave; and, when he asks, she tells him about how he died.
EXT/INT. LOS ANGELES – DAY – 1947
PLACEHOLDER/Climax: Charles decides what to do.
INT. MIA’S APARTMENT – MORNING
PLACEHOLDER: Mia is woken up by a ringing phone, her sister, Carrie. Carrie sounds loopy again, a relief to Mia, but still some things are different.
EXT/INT. LOS ANGELES – 1947
PLACEHOLDER/Resolution: Charles has moved from the house but, with Mia’s input, has made a few alterations to the universe…
EXT./INT. LOS ANGELES – 1960s to 1990s
PLACEHOLDER/Resolution/Denouement/New Status Quo: Montage/Graphic of newspaper items on Marilyn Monroe, Albert Finney, Laughton’s Night of the Hunter becoming one of the most revered films etc..
INT. NATIONAL MUSUEM OF NATURAL HISTORY – WASHINGTON, D.C. – 1997
PLACEHOLDER/Resolution/Denouement: …among them Mia has to sacrifice ever knowing Ian. Still, he seeks Ian out; he is a museum director, same wonderful guy, but a single father, a more mature man. She gives him autograph;
EXT. NATIONAL MALL – WASHINGTON, DC – 1997
PLACEHOLDER/New Status Quo: Ian chases after Mia as she leaves the museum. Birdseye view: He catches up to her, and they walk off across the National Mall together.
FADE TO BLACK
-
Don Thompson – Beat Sheet Draft I and II combined
What I learned from this assignment is: to work quickly and not be too concerned about quality at this point.
ACT I
FADE IN:
An image of the open sea. The camera SLOWY PANS UPWARD, and we see the HMS Avenger, circa 1790s.
PROLOGUE
EXT. ROYAL NAVY FRIGATE HMS AVENGER, NORTHERN FRANCE,
1797 – DAY
Captain Vere of the HMS Avenger looks through his telescope to the merchant ship ‘The Rights of Man’ and indicates his desire to obtain impressments (forced recruits) from her.
EXT. MAIN DECK – ‘THE RIGHTS OF MAN’ – SAME TIME
Captain James Smith of ‘The Rights of Man’ also looks through a telescope toward the HMS Avenger. He notes the ship is British and likely seeks recruits.
EXT. RIGHTS OF MAN – SAME TIME
Lt. Seymour of the Avenger takes a small boat to ‘The Rights of Man’, boards the ship, and states his purpose.
EXT. MAIN DECK – RIGHTS OF MAN – DAY
He finds two recruits: Billy Budd, a young man of 18 from Bristol, and Danskar, an African American from the Dutch West Indies. Billy is a striking young man – an ‘almost perfect physical specimen’ who is called ‘the peacemaker’ by Captain Smith because of his positive effect on the crew.
EXT. PINNANCE (SMALL BOAT) ON SIDE OF THE ‘RIGHTS OF MAN’ – DAY
Lt. Seymour takes Billy and Danskar back to HMS Avenger.
EXT. HMS AVENGER – SOME MINUTES LATER – DAY
Billy is greeted by the seventy-four or so men on the Avenger. He is asked to sign a document by Master-of-Arms Claggart that, because Billy is illiterate, he signs ‘X’.
Billy jokes with Claggart and the observing men automatically take a liking to Billy.
Danskar also signs the papers, but only after asking what he is signing. After Claggart explains, he signs his name as ‘Thomas Paine’ – the author of the book ‘The Rights of Man’.
Claggart asks his assistant SQUEAK to take the men to their hammocks on the lower deck.
INT. LOWER DECK – MOMENTS LATER
Squeak leads Danskar and Billy to their hammocks. Danskar’s hammock is in the rear, Billy’s near the middle.
INT. LOWER DECK – ANOTHER HAMMOCK – DAY
Squeak’s stick taps on the other hammock. It is Billy’s.
INT. CAPTAIN VERE’S QUARTERS – DAY
Claggart enters and tells the Captain about the new recruits.
BACK TO MID-SHIP.
Billy plays the Harmonica and all of the men listen. He sings them a song until Claggart breaks up the festivities, and takes Billy’s Harmonica from him.
INT. LOWER DECK – COMMON AREA – NIGHT
The men gather for their evening meal and Jenkins, in an attempt to assert his dominance, picks a fight with Billy. Billy stammers and Jenkins teases him. Billy wins the fight. Claggart looks them over, saying nothing.
Danskar give Billy a cross ‘for protection’.
EXT. MAIN DECK – SUNRISE – NEXT DAY
Ferriman receives a hundred lashes and is bloodied and unconscious afterwards.
Captain Vere gives a speech. (transformational event)
CAPTAIN VERE gives a moving speech, trying to get the men to find a patriotic outlook.
The men look on, unconvinced, as Vere completes his speech.
The man who was flogged is taken to the sick birth
INT. BELOW DECK – SAME TIME
The men filter into the lower deck. Back and forth conversation about the flogging and the illegitimacy of it all. Someone asks Billy if they were ever flogged on ‘The Rights of Man’. He says that they weren’t.
Danskar approaches him. He tells Billy to keep his hammock in order. They are likely to both be targeted to get on the ship’s report. If that happens, they could be next on the list for flogging.
Billy asks Jenkins: Why was the man flogged? It could be almost anything, Jenkin retorts.
Claggart enters. Billy attempts a friendly gesture – somehow touches Claggart. ‘Don’t touch me!’ he says firmly. Billy backs off.
Danskar warns him to watch out for Claggart. He has seen his type before.
EXT. MID-SHIP – MAST – DAY
Billy is on watch, looking out for ships. Jenkins is with him and shows signs of weakness: something is wrong with him and he winces in pain (probably from his fight with Billy).
Billy asks him about it and he waves it off. Squeak also notices – wonders if it is something Claggart should know about. He waves Squeak off as well.
INT. LOWER DECK – BILLY’S HAMMOCK – NIGHT
Billy checks his hammock – it is undone and not properly set. He turns to Danskar, telling him this is the second time he’s seen it this way.
Squeak approaches. Tells Billy to be careful – he had to include the mishap on the ship’s report. Billy and Danskar sense a trap – someone wants Billy on the report.
Squeak also warns Danskar and asks does he want to be next for a flogging. Danskar indicates it is God who will decide. Squeak laughs.
INT. LOWER DESK – TABLE – NIGHT
The men are gathered at the table. Banter back and forth about the politics of the time. American Liberty. French Revolution. Jenkins is ill and cannot eat.
Claggart enters. The men stand and line up. He bumps against Billy and forces him to drop his bowl. Claggart insists Jenkins clean it. Jenkins cannot lean down – he is ill. Claggart is apparently trying to demonstrate how ill Jenkins is.
Claggart challenges the men to attack him. He even turns his back on them. Claggart calls the men spineless and leaves.
Jenkins vows to kill Claggart. The rest warn against it.
INT. CAPTAIN VERE’S QUARTERS – NIGHT
Vere has called Claggart into his quarters. He asks if Billy Budd should be given a promotion. Claggart is against it, notes his infraction. Vere seems intent on promoting Billy to chief maintopman, as Jenkins appears unfit.
Claggart leaves. The Captain conferences with Lt. Ratcliffe. He asks him about Billy. Also asks him what he knows about Claggart. Ratcliff says the Claggart committed some crime and was given a choice: the Navy or jail. What crime? Murder perhaps. He notes that regardless, Claggart is a good master of arms. Ratcliff also notes that Claggart will likely oppose Billy Budd’s promotion.
EXT. MIDSHIP – MAINTOP – DAY
Jenkins is on the main top with Billy. He can barely make it up to the sails. One of the sailors wants to take him to sick berth, but Claggart refuses it, forces Jenkins back to the maintop.
EXT. CLOSE – MAINTOP – DAY
A Watchman spots a French ship. The men are called to action. As this occurs, Billy moves to help Jenkins at his post as he clearly is unable to handle his duties. While all this occurs, Jenkins falls to the lower deck and is killed immediately.
EXT. DECK – DAY
Claggart looms over the body, as do the others. But the presence of the French ship forces them to take arms and fire. Lt. Seymour sends the orders to fire at will. But the men don’t react. Mr. Kincaid tells Lt. Seymour that they’ve lost the French ship. Seymour has Kincaid arrested for insubordination.
EXT. DECK – NEAR CAPTAIN’S QUARTERS – DAY
The Captain comes on deck and heatedly wants to know the situation. Not all the men come to attention. The Captain is incensed. He reminds them of their duty. He is quite adamant: their only duty is to fight and obey.
The Captain inquires about Jenkins death. It was an accident is the consensus.
ACT II
EXT. DECK – LATER THAT DAY
Jenkins is put to rest at sea. The men watch solemnly as the body is shoved over the deck. The company is dismissed by Lt. Seymour. He turns to Billy: the Captain wishes to see him.
INT. CAPTAIN’S QUARTERS – SAME TIME
The Captain informs Billy that he will take on Jenkin’s responsibilities. Billy is happy with the promotion. My Seymour wonders if Claggart should be consulted further. The Captain will proceed without Claggart’s assistance. The Captain asks Billy about Jenkin’s death. Billy tells him he feels Claggart is responsible as he would not allow him to go to the sick berth.
Claggart then enters and protests the promotion. The Captain insists it is the right thing to do.
Claggart also inquires about Kincaid. He feels he must be flogged. The Captain Okays the flogging – but only 10 lashes instead of the normal 100 that Claggart recommends. Claggart notes that men must adhere to the rule of law. The Captain asks him about his past. Has he not at times been treated leniently for indiscretions? Claggart relents. The Captain notes Claggart’s hypocrisy.
EXT. MID-SHIP DECK – DAY
Kincaid is ordered by Claggart to receive 10 lashes. The Captain observes, then leaves. Mr. Seymour dismisses the crew.
INT. CAPTAIN’S QUARTERS – MOMENTS LATER
The Captain conferences with Seymour. What to do about Claggart? He is clearly stepping out of bounds with his behavior vis-à-vis Jenkins. The Captain insists that Claggart must be kept in his position as he is required to keep order on the ship.
The Captain asks Seymour and Ratcliff if they know about Claggart’s past – any details that might explain his behavior. Seymour believes he was involved in a killing of some sort but there was some confusion about it’ ‘Who was it?’ ‘A friend’ says Seymour. ‘A close friend’, he clarifies. ‘Claggart is not married’.
The Captain nods. ‘A killing of a close friend,’ he repeats.
ACT III
EXT. MID-SHIP – NIGHT
Billy is on watch. Claggart also walks the deck. They begin to talk.
Billy says he wishes to be his friend. Claggart looks him over. Claggart indicates there is no such thing in this world as a friend. Billy asks him if he ever had a friend. Claggart indicates he has only had one friend in his life, and he is dead. How? Asks Billy. Consumption (tuberculosis), says Claggart. Billy nods.
Claggart, in a moment of vulnerability, recounts the death. ‘He had to die, you see – he was suffering too much. I was glad he died. I couldn’t bear it. And I am glad that Jenkins died’.
Billy nods. Claggart is near tears. ‘I had to do it,’ he says.
Billy nods but does not quite comprehend. ‘Do what?”
‘You don’t know?’
‘No’.
Beat – Claggart lashes out at Billy. ‘Get away from me! Damn you to hell! You remind me of him – damn you to hell!’
Billy backs off, but asks him: “Do you really take pleasure in cruelty, sir?”
“Has not life been cruel to me? I simply do what life does to me to others. Look out to that ocean. What is underneath? I tell you, it is despair, death, coldness.”
“Funny,” Billy returns. “I see peace. And I see a lonely man”.
Claggart eyes him over. “Get away!” he says.
Billy backs off again.
Claggart continues to walk the deck. Squeak approaches him. He says he cannot do anything more to get Billy on the report. Danskar is watching too closely. Claggart insists he finds a way.
EXT. CANNON PORTAL – NIGHT
Billy has retreated to a portal and watches the sea. Squeak finds him and warns him that Claggart is out to get him. He says he can’t stand to betray the men anymore. Squeak fears mutiny on the ship, like the Nore and Spitfire. He admits to helping Claggart get Billy on the report. Squeak asks Billy if he will help in a plot to kill Claggart. Billy says he won’t.
INT. CLAGGART’S QUARTERS – LATER
Squeak enters. Apparently, he has still been spying on Billy and trying to get him to betray Claggart. But Billy would have nothing of it. Claggart is beside himself. Claggart threatens Squeak with the lash to get him to betray Billy and say that he is out to murder Claggart and run a mutiny.
INT. LOWER DECK – NIGHT
Billy confides in Danskar what happened with Claggart. Danskar says the will of God is working against Claggart and Billy at the same time. He must be careful. Billy returns to the upper deck.
EXT. UPPER DECK – SAME TIME
Seymour is on deck and asks Claggart if all is in order. He says yes.
Claggart continues his watch, Kincaid stalks him from behind. But Billy stops him, overcomes him and forces him to drop his blade.
Claggart confronts them. Then Seymour. There is a knife on the deck near Claggart. Whose knife is this? Claggart picks it up.
Seymour returns – hearing the commotion. Claggart holds out the knife.
Whose knife? Asks Seymour. Billy Budd’s replies Claggart. Seymour says ‘give it back to him’. A tense moment. Seymour indicates that Claggart said all is well – so all is well. Return to your positions.
Seymour leaves, after indicating he wants neither man to appear on the ship’s report. He orders both Kincaid and Billy to go below.
EXT. MID-SHIP DECK – NEXT DAY
Captain Vere commands Mr. Ratcliff to provide more sail. He shouts his orders to the men.
ACT IV
INT. CAPTAIN’S QUARTERS – MOMENTS LATER
Claggart enters and accuses Billy of trying to kill him and start a mutiny.
The Captain is hesitant to believe this. He calls Billy into his quarters.
Billy listens to the accusations as they come directly from Claggart. Billy cannot believe it and beings to stutter. Then, suddenly, unable to speak, he hits Claggart squarely in the temple. Claggart falls, dead.
The Captain calls the ship’s doctor. On examination, he finds Claggart is indeed killed.
Claggart orders Billly taken below into custody and convenes a makeshift court marshall with himself, Ratcliff, Seymour, and NNNN.
At the end of their intense debate, the Captain argues to hang Billy. The others want acquittal.
They summon Danskar to bear witness as to whether Claggart bore malice toward Billy. He affirms it.
The Captain decides that he will hang Billy.
EXT. MID-SHIP – DAY
All of the men are assembled. None are sure what is about. Then it is revealed that Billy killed Claggart and will be hanged.
The men are beside themselves and it is difficult to maintain order. Vere and his men are barely able to hold the crew back.
Billy is brought out and hanged.
The men are distraught.
But just then, a French Ship appears unexpectedly and fires at the Avenger.
EXT. GUNS – DAY
The men take to the guns and begin to fire. The French Ship has the advantage of surprise and several volleys pierce the Avenger. The Captain is killed.
The Avenger, manages to fend off the attack, but not without substantial damage. Seymour takes command and they head toward the nearest friendly port.
EPILOGUE
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Rebecca Jordan’s High Speed Beat Sheet – Lesson 7
I am committed to using these High Speed Writing Rules to get my script done at record speed.
What I learned from this assignment, is that I have to try very hard not be a perfectionist and must resist the temptation to go back and fix. I also am learning how helpful it is to have all of the elements in place before moving on to the next step. Takes patience and discipline to not move on or back too soon.
__________Act 1__________
EXT. FESTIVAL – NIGHT
Opening: Rachel, 50’s, sings background vocals in a Tom Petty Tribute Band to a live crowd. They finish up with Rebels for their final encore. Crowd cheers. The band walks off the stage waving with thank you.
EXT. BACK STAGE – CONTINUOUS
The band loads out their gear. Pop open beers from the cooler. Rachel grabs a beer. Packs up her gig bag. She is invited to an after party. It’s hard to resist but declines, need to get to work on her memoir which has her all consumed. She has a long drive.
Rachel walks to her car. Loads the up. Finishes her beer and takes off waving to her band mates.
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – NIGHT
Rachel drives. Deep in thought.
EXT. FARM ARENA – DAY
1974 – Rachel,10. Riding horse, practicing barrel racing techniques. Hilary, late 20’s, tall and beautiful, side coaches afoot from the other side of the fence.
INT. FARM ARENA – DAY/EVENING
1974. Rachel , 10 rides horse English style, with friends. They practice jumping. The kids are older and cue Rachel from the other side while passing a joint. Someone offers her a joint. She takes it but not sure what to do with it. They teach her to smoke and head out for a trail ride.
EXT. FARM, HOUSE YARD – MORNING
Cliff, late 40’s GM’s much older husband; the epitome of an old school handsome cowboy. He and Rachel laugh heartily chasing and catching ducks outside the chicken coup.
INT. FARM, DINING ROOM – NIGHT
Cliff and Hilary at the dinner table. Rachel discovers for the first time that she is eating the ducks they caught for dinner and nearly spits it out and cries. She shows them her drawings of the horses. They’re really good.GM comments on how Mom and her brother/R’s uncle are great sketch artists, very talented and how Rachel must have gotten her talent from them.
EXT. ANOTHER FARM – NIGHT
Present day. Rachel 50’s turns onto a long road that opens up to a medium sized farm with several barns and a much larger main house. (Rachel works on the farm caring for the horses and livestock in exchange for living in the barn.) She pulls up and parks her truck next to the smallest barn. Unloads the trunk.
INT. SMALL BARN – LATER
The barn is artsy and modest, but is nicely remodeled with an upscale DIY look. Rachel’s paintings are strategically hung with some in process on easels. The bed is high up in the loft, of course. Spiral staircase? LOCATION: (We know just the place, production. Met them doing a gig there.)
Rachel looks through photos and finds some 1974.
Old pictures of a farm with horses and a chicken coup and cattle. A picture of Hilary with her. She sits at the computer.
Suddenly she’s up and pours herself another big glass of wine. Lights a joint. Paces, searching her story board on the wall.
Gives up. Sits. Smokes. Drinks. Closes her eyes.
INT. APARTMENT HALLWAY – DAY
1974. GM and Rachel approach an apartment door. Rachel pulls her keys out.
The elevator door opens from down the hall. Mom, 28, petite blonde, with a tall lanky uniformed door man, 50’s, who rolls her in his desk chair toward the door. Her leg in a giant cast stretched all the way out in front of her.
INT. APARTMENT – CONTINUOUS
Rachel already inside, sees Mom, waves and quickly runs into the apartment. Mom calls out to her. Rachel runs crying into her room (small 1bdrm apt) and shuts the door.
Hillary covers. Seeing Mom in a cast scared her. It was a surprise. Mom scoffs. They discuss the trip, the break up and the hospital visit. Mom shows Hillary her drawing. Rachel comes out of room hesitantly. She stands close to Hillary. Mom talks about her self portraits which are good but dark and scary.
INT. SMALL BARN – MORNING
Inciting Incident: Present, Rachel 50’s in same clothes passed out on the couch.
Phone rings. She has a bad hangover. It’s her aunt talking way too loud on the phone, asking lots of questions. Rachel’s uncle Ben, Mom’s brother has committed suicide, shot himself in the head and nobody can find her piece of shit Mom. Rachel, in shock and at a loss. Tries to process. Doesn’t have a clue where her Mom is. Hangs up.
INT. SMALL BARN – DAY
Rachel, 50’s, at her with computer staring. Still hurting from the drink, she lights a joint, makes another cup of coffee, looks at photos. She finds one of herself as a teenager sitting on the grass with her now dead Uncle Ben.
INT. DINING ROOM – DAY
1976 Easter. Rachel, 10, with family. party ensues. Two Uncles and two Aunts, two young boys, 3 and 4 yrs old, and neighbors and children – at the dining table finishing up meal, laughing and carrying on. Drinking. Drunk.
Mom arrives, late. “Look what the cat dragged in.” At the dinner table Aunt, Ben’s wife tells a “funny” story about a little boy who had a blue ribbon and was playing and put the ribbon around his neck and tied it so tight that he was choking until his lips turned blue to match the ribbon. Everyone is laughing until Mom criticizes them for their bad behavior in front of her child. They make it clear that they don’t need to babysit while she’s off galavanting.
INT. KITCHEN – CONTINUOUS
Ben has Mom pinned on the kitchen floor kicking and screaming. He’s yelling at her. He reminds her of the last time she didn’t show for a holiday because she was off with some guy and wrapped the car around a tree.
INT. SMALL BARN – NIGHT
Rachel 50’s, drunk, typing at computer. Stops. Frantically searches box and finds a picture of a young boy, 2 yrs old. Another picture together, he’s 6, Rachel 8.
EXT. PUBLIC SCHOOL YARD – DAY
1973, Summer. Rachel, 9 yrs old, stands outside the chain link fence of a school yard. She waves at little boy, 7, who runs to her excited to see her and throws his arms around her. They walk hand in hand. Stop at a park. She pushes him on a swing.
EXT. PRIVATE SCHOOL – DAY
1973, Winter. Dad stands in front of a black limo wearing a winter coat. Woman is in the back seat. It’s snowing like a blizzard. A nun walks Rachel outside. Rachel recognizes him, runs and jumps into his arms. He swings her around.
EXT. PUBLIC SCHOOL YARD – DAY
Rachel waits outside chain link fence. Only a couple of kids left meeting parents. No little boy. The limo drives by unseen by Rachel. She walk home.
INT. SMALL BARN – CONTINUOUS
Present. Rachel, 50’s, at her computer typing with furry. Paces. Stares at an unfinished painting. Aunt calls to see if she’s talked to her Mom yet. She’s found the last address she had for her Mom. Hard to read with all the erasures. She’s always pencilled in, never with a pen.
INT. SAN JUAN AIRPORT – DAY
1972. Rachel, 8, and Mom, 26 exit the plane. Her Dad works for the airline and is there to receive them. He waves, smiling. Rachel asks Mom which uncle that is. Mom informs her that that’s her Dad. Rachel is embarrassed.
INT. PUB – NIGHT
Rachel, 50’s, at the bar drinking beer and doing shots with a handsome farmer. They’re drunk. Rachel pays her buddy behind the bar. Leaves with the farmer.
INT. SMALL BARN – NIGHT
Rachel and Farmer in the loft, sex
__________Act 2__________
INT. SMALL BARN – MORNING
Reaction: Rachel, a hung over mess, kicks the farmer dude out. Remorse.
Makes coffee. She looks up the address her Aunt has given her. Then calls the police department in that town and gives them the address from her aunt and asks if someone if someone could drive over to the house with a message to call her. It’s urgent.
EXT. PUBLIC SCHOOL YARD – DAY
1973. Snowing. the yard is empty. Around the corner, Little boy with Dad get into the back seat of limo with a woman. The car slowly drives by Rachel who waits at the chain link fence. She turns and walks away not seeing the car.
INT. SMALL APARTMENT – DUSK
1973. Rachel home alone after school playing with barbies. Rachel answers the phone. He wasn’t there.
PLACE HOLDER: Phone convo with Mom.
INT. SMALL APARTMENT – NIGHT
Rachel and Mom at home in high rise apartment very late with three cops standing in a circle in their living room. Rachel crying. Mother yelling and crying. Cops talking on radio and making calls.
INT. AIRPLANE – NIGHT
Dad, woman and little boy on a plane. They land in Puerto Rico
INT. SMALL APARTMENT – NIGHT
Mom answers phone. Distraught, hangs up. Mom enraged yells at Rachel. Blames her. Cops settle Mom down. Rachel runs to her room, screaming.
INT. SMALL BARN – DAY
Rachel, 50’s, on the phone waiting. Pacing. Lights a joint. Pours wine.
The police officer left a note on the door for her because nobody was home.
Rachel hangs up.
INT. SMALL BARN – DAY
Rachel, just out of the shower, dresses and packs up a bag and her guitar and her computer, etc.
EXT. SMALL BARN – DAY
Loads up the truck and drives off.
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – DUSK
Rachel drives. Tired of her thoughts, turns on music loud. Sings.
PLACEHOLDER: Memory of Dad getting Rachel from Aunt in CA. negotiating the swap. Rachel wants to go home. Dad puts her on a plane. Rachel gets picked up by Hillary at airport and meets Mom and little boy at apartment. He’s sick. Rachel hugs and Mom puts them to bed.
EXT. MOM’S HOUSE – NIGHT
Rachel 50’s pulls up and parks. Walks to the front door and rings the bell. A man answers the door. Woman joins him. Mom is renting out the house.
They invite her in for a cup of coffee. At a loss, she finally agrees. They talk and try to come up with some clues. The couple, encourages her and offers her the guest room to spend the night so she can get some rest. She turns them down.
Turning Point 2: MIDPOINT:
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – NIGHT
Rachel drives around the town criticizing its podunk nowhere nothingness. She gets high and finds a pub.
INT. PUB – NIGHT
Rachel, 50’s, talk to a guy at the bar. He gives her a couple of bumps from a key. After throwing back a couple beers and shots, and having folks be too nice to her, she leaves, waving off the man’s advances. He’s belligerent.
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – CONTINUOUS
Rachel sits in car smoking a joint. Then drives off.
PLACEHOLDER: Insert getting kicked out of boyfriends.
Sleeping around in the bushes and lobbies.
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – NIGHT
Rachel 50’s, distracted looking for lighter, crashes the car and has to get towed.
EXT. ROADSIDE – NIGHT
Tow guy hooks her truck up to his rig while criticizing her for driving all fucked up. Claims he should call the cops to pick her up. She’s snarky at first.
INT. TOW TRUCK – NIGHT
Tow truck driver drives with Rachel in the passenger seat. He pulls up to the nice couple’s/Mom’s house. And waits for her to get out.
EXT. FRONT DOOR – NIGHT
Rachel rings the bell and looks back at the tow truck and flips him the bird. Same to you.
INT. GUEST ROOM – NIGHT
Couple sets Rachel up in guest room. In bed. And leave her to herself. They are perplexed.
Rachel gets into sweats and tshirt, sits on the bed and opens her computer.
She writes.
EXT. BROWN STONE APT BUILDING – NIGHT
Rachel, (age 13, 1977) in front of her apartment building, finishes up a joint while removing makeup with a tissue. She takes a swig from the pint of JD in her purse and throws a sweatshirt over her sexy top.
INT. INTERIOR HALLWAY – NIGHT
1977. Rachel 13, enters her apartment, skulks down the hallway, where her mom and Japanese step father, Yutaka, 28, are having dinner. Rachel is late. Mom, 31, blonde caucasian, wears a kimono, comes after Rachel yelling. Rachel ducks into her bedroom closes the door.
INT. APT DINING ROOM – NIGHT
At the dinner table, Mom scolds Rachel for putting ketchup on her rice which is unacceptable, to dirty the rice. Rachel retorts. Mom cues Yutaka and he back hands Rachel across the face. Rachel screams runs to her room.
INT. APT DINING ROOM – NIGHT
Rachel looks down the hallway, checks to make parents are asleep. She then throws her clothes out the window.
INT. APT HALLWAY AND KITCHEN
She sneaks out the back door with a partially empty empty duffle bag.
EXT. BROWN STONE APT BLDG – NIGHT
Boyfriend, Stew,16, waits in car as she scoops up her clothes and hops in.
They drive off.
__________Act 3 __________
Turning Point 3:
INT. GUEST ROOM – MORNING
Rachel wakes up with open computer lying next to her. She reads what she has written. And writes some more.
PLACEHOLDER: Something that she regrets. Maybe calls her Aunt who pisses her off.
Rachel packs her things.
INT. KITCHEN – DAY
Has coffee and meal with the kind couple. Man pull out a piece of paper with a PO Box address. This is where he sends rents checks. The talk a little about her journey. The recall having met Mom. She graciously says her goodbyes. She’s hungover but now knows what her next step is. There’s no turning back.
EXT. TOW TRUCK LOT – DAY
Rachel 50’s, exits the Tow truck office and waves graciously at the nice couple.The drive. She finds her truck loads up and drives off.
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – DAY
Rachel’s 50’s, driving. She turns on the music.
INT. MOM’S CAR – DAY
1972. Rachel, 8, sits in passenger seat with mom at the wheel at a stop light. They laugh as mom pumps the breaks making the car rock to the beat of the music. “Ga-sha-gow-gow-gow”
INT. PICK UP TRUCK – DAY
Rachel’s drives. She laugh’s, singing
“Ga-sha-gow-gow-gow”
EXT. CRAPPY MOTEL – NIGHT
Rachel pulls in and parks.
INT. CRAPPY MOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
Tries to watch TV. Writes. Get’s stuck. Leaves her room.
INT. BAR – NIGHT
It’s dead. Rachel, 50’s, sits alone at the bar drinking. She orders another shot from the bartender. Maybe plays some pin ball.
PLACEHOLDER: ??
INT. CRAPPY MOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
Rachel in her sweats and t-shirt, at a desk looking at open computer, finishes a beer. Closes computer. She slips off her sweats, navigates getting under the sheets. Immediately puts sweats back on and gets in the bed. Stares at the ceiling.
__________Act 4__________
INT. CONVALESCENT HOME – NIGHT
Rachel with her guitar, sneaks down the hallway, ducking to be unseen, looking in rooms until she finds her Mom and quietly ducks in.
INT. MOM’S ROOM – NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Rachel trying to wake up her Mom who is hooked up to machines. Rachel talking to Mom. Plays a song for her. Until a Nurse, Eleanor, enters and tells her she has to leave. It’s after visiting hours and Mom hasn’t had any visitors a doesn’t know of her having a daughter.
INT. MOM’S ROOM – DAY
Rachel, 50’s, visits Mom recalling stories from the past.
INT. CRAPPY MOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
Rachel writes with fervor. Takes her weed out to roll a joint. Takes her weed and coke, wraps it in a bag and shoves it deep into her duffel bag.
Back to writing.
INT. MOM’S ROOM – DAY
PLACEHOLDERS:
Stories for Mom each day.
Convincing rental mgr to give Rachel ,14, an apt. Painting apartment apt
INT. CONVALESCENT HOME – DAY
Rachel develops a relationship with Eleanor, who talks to Mom about Rachel as she comes to understand her story and like her. She has a similar story.
Mail jeep scene, Mom sees and snags Rachel, she runs.
PLACEHOLDER:
Mail jeep scene, Mom sees and snags Rachel, she runs.
Japanese stuff, 1st grade Japanese school, mom talking Japanese.
mail jeep steal.
sleeping on lawn in bushes.
sleeping in apartment lobby under stairs.
INT. MOM’S ROOM – DAY
Use place holders each day. Some will be of Mom’s POV, when she becomes agitated from Rachel’s story telling.
PLACEHOLDER:
runaway sc from closet
mom comes to stew’s with truant Officer.
sleeping in the storage locker in Stew’s basement
PLACEHOLDER:
Cops pick up Rachel.
In lock up hospital for derelict children.
Therapy at hospital.
INT. HALLWAY, CONVALESCENT HOME – DAY
Rachel hears Nurse talking to Mom about Rachel. She discovers that Mom is somewhat cognizant. But continuous as if she doesn’t know, so that she can continue with her stories, some of which are disturbing to her mom.
PLACEHOLDER:
Mom’s point of view: Getting her son. Hiding out at friends
EXT. BAR – NIGHT
Rachel resists going in.
INT. MOM’S ROOM – DAY
Resolution: Perhaps Mom can’t open her eyes. But she’s changed from the visits and from the Nurse’s persistence.Rachel breaks down, desperate for a connection, ready to give up. Mom takes Rachel’s hand and squeezes it hard. This is enough.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by Rebecca Jordan.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by
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Patrick Downey – High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned doing this assignment is that I was stressed about doing this assignment, but it turned out to be very helpful. I’m current short about 20 – 30 pages on my screenplay and the placeholders will add some good content, depth, and length to my story.
Act 1
INT. FOOD TRUCK PARKED ON THE STREET IN DOWNTOWN CHICAGO – DAY
Team setting up the surveillance of the FBI on the HAVOC organization in downtown Chicago. Introduction of all the main players and their roles and the FBI’s case for bringing them down.
INT. H.A.V.O.C. OFFICES – DAY
Cayman comes to work with his grandfather for the first time and the team gets to know him and finds out that he’s deaf. All welcome him except a young hot shot named Dardanos, who can’t be bothered with a deaf mute.
EXT. FOOD TRUCK – DAY
Surveillance team notices that after a couple of summers visiting and working with his grandfather, Cayman comes to live in Chicago permanently after his mother is tragically killed in a traffic accident.
Act 2
INT. PRIVATE SCHOOL – DAY
Cayman sitting in his classroom at a Catholic School for the deaf looking out the window. Cayman’s whole world is turned upside down as he withdraws into his very new and different circumstances. Every day is like Groundhog Day for him, school, office, and home with his grandpa.
INT. STINGNELLI HOUSE – NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: (The entire Stingnelli family is at the house for a birthday party, all 36 of them)
INT. H.A.V.O.C. OFFICES – DAY
One day Cayman decides to stop feeling sorry for himself and makes up his mind to be the best he can be for his mother and grandfather. So, he starts really applying himself after school in the office. He is rewarded by receiving more responsibility and a new desk right across from the vault.
INT. VAULT – DAY
One late afternoon Cayman is sitting at his desk with headphones on and looking into the vault as the men are meeting. He starts to read their lips and realizes they are not a charitable children’s organization at all but a bunch of crooks fixing sporting events to capitalize on the betting odds to line their pockets with millions if not billions.
EXT. FOOTBALL STADIUM PLAYERS PARKING LOT – DAY
(Crutch leaning against his car waiting on the team’s standout All-Pro receiver)
(Show plane landing in a different city that evening)
INT. RESTAURANT – NIGHT
(We see Crutch again meeting with a team executive over dinner and handing him a briefcase)
Act 3
INT. CAYMAN’S ROOM – NIGHT
Laptop open and books spread out all over his bed.
Cayman’s eyes are wide open to their operation, and he starts digging into past bets, performances, curses, unbelievable wins and anything else sports related that could so a pattern of this organization’s a
PLACEHOLDER: CAYMAN RUNNING THROUGH THE GAMES HE HAD ATTENDED WITH HIS GRANDFATHER AND THINKING HIS GRANDFATHER KNEW EVERYBODY ON THE TEAMS AND STAFF. THEN THINKING IF THIS WAS ONE OF THE GAMES, THEY HAD RUINED FOR HIM FOREVER.
EXT. CAR TRAVELING ALONG LAKE SHORE DRIVE – DAY
Furious at his grandfather for his criminal activity and even more so for pretending to do good for other people. With his newfound knowledge, he had to decide what to do and how to go about handling it. Does he question his grandfather directly, does he go to the police or just do nothing?
PLACEHOLDER: (MEETING WITH DARDANOS, GRAHAM, PATRICK AND KRISTOS OUT OF THE OFFICE SOMEWHERE)
INT. H.A.V.O.C. OFFICES – DAY
Cayman catches wind of a plan by Dardanos to kill his grandfather and takeover the organization. He hopes to warn his grandfather even though he’s pissed at him but doesn’t want any harm to come to him. However, he’s too late and his grandfather is killed.
Act 4
INT. H.A.V.O.C. OFFICES – NIGHT
Gathered is Cayman, Audie, Crutch, and several of Cayman’s friends to discuss their plan of action over the remaining 4 partners who had Ray killed. Cayman starts out the meeting by displaying a revolutionary cool device he has recently patented. Cayman focuses all his energy and resources on bringing them all down with an elaborate plan.
PLACEHOLDER: (ESPN HIGHLIGHTS OF SEVERAL PLAYOFF SCENARIOS)
Resolution: Every player hits their mark, the greedy get greedier and Cayman enjoys his win!
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Benito Selim’s high-speed beat sheet
What I learned in this assignment is breaking down each scene makes for a better-detailed script and interaction between your characters.
ACT 1
EXT. STARKOAKS FARM -NIGHT
OPENING: Karen and Jeff arrive a decorated barn. They have a romantic evening then are killed by an unknown assailant.
INT. DARRYL’S DORM ROOM- NIGHT
TE 1: Darryl works on his computer. He begins hearing faint voices followed by a scream for help. Darryl reaches into his drawer and removes pills. He takes the pills, and the voices go away.
EXT. DUMPSTER — DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Darryl finds a projector-type camera and comes up with the idea to shoot his final project on film.
EXT. STARKOAKS FARMS- DAY
INCITING INCIDENT: Darryl and his friends shoot their documentary at the farm; Darryl finds a locket a takes it with him.
INT. EDITING ROOM- LATER
TE 2: Darryl and his friends edit their footage, Karen appears on their footage and is brutally murdered. Shocked they then think it’s a joke and edit out the footage.
INT. CLASSROOM- DAY
TE 3: Darryl and his friends show their project, but Karen reappears her murder is more gruesome than before. She connects with Darryl and asks for help, which no one else sees. The projector camera and film then go up in flames.
PLACEHOLDER: Why is Karen reaching out to Darryl? Why did she appear on the film?
ACT 2
INT. COLLEGE LIBRARY- DAY
INCITING INCIDENT: Darryl does research into recent disappearances and murders. Darryl then reflects on his childhood and befriending a young girl who was discovered to be murdered.
INT. RESTAURANT- NIGHT
TE 4: Darryl encounters a woman by the name of Ellen Paisley who informs Darryl he possesses a gift of being a medium. Ellen tells him Karen has attached himself to him. Darryl at this point decides to open the locket to find Karen and Jeff’s pictures inside.
PLACEHOLDER: How will Darryl handle his life-changing news of possessing psychic abilities? Will he proceed with solving Karen’s murder?
EXT. COLLEGE CAMPUS- DAY
Darryl shares the news with his friends who oppose his pursuit of finding out who killed Karen. Detective Will Garnett sought out Darryl for questioning.
INT. POLICE STATION- EVENING
TE 5: Detective Garnett tries to get a confession out of Darryl, but his details of the murder are not adding up to accuse him. Darryl is released and proceeds to meet up with Ellen for more information. Detective Garnett tails him.
INT. ELLEN’S HOUSE- NIGHT
TE 6: Ellen informs Darryl about her past and the murders that have haunted the town. Darryl then connects his childhood experiences with ghosts and discovers he helped bring down the very person who was trying to kill Ellen.
PLACEHOLDER: Is Darryl the intended target? Will the murders stop with him solving Karen’s?
ACT 3
INT. MRS. CASE’S HOUSE- DAY
TE 7: Darryl meets with this mother to get answers. He gives details of the past murders, and his mother confesses that they jump to conclusions about his diagnosis. She also admits his father was murdered by the very killer, he helped capture.
EXT. STARKOAKS FARM- LATER
Darryl returns to the farm solo and is immediately thrown into a vision. He can communicate with Karen more clearly and encounters other victims.
INT. COLLEGE DORM- NIGHT
TE 8: Darryl is attacked but gets away. Detective Garnett returns to gather information, he then asks for Darryl’s help and opens up about previously knowing Ellen. Garnett also informs Darryl two of his friends have been murdered.
The ending is still in the works.
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Dana’s High Speed Beat Sheet
What have I learned doing this assignment?
This was the hardest lesson for me learn thus far. I’m a perfectionist that tries to write a perfect first draft. I had to write without criticizing every word and just keep moving. I still wrote too much. But like my script, I’m a work in progress too. I have to learn to leave my bad habits behind.
—Act I—
INT. PRISON CELL BLOCK – DAY
Bedlam inside a maximum-security prison cell block. The prisoners locked in their cells. Frank Valentino is being walked out of prison by guards.
INT. WARDEN’S OFFICE – DAY
Frank enters to meet the warder, one last meeting before Frank is released. The warden speaks to Frank about the crime he committed, his incarceration, his conduct as a prisoner.
Frank has been granted early parole.
EXT. PARK – DAY
Jack Donovan sits at a park bench across from a school watching his daughter from a distance. He’s confronted by his ex-wife who sees him. She warns him to stay away from her and their daughter, they have a new life, and his daughter doesn’t know him. Jack has been granted early parole, too. Why? Jack realizes he’s lost everything and wants it back.
INT. COFFEE SHOP – DAY
INCITING INCIDENT: Jack and Frank meet secretly. They’re not allowed to associate with each other while on parole. They discuss their parole agents, where they’re living, etc.
Jack tells Frank he wants to reopen the investigation into the murder to find the real killers. Frank refuses. He wants to move on, and he’s headed to Phoenix. They argue, and they go their separate ways.
INT. LAW OFFICE – DAY
Jack meets with the victim’s family lawyer. He walks into the lion’s den. Jack insists his innocence. That someone got to the victim in the holding cell. Lawyer doesn’t care. The CCTV evidence doesn’t prove that, so either Jack and Frank are lying, or everyone else is. The lawyer gives Jack the case files from the civil lawsuit.
INT. HALFWAY HOUSE – DAY
Turning Point: Dirty cops try to kill Frank at his halfway house. They fail. Frank barely escapes. Frank realizes someone wants him dead, that he won’t be able to just disappear
—Act II—
INT. JACK’S ROOM – DAY
Frank finds Jack and agrees to investigate the murder, but they have to go into hiding.
Frank wants vengeance/Jack wants justice to get his life back. Frank agrees to do things Jack’s way.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – DAY/NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Simon receives a phone call from a client. He agrees to kill Jack and Frank.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – DAY/NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Jack and Frank go over the files, comparing the criminal files to the civil files. They learn the victim was an illegitimate child. Father unknown. Adopted. Information they never knew because they were not part of the civil trial.
BIG QUESTIONS: Who got into the holding cell when victim was alone? What happened to the jailhouse guards? Who wanted him dead? Is something wrong with the surveillance DVD of the police holding cell?
INT./EXT. LOCATION – NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: Simon and the leading dirty cop meet. Discuss letting Frank and Jack investigate to find any holes in the frame that were overlooked.
INT. GOVERNOR’S OFFICE – DAY
The governor and his wife are in a meeting with staff discussing the potential VP nomination. At the end of the meeting, one of the dirty cops that tried to kill Frank enters. He’s on the governor’s protection team.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Frank and Jack are following one of the guards on duty the night of the killing. He’s no longer a cop, but a security guard. Suspended for sleeping on the job.
They get him to talk. He wasn’t involved, but gives them a lead. The CCTV was recorded on videotape not digital. No “ClOUD” back in the day. The technician who created the DVD must have altered the original.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – DAY/NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: The guard is killed by Simon cleaning up the mess.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: Frank and Jack find the police technician that altered the tape tortured and killed by Simon before they can question him. They figure he gave up the original tape during the torture.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – DAY/NIGHT
PLACEHOLDER: They become suspects in the murder of the guard. Cops are looking for them.
— Midpoint Turning Point—
INT. MAFIA SOCIAL CLUB – DAY
Jack and Frank seek out the Mafia boss Frank did favors for while he was in prison to say alive. The reason why Frank didn’t want to dig into the past.
They need a place to hide. Mafia boss agrees to help find the adoptive parents.
INT. PARENT HOME – NIGHT
Frank and Jack have broken in and are waiting for the mother to return. When she does, they sit her down to just talk. They convince her they did not killed her son.
She tells them it was her sister’s son. She was a prostitute and got pregnant by a john. But she never said who the father was. Just some collage frat boy. She didn’t get an abortion. She tried to blackmail the boy after her son was born. After she was killed, the sister raised the boy as her own to hide him.
INT./EXT. UNIVERSITY – DAY
Jack and Frank search for the victim’s father. How? Not quite sure. But they learn the governor was the boys father. They realize the power their fighting.
—Act III—
INT./EXT. LOCATION – NIGHT
Turning Point: The assassin grabs Jack’s daughter and holds her hostage. They trade themselves for her life.
INT./EXT. LOCATION – NIGHT
—Climax—
Jack and Frank kill to get her back. Frank dies in the shoo tout. And by killing the dirty cops, they eliminate the witnesses that could connect the governor to his conspiracy.
—Resolution—
Jack has learned the truth, found partial justice, has met his daughter. But he’s still wanted. And to protect her, he realizes he must move on, that the governor has escaped justice.
INT. MAFIA SOCIAL CLUB – DAY
Mafia boss is reading the newspaper about the shootout killing the dirty cops and Frank. He puts down the paper when a man enters, the reporter who wrote the story. The Mafia boss tells the reporter he needs to amend the story. The reporter asks why. The boss pulls out the missing videotape of the victim being killed and hand it to the reporter.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by Dana Abbott.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by
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Lesson 7: Beat Sheet and High Speed Writing
ASSIGNMENT
BG’s High Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned doing this assignment: Plugging slug lines right into your outline is a great idea. Made it very easy to get a quick outline/first draft.
3. Use the High Speed Writing Rules as you create your Beat Sheet.
ACT 1:
INT. APARTMENT LOBBY — NIGHT
Opening: An unhappy-looking young man walks in. Late-twenties, medium-build. He’s a foreign- affairs Reporter for a serious weekly magazine. He finds a fat envelope in his mailbox.
INT. NEWSROOM – DAY
Reporter discusses contents with his Editor: dog-eared clippings, bad copies of what look like online bank statements, photo of a posh club in London and diplomatic cables…
Inciting Incident: It looks like a tip about a plot. Editor decides it’s worth checking out.
TE: Reporter is his usual non-committal, unsmiling self. Editor: No need to be so glum. You’ll have a great time in Europe. Just keep it cheap.
INT. APARTMENT LOBBY — NIGHT
Reporter discusses contents with a Hacker friend in London via video call.
TE: Hacker friend: Gee, money being collected for a nasty purpose? Reporter: The world is full of nasty stuff. Let’s just stick to getting a scoop.
INT. INSIDE AIRPLANE – NIGHT
Cheap flight. Reporter plugging away at his laptop.
INT. CHEAP HOTEL – NIGHT
Cheap room. Reporter plugging away at his laptop.
EXT. LONDON STREET – DAY
Turning Point: Finds the building and walks around. Huge, beautiful 18th century palace. Discrete gold sign: A Club for Patriots. Enters the Club.
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – DAY
A very friendly Hostess working at the Club spots him. He allows himself to be picked up by her. Gets job as waiter. Hostess gives him a tour.ACT 2
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – DAY
Reaction: Meets some of the staff. Has encounter with Billionaire (media mogul, head of the conspiracy).
TE: During the encounter, Reporter comes across as a polite, serious, smart waiter. Billionaire takes a shine to him — good help is so hard to find.
EXT. OUTSIDE THE CLUB – NIGHT
New Plan: Sneaks around and climbs in through an open window…
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – NIGHT
TE: Takes a dangerous and semi-illegal step: He plants a listening device in main conference room.
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – DAY
Billionaire has a status meeting with other members of the conspiracy, which includes an energy mogul. The 20 billion dollar kitty for their plan is ready.
EXT. OUTSIDE THE CLUB – DAY
New Insights: Reporter, listening in in his car, is upset. He has a phone call with his Editor.
TE: Reporter seems out of his funk: Just who are these men who feel entitled to consign so many to destruction and death for their own purposes?
INT. CIA CONFERENCE ROOM LANGLEY – DAY
Turning Point/Midpoint: Meanwhile, intelligence agencies start to suspect the Reporter and decide to alert the Billionaire via cutouts.ACT 3
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – DAY
The room is searched, but no bug is found.
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – NIGHT
New Insights: The Billionaire discusses the matter with the other members of the conspiracy.
INT. ENERGY MOGUL’S HOME OFFICE – NIGHT
The Energy Mogul hires an Assassin.
INT. HOSTESS’S BEDROOM – NIGHT
Unbeknownst to the Reporter, the Hostess protects him by throwing suspicion on his innocent Hacker friend.
INT./EXT. CIA SAFE HOUSE – DAY
Hacker gets captured and interrogated in a CIA safe house on the outskirts of a remote village near Scottish moors.
INT. CHEAP HOTEL – NIGHT
Meanwhile, Reporter, worried about his Hacker friend and getting suspicious of the Hostess, has hacked into her computer remotely, and is horrified.
INT. HOSTESS’S BEDROOM – NIGHT
Turning Point 3: Reporter confronts Hostess, who is revealed to be a German agent, also trying to stop the plot.
TE: Reporter decides to sacrifice his own safety to rescue his Hacker friend.ACT 4
INT./EXT. CIA SAFE HOUSE – NIGHT
New Plan: They break the Hacker out with an elaborate plan and help from Hostess’s contacts.
INT. CHEAP HOTEL – NIGHT
Reporter, Hacker and Hostess make plans to divert the 20 billion dollars to stop the conspiracy.
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – NIGHT
TE: The conspirators discover the money is missing — the divergence was successful. The conspiracy is terminated.
INT. BILLIONAIRE’S OFFICE – NIGHT
The Billionaire, disenchanted with the energy mogul for bringing unwelcome attention to the group, meets with the Assassin and hires him for more money to kill him instead of the Reporter.
INT. ENERGY MOGUL’S BEDROOM – DAY
The energy mogul is found dead in his bed — attributed to sudden cardiac arrest.
INT. BILLIONAIRE’S OFFICE – DAY
Climax: The Billionaire gives an interview to the Reporter to justify his worldview, to see how much he knows, and blame it all on the energy mogul.
TE: During the interview, Reporter challenges Billionaire’s worldview. The balance of power between them has changed.
INT. INSIDE THE CLUB – NIGHT
Resolution: The floor of a hidden room behind the main conference room suffers a sudden structural failure and collapses. The resulting fire from broken gas pipes destroys documents and equipment.
INT. RESTAURANT – DAY
TE: Reporter is seen smiling and animated, having dinner with Hostess/German Agent. -
What I learned from this assignment is that I can create a first draft framework that can then be followed, by focusing on fast beat sheet writing.
ACT 1:
INT. ACAPULCO HOTEL ROOM – DAY
A nice hotel suite that a family can score at a resort. Emily and her two brothers sit on the sofa and her mom folds clothes that sit atop an open suitcase. She picks up clothes off the floor. It’s a mess. Emily’s finishing a catapult and aims it at an Elf on the Shelf that sits on a ledge near her mom. The catapult collapses and the wad of paper she launched hits her mom instead of the Elf. Emily apologizes. The family heads out the door to the beach.
INT. ACAPULCO PARKING LOT – DAY
Mitzi Gain’s Goons are crammed in the back of a black van. Their blow-up water toys crowd the otherwise cramped space. As they’re sparring for space, a limo pulls up alongside them. They stop fighting. They watch the chauffeur get out of the driver’s side and walk to the back door. They vie to get out of the back of the van first.
EXT. ACAPULCO PARKING LOT – DAY
Mitzi’s thugs from the back of the van line up military style. It’s hard for them to look dignified in their black military style garb with their blow-up water floaties dangling from their waists and necks, but they try.
Meanwhile, the Chauffeur/Assistant opens the left passenger door of the limo. Out steps a plump crime boss diva who exudes a beach at night vibe. She has a bejeweled fanny pack that brims with tech gadgets. She wears strappy heeled sandals that are the last things anyone should be wearing in the sand. The footage slows like a video shot for a shampoo ad. She dramatically flips the bottom of her shortish hair with little or no impact. She stares at her gang who she expects should acknowledge her attempt to be attractive. She takes a step towards them and trips, gets up and wrestles her earring away from the blow-up water wing strapped to her left upper arm.
She inspects her crew. She orders them to go have fun.
EXT. BEACH – DAY
Mitzi and her Chauffeur/Assistant make their way to the water, her gang following close behind. As she’s barely able to walk in the sand and they’re following incredibly closely, she gestures them to go around her. They run like kids out a school’s front doors after the bell.
Meanwhile, Emily’s family walks around Mitzi. Emily notes Mitzi’s shoes and says to her mom, who wears heels to the beach? Her mom admonishes her to speak more quietly.
Mitzi hears the comment and stands taller, vowing that the comment slide-off her back.
Emily’s family find their place on the beach and lay out their towels. Emily leans down to untie her tennis shoes and when she goes to stand up she sees brownish textured linen. When she stands, she’s face to face with a gypsy woman who’s cradling the most beautiful blue-eyed chihuahua. Emily takes one look and asks if she can hold it. The gypsy woman says, “For You”. Emily takes the dog in her arms, and he licks her face. He nibbles on her ear and gently bites her hair. Emily laughs at this. The gypsy woman sees beat cops walking nearby. Emily moves her hair out of her eyes. The gypsy woman’s gone.
Emily looks around the beach and the gypsy woman’s nowhere. She takes the dog towards her towel and runs into Mitzi. Mitzi says that the dog has beautiful eyes. Did Emily know that a blue-eyed Chihuahua is incredibly rare and lucky? She’d like to buy it. Mitzi pulls out a wad of cash from her fanny pack. Emily refuses. Mitzi sees Emily’s Mom returning to their towels and decides to walk away for now. Emily heads to her towel and puts the dog in her tote bag so her mom can’t see it.
Emily builds a sandcastle with a catapult in the middle of it. While Emily’s distracted, Mitzi takes the dog from Emily’s tote bag. She’s headed towards the parking lot when Emily hears a bark. She sees the dog’s gone and tears after Mitzi.
EXT. BOARDWALK – DAY
Mitzi spills into a crowd and almost runs into beat cops. Emily tells the cops that Mitzi’s got her dog, and when asked for i.d., Mitzi hands over the dog, saying she found it.
OTHER ELEMENTS OF ACT I:
EXT. HOTEL HALLWAY – DAY
Emily returns to the hotel room with the dog. Mitzi can’t get the dog out of her mind.
INT. MITZI’S UNDERGROUND LAIR – DAY
Mitzi orders her Goons to stake out the hotel to find Emily and the dog. When they find her, Mitzi orders them to try and steal the dog. Emily’s family gets a call about something that prompts them to go home early, just as customs approves their request to take the dog home. They check out just as Mitzi’s goons pose as cleaning staff to gain entry into their room. By the time they realize that they’ve missed them, Emily, her family and the dog are on their way home.
INT. PSYCHOTHERAPY OFFICE – DAY
Mitzi’s in her therapy session. Her therapist’s tied up, as he’s there against his will. He has a sheet of paper he reads from that she’s given him. Mitzi says something that prompts him to ask a question that’s not on the paper. Mitzi sprays him with a pink water gun. She gets a call that the dog’s gone and the family’s checked out. Mitzi orders her Goons to go to the U.S. and find the dog.
EXT. RESIDENTIAL STREET – DAY
Emily’s Goons find Emily’s house and witness Emily and her family along with the dog, load into the family van. The Goons follow them to an elementary school. It’s “Take Your Pet to School Day”. The Goons let Mitzi know the dog’s at the school. Mitzi tells them to hang out and wait for the kids to leave the school and to take the dog then.
A snowstorm comes in. Emily’s mom, the principal of the school, is told that the school will need to shelter in place as the Mayor says it’s too dangerous to drive on the roads.
Mitzi’s Goons call Mitzi to tell her it’s snowing and that they should abandon the mission. She tells them that it’s a perfect scenario. Just go into the school and get the dog.
EXT. SCHOOL – DAY
Mitzi’s Goons approach the school doors. They try them. The doors are locked.
INT. PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE – DAY
Emily sees the Goons on the school security cameras. She recognizes one of them. She realizes they’re here for the dog. She tells them to make their way to the back door and to wait. She’ll let them in there.
INT. EQUIPMENT CAGE – DAY
Just inside the back doors, Emily sets up one of her contraptions. She unlocks the door for them. The contraption backfires and just makes the Goons mad.
Act 2:
New plan – Emily realizes she will need more than herself to battle the bad guys and reaches out to other kids and her mom to execute her take-down plan.
INT. SCHOOL GYM – DAY
Emily tells her siblings about the bad guys. They tell her she’s being paranoid. She begs them to look at the security footage.
INT. SCHOOL OFFICE – DAY
Emily and her siblings check out the live security camera. The only thing they see is a racoon rooting around her disheveled contraption. Her big brother tells Emily to stop obsessing about her dog so much because it’s messing with her head.
Emily retreats to sulk. Her big brother leaves. Her youngest sister hangs out near the cameras to watch the racoon. She begins to draw it. She sees the bad guys come into the frame. She yells for Emily.
INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY – DAY
Her big brother hears his sister and beelines it for the office. He sees the Goons on-camera and he yells for Emily. She arrives just as,
INT. EQUIPMENT CAGE – DAY
One of the goons with thick glasses tries to check out the raccoon.
SHORT DREAM SEQUENCE
INT. ROOM – DAY
The Goon with the thick glasses envisions the Chihuahua’s face and merges that vision with the racoon’s.
BACK TO INT. SCHOOL EQUIPMENT CAGE
INT. SCHOOL EQUIPMENT CAGE – DAY
The raccoon attacks the Goon with the thick glasses. There’s a scrappy exchange and the raccoon goes flying, and scampers away.
INT. SCHOOL OFFICE – DAY
Emily asks her brother if he believes her now. He says yes and says they needs a plan.
INT. VAN – DAY
The Goons get into the van. The Goon with the thick glasses has blood on his face. The Goons make a call to Mitzi.
INT. DOG NURSERY – DAY
Mitzi stands in a dog nursery with a flamboyant interior designer. The room’s like a baby nursery but dog-themed with a dog bed designed like a throne.
She tells the goons to keep at it and stop calling her with reports about their defeat. She wants results.
It’s really snowing hard. The Goons get out a roll of paper towels and draft a plan of attack.
INT. SCIENCE CLASSROOM – DAY
Emily and her siblings have a big piece of butcher paper on the lab counter. They start to draw a blueprint of the school. They discuss entry points to guard and a plan to take down the Goons.
They enter the School Office just as,
INT. PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE – DAY
With the door to the office open, Emily’s Mom, the Principal of the School, watches a news report about the fact that the freak storm will intensify in less than ten minutes, and then not let up for twelve hours. The kids step into the doorway. She watches the mayor tell the public to stay off the roads and shelter-in-place, and that power lines and phone lines are expected to go down. The mayor tells parents of her elementary school to not attempt to come up the hill to the school, as weather will make the trip impossible, and that the school has the resources to keep their kids safe.
The kids try to talk to their mom about what’s going on, but she tells them that she’s got too much going on and whatever they have to tell her will have to wait.
OTHER ELEMENTS OF ACT 2:
The phones go down.
Plan in action – Emily executes a multi-tier plan to thwart the bad guys. Think “Home Alone” meets an elementary school. Emily and her siblings try to draw the Goons into various traps, with only limited success.
Midpoint Turning Point – Emily realizes their plans won’t cut it. She needs to up her game. She decides to turn to other kids for ideas. She introduces her dog to her schoolmates and explains that Goons are there to steal it. Her schoolmates volunteer to help.
Act 3:
Rethink everything – Every attempt to defeat the bad guys hasn’t quite worked, but the bad guys don’t yet have the dog.
INT. MITZI’S LAIR – DAY
Mitzi decides to take matters into her own hands. She flies to the U.S.
INT. PRIVATE JET – DUSK
Mitzi takes her private jet on route to Emily’s school.
EXT. PRIVATE AIRFIELD – DUSK
Mitzi gets into a helicopter.
New plan –
INT. PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE – NIGHT
The kids watch the local news broadcast tracking Santa. The camera footage clearly shows Mitzi in the cockpit of a helicopter over their town. The kids believe that she’s coming to the school. Her younger brother, who has drawn a robotic dragon blueprint for the science fair, comes up with a way to use the robot to defeat the bad guys. Emily lays out a plan to build it. The kids form a plan to confront Mitzi from the Widow’s walk on the roof.
INT. EQUIPMENT CAGE – NIGHT
The kids go over the plan and suit up MacGyver / ninja-style.
The kids prepare their staging area near the vertical metal ladder that leads to the roof hatch.
Turning Point: Huge failure / Major shift –
EXT. ROOF – NIGHT
The hatch to the roof closes and gets stuck, locking Emily out and away from her team and the contraption.
Act 4:
Climax/Ultimate expression of the conflict –
EXT. ROOF, WIDOW’S WALK – NIGHT
In the Widow’s walk tower of the school, Emily builds a contraption with items she finds.
ELEMENTS OF ACT 4:
Resolution –
The hatch opens, and the Emily’s gang gets on the roof, along with Emily’s Chihuahua and the roof hatch gets stuck, locking them on the roof.
EXT. SANTA’S SLEIGH – NIGHT
Mitzi’s helicopter lands.
Mitzi puts her hands on Emily. The Chihuahua gets free from Emily’s sister and runs to Emily’s defense. Emily picks up the dog.
Emily’s Dad, dressed as Santa, sees a skirmish on the roof of the school and calls the cops.
EXT. ROOF – NIGHT
Mitzi goes for the dog in Emily’s arms, and the Chihuahua gets launched in the air.
Mitzi catches the dog just as
Santa’s sleigh lands
Mitzi signals her helicopter to pick her up.
In the sleigh, Santa, Emily’s missing Dad. explains he was to be held captive by the sleigh until he delivered the one outstanding Christmas present that has been impossible to deliver since the recipient lives underground. It’s for Mitzi. It’s a Chihuahua puppy. He hands it to her.
Mitzi hands over Emily’s chihuahua as Mitzi has a transformational healing.
Emily and her dad reunite.
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TIM’S HIGH SPEED BEAT SHEET – DAY 7
What I learned doing this assignment is to accept imperfection and gaps in the story for now.
Act 1:
INT. BOB’S HOUSE – DAY
Opening: Duke’s comfortable life as “man’s best friend” with his bachelor owner Bob is disrupted by the arrival of Bob’s new girlfriend and her bratty young daughter.
INT. BOB’S HOUSE – DAY
A series of quick scenes:
– Duke’s drooling grosses out Bob’s girlfriend, so he loses his spot on the couch.
– Bratty girl rides Duke like horse; he tolerates it.
– Bob’s girlfriend sneezes when Duke is near; his bed is moved to the laundry room.
– Bratty girl puts muddy feet on couch while yacking on phone, blames Duke.
– Duke catches Bratty girl stealing money and barks to alert Bob. Girl cries and says Duke attacked her.
EXT. BOB’S HOUSE – NIGHT
Duke is literally in the doghouse, which he barely fits in. It starts to rain.
EXT. BOB’S HOUSE – DAY
Inciting Incident / TE: Bob checks in on Duke before leaving for work. He’s alarmed by Duke’s behavior and for the first time, calls Duke a bad boy. After Bob leaves, Duke runs away.
EXT. TOWN – DAY
TE: Duke meets Squirrel at a trash can. Squirrel helps get food for Duke.
EXT. WOODS – DAY
Placeholder: Duke meets the pack of bad dogs, who don’t like humans.
INT. HOME – NIGHT
Placeholder: Bob worries about Duke
EXT. STREETS – DAY
Duke hangs out near road, hoping Bob will find him. When Bob drives by, his girlfriend sees Duke and distracts Bob so he won’t see him too.
EXT. WOODS – DAY
Placeholder: Debate between Squirrel and Pack about Bob wanting Duke back. Duke agrees with Squirrel but can’t crawl back to Bob, so he gets caught by Dog Catcher on purpose.
INT. DOG POUND – DAY
Turning Point: Duke learns that he’s not wanted home and that he’s been called “a bad boy”. However, he doesn’t know it was Bob’s girlfriend who said these things and Bob is unaware of Duke’s situation.
Act 2:
INT. DOG POUND – NIGHT
Placeholder: Squirrel helps Duke escape.
EXT. WOODS – DAY:
New Plan: Duke joins the Bad Pack in bad attitude and raids trash cans in town.
EXT. TOWN – DAY
Plan in action: Squirrel shows Duke where to find the good stuff (dumpster food). The Bad Pack follows them and causes such trouble that business owners call Animal Control. They barely escape.
EXT. CHINESE RESTAURANT – NIGHT
Squirrel offers wisdom to Duke about “purpose in life” but it’s a fortune from a cookie. Duke ate his.
INT. EMMA’S HOUSE – NIGHT
MEET EMMA. Emma’s parents are worried about her depression and think a pet would cheer her up. Dad is the dog catcher, so he agrees to let her pick a dog from the pound.
EXT. EMMA’S HOUSE – NIGHT
Pack plays a trick on Duke. They poop on Dog Catcher’s front step and make noise so that he comes out and steps in it. Duke is the only one there when it happens so he gets blamed.
INT. DOG POUND – DAY
Midpoint Turning Point: Strike 2 for Duke. He’s warned that one more return to the pound will be his last. But Emma surprises everyone by choosing Duke to adopt…against the advice of her father.
Act 3:
INT. EMMA’S BEDROOM – NIGHT
Rethink everything: Duke see pictures of Emma before she lost her leg – playing sports, skiing, happy. He sees how she now struggles with just one leg and a prosthetic. His heart begins to thaw.
EXT. WOODS – DAY
PLACEHOLDER: something happens with the dog pack causing more trouble – threatening Squirrel?
EXT. EMMA’S YARD – DAY
Placeholder: Squirrel brings Chinese food to Duke; more wisdom from fortune cookies.
EXT. STREETS – DAY
TE: Walking with Emma, the Pack creates diversion so Duke can escape but he chooses to stay.
EXT. EMMA’S HOUSE – DAY
New plan: Duke talks with Squirrel in the yard. He promises again to help reunite her with her family, but he has to be careful not to break house rules. Emma sees them talking and is bemused.
EXT. EMMA’S YARD – DAY
TE: Dilemma – does Duke risk all to help Squirrel find his family?
EXT. TOWN – DAY
On a walk with Emma, Duke follows the scent of flowers that leads to Squirrel’s family. The Bad Pack arrives to hassle Squirrel and Duke accidentally knocks over Emma. Her father sees it all.
EXT. TOWN – DAY
Turning Point: Huge failure / Major shift: Emma’s father takes Duke to pound. This is strike 3 for him.
Act 4:
EXT. PARK – DAY
Squirrel has happy reunion with family. She climbs the tree to their nest, her fear of heights gone. She notices Duke’s wanted poster in the nest material. She grabs it and runs off.
EXT. PARK – LATER
Emma cries over the thought of losing Duke forever. Squirrel drops the poster at her feet. She picks it up and understands immediately. She pulls out her cell phone and dials.
EXT. DOG POUND – DAY
Climax/Ultimate expression of the conflict: Dog Pack attacks Emma’s father, thinking Duke will join them to free himself, but he defends Emma’s father and defeats the pack leader by tricking him into a cage. The other dogs seem happy to have Duke as the new leader of the pack.
EXT. DOG POUND – LATER
TE: Bob and Emma show up at same time and Duke runs to Emma, who hugs him and cries because she thinks she’s losing him. Bob approaches Duke and explains how he missed him and was looking for him. He calls Duke “good boy” and Duke licks his hand.
EXT. EMMA’S HOUSE – DAY
Resolution: Duke is a part of Emma’s happy family. The Squirrel family visits and watches Duke and Emma play as she talks excitedly about skiing again.
Closing Scene: The Pack walks by on the sidewalk, led by an older couple who adopted them. They are clean, comically coifed, and loving the attention.
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Jess’s High-Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned doing this assignment: How to do a quick, usable version of the plot outline. After this I can break down the Acts further and add some more scenes and details, but the basic structure is getting solid.
Act 1:
INT. COURTROOM — DAY
Opening: Olivia is introduced in court as a psychiatrist who has written a theoretical book about hypnotherapy. She testifies that the defendant was hypnotically induced by Fox TV to attack the Capitol.
INT. OLIVIA’S APARTMENT — NIGHT
In private, she hires a sex partner for her physical needs in order to avoid emotional attachment to anyone.
INT. OLIVIA’S OFFICE- DAY
Inciting Incident: Secret Service Agent Bryan Bowen tells Olivia the First Lady has been murdered. He hires Olivia to analyze the claimants.
INT. POLICE FACILITY — NIGHT
Olivia helps Bowen determine that none of the people confessing did the killing.
INT. OLIVIA’S APARTMENT — MORNING
Turning Point: Olivia gets a call from Will, her one-time lover and the President’s Chief-of-Staff; he asks her to come to the White House.
Act 2:
EXT./INT. WHITE HOUSE — DAY
New plan: Olivia is overwhelmed by the White House. Davis asks her to treat the President.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — DAY
Olivia begins cautiously; using conventional therapy on Munson. He overwhelms her.
INT. EAST WING — EVENING
Olivia emerges from her first sessions with Munson shaken. Davis gives her a brief rundown of procedures and a tour of the area she’s allowed.
INT. DAVIS’S APARTMENT — NIGHT
Olivia falls back into her old love affair with Davis. He convinces her to stay.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — EVENING
Plan in action: The President blames himself for his wife’s murder. He confesses he was drunk and drugged, he suspected she was having an affair, he entered her apartment and found the knife in his hand.
INT. EAST WING — DAY
Midpoint Turning Point: When Bowen confront Olivia with video both of her failures with Munson and her affair with Davis, Olivia goes to Munson’s quarters to resign.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — DAY
Munson begs her to stay, she succumbs to his need and sleeps with him.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — NIGHT
In the early hours, she wakes up hearing a voice. She searches for it, but it stops.
Act 3:
INT. EAST WING —DAY
Rethink everything: Olivia decides Bowen is wire-tapping her sessions with Munson and speaks to Munson.
INT. BOWEN’S CONTROL ROOM — DAY
Munson demands Bowen shut down the surveillance. Bowen grudgingly removes the bugs but secretly leaves one camera and one mic.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — EVENING
New plan: Olivia begins hypnotherapy on Munson.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — NIGHT
Olivia awakens again, hearing voices.
INT. DAVIS’S APARTMENT — DAY
Olivia goes to Davis to tell him about the voice. Bowen has sent Davis a video of Olivia and Munson in bed. Davis fires her.
INT. OVAL OFFICE — DAY
Munson castigates Davis and demands he rehire Olivia.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — EVENING
During a hypnotherapy session, Munson vaguely suggests he has killed a woman he raped while in college.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — NIGHT
Turning Point: Olivia awakens, again hearing voices.
Act 4:
INT. INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — DAY
Climax/Ultimate expression of the conflict: Olivia enlists Davis’s aid in finding the bug.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — DAY
Bowen arrives to ask why they are in Munson’s room. Olivia and Davis confront him with the two bugs he left and the recorder that played the voice. Bowen admits to the Secret Service bugs but confiscates the recorder along with them.
INT. OVAL OFFICE — DAY
Davis tells Munson about the bugs and blames Bowen.
INT. OVAL OFFICE — DAY
Munson explodes at Bowen.
INT. CONFERENCE ROOM — DAY
Davis tells the staff and hints about the 25th Amendment.
INT. BOWEN’S OFFICE IN TREASURY DEPARTMENT— DAY
Bowen listens to the recording that played in Munson’s office.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — DAY
Olivia makes an excuse to spend the night at her apartment.
INT. JEFFERSON MEMORIAL — DAY
Bowen asks Olivia to meet him. Olivia asks Bowen what Munson’s movements were the night of the First Lady’s murder. Bowen lies, knowing they are being recorded, but slips a note into her hand during an awkward handshake.
INT. DAVIS’S APARTMENT — NIGHT
Olivia makes love to Davis, then, while telling him Munson may be psychotic, gets him to whisper the words they heard on the recording “You killed them. You killed the First Lady”. She secretly records his voice.
INT. BOWEN’S OFFICE IN TREASURY DEPARTMENT — DAY
Olivia takes her recording to Bowen. He matches it to the voice in the night. He heads for the White House and calls Olivia.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — EVENING
Olivia goes to see Munson, but Davis is there already. The call from Bowen comes in, and Olivia exposes Davis as the voice on the recorder. Davis reveals that Munson has been a rapist and murderer, but Munson says he didn’t kill his wife. Davis surreptitiously latches the door.
EXT. STREETS OF WASHINGTON, D.C. — EVENING
Bowen tears across town to the White House and smashes his car through the barrier.
INT. BOWEN’S CONTROL ROOM — EVENING
Pursued into the West Wing, he demands to know where Davis was last seen. The Secret Service take him to the control room — cameras show Davis entering Munson’s Rooms.
INT. MUNSON’S ROOMS — EVENING
Davis admits he killed the First Lady when he realized Munson was planning to push her for the next presidential ticket instead of Davis. Munson tells them he would never have backed Davis as a presidential candidate. Davis vituperatively tells Munson how he cuckolded him with the First Lady repeatedly. Munson goes berserk; Davis shoots him but Munson kills him with a pair of scissors. Munson begs Olivia to back him up, but Bowen arrives and tries to break in the door with his men. Munson tells him to leave. Olivia says she will have to tell the world about his crimes. Munson attacks her, but she stabs him with the scissors as he strangles her. Bowen and his men break the door down just in time to see Olivia fall, sobbing, and Munson crash to the floor with the scissors in his neck.
INT. COURTROOM — DAY
Resolution: Olivia admits guilt, but in self-defense. Bowen’s testimony is useless to her, since all the cameras and wiretaps were removed and . She is convicted of murdering Munson. She declares she would do it again. Olivia’s life is in ruins, but she accepts her sentence bravely. She knows she did the right thing.
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<i style=””>Daniela’s High Speed Beat Sheet
I learned my main character and antagonist needed simpler motivations to act.
Opening: Michael is at a cattle auction, his cows win the grand price, he drinks a LOT
INT. LIVESTOCK AUCTION/STABLES. DAY
Michael wins the grand price for the best cow. Michael hugs everyone around him
INT. LIVESTOCK AUCTION/SHOWROOM. NIGHT
Michael is drinking. Cowboys are bidding for Michael’s cows. Leo, a restaurant owner, outbids everyone. Michael’s cows go for a large sum of money. He celebrates.
Inciting Incident: While drunk, Michael gables his estate and loses.
INT. LIVESTOCK AUCTION. NIGHT
Michael is gambling with Leo. He puts the keys to his ranch on the table. Leo wins.
Turning Point: The new owner of his estate comes to collect and offer him a deal. If he can infiltrate a vegan commune that keeps holding animal rights protests and figure out where they get their money, he will get his estate back. Michael agrees. He arrives the next day in vegan cosplay.
INT. MICHAEL’S BEDROOM. DAY
Michael wakes up drunk to the sound of someone banging on the door.
EXT. MICHAEL’S HOUSE. DAY
Leo comes to collect. Michael offers some ideas, but Leo has something else in mind. Tells Leo a group of animal activists keep coming to his restaurants to deter costumers from going inside. If Michael can figure out how they finance themselves, he will have his ranch back. Michael agrees.
Reaction: He shows up at the vegan commune. Tries to get insight about the financing of the place. Nobody really looks at him. Gets shut down.
INT. MICHAEL’S OFFICE. DAY
Michael goes online to look for the animal group. Sees them throwing blood at a restaurant. Freak out. Calls Leo, offers him more options. Leo says no.
EXT. VEGAN COMMUNE. DAY
Michael goes in costume to the vegan commune. When he gets there, a guy asks him if he is there for the protest, Michael says yes. He is given a sign and pushed into a bus. There is a goat on the bus.
INT. BUS. DAY
Michael meets Violet. She is the group leader, and is telling everyone about the plan. They are going to Leo’s restaurant and making graffiti.
EXT. LEO’S RESTAURANT. DAY
The bus parks on the curbside, everyone comes out wearing a mask. Michael gets out and sees Violet spray paint “Murder” on the sidewalk. A siren is heard, Michael is pushed inside the bus.
INT. VEGAN COMMUNE/LIVING HALL/ NIGHT
People get of f the bus and into a hall. Everyone is celebrating. Michael tries to get close to Violet, she laughs at him for freezing during the protest. Tells him he will get better at it soon. Michael asks a guy if there is a place, gets shown some hammocks.
Turning Point 2: He tries to pretend to be an animal rights activist and vegan and connect with Violet, the leader. She doesn’t give him the light of day.
EXT. COMUNAL SHOWERS. DAY
Michael wakes up to a goat trying to eat his hair. Notices Violet walking towards the showers. Takes of his shirt and walks inside.
INT. COMUNAL SHOWERS. DAY
Violet looks at Michael coming in shirtless and keeps going.
EXT. COMMUNE’S KITCHEN. DAY
Michael tries to cook with the vegetables available. Violet walks in and laughs. Tells him to move, and starts cooking.
EXT. VEGAN COMMUNE/LIVING HALL/ NIGHT
Michael starts talking about the moon and stars. Violet comes in and tells him he has it all wrong, points to the correct planets.
New Plan: He actually tries to connect with people. Offers help with animals. Actually tries to fit in. Gives them good ideas. Violet notices him and they start working together.
INT. VEGAN COMMUNE/LIVING HALL/ DAY
Michael asks about the goat he has seen running around, gets told they have a stable.
INT. STABLE. DAY
Michael walks into the stable. The place is a mess, there are animals and poop everywhere. He offers to help, gets left alone.
INT. STABLE. NIGHT
Violet walks into the stable. All the poop is gone and the animals are sorted. She asks Michael how he did it. He tells her he grew up on a ranch and is good with animals. Violet explains the animals are her rescue project, but she has no idea how to care for them. Michael offers to help, tells her he isn’t going anywhere.
INT. VEGAN COMMUNE/LIVING HALL/ DAY
Violet sits next to Michael at breakfast, asks him about the animals. He tells her he needs some supplies. She tells him to make a list.
INT. STABLE. NIGHT
Violet comes in with the supplies Michael asks. He tells her its a lot, he would have helped. She says not to worry about money. She explains she became a vegan after her dad kept killing her “pets”. She promised no more pets would die like that. He tells her he used to be a rancher apologizes for the pain he caused indirectly. Violet kisses him.
New Insights: Michael and Violet get intimate. Michael learns how they make money. Also, he learns the guy that has his farm is Violet’s dad.
INT. STABLES DAY
Violet asks Michael to follow her.
EXT. PLANTATION. DAY
Violet shows Michael the weed plantation, explains that’s how they survive.
INT. VIOLET’S ROOM. NIGHT
Michael tells Violet she has too many enemies, she should look for safer business endeavors, like a mini zoo and cooking classes. Violet laughs with the ideas, then tells him not to worry and kisses him. They have sex.
INT. VIOLET’S ROOM. DAY
Violet tells Michael about how her dad traumatized her, and why she got away and built the commune. Michael tells her he doesn’t have a family, his abandoned him that’s why he worked so hard to get his estate. She tells him he has a family now.
Turning Point 3: The guy that has his estate comes to collect information. Threatens Michael. Violet sees the interchange. Michael confesses, gets kicked out of the commune.
INT. STABLES. DAY
Michael gets a call from Leo. Michael tells him he needs more time. Leo tells him they need to meet in person, Michael tells him he can do it at the next protest. Violet overhears.
EXT. VEGAN COMMUNE. DAY
People are getting into a bus to the protest. Michael is very prepared this time. Violet tells him he doesn’t need to go. He says he is excited to go.
EXT. LEO’S RESTAURANT DAY
Michael sneaks off in the protest to talk to Leo. Violet follows him. Leo gives Michael an ultimatum.
INT. STABLES. DAY
Violet confronts Michael. Michael tells her the truth. She tells him Leo is her dad and kicks him out of the commune.
Climax: Michael refuses to give information, loses his ranch.
INT. MICHAEL’S BEDROOM. DAY
Michael is lying down. Leo pounds the door.
EXT. MICHAEL’S HOUSE. DAY
Michael walks out with his bags, gives Leo the keys to his ranch.
Resolution: Violet hears what Michael did, runs to find him. Welcomes him back to the commune
INT. LEO’S RESTAURANT. DAY
Violet comes in, tells Leo they need to make a pact. Leo will stop sending people after her, she will stop targeting his restaurants. Leo asks who she figured out, she says Michael. Leo tells her that he lost his estate before telling him anything. HE is collecting his thing
INT. MICHAEL’S STABLES. DAY
Violet sees Michael crying while cleaning his animals. She tells him, she has a place for them, there is only a nasty goat to annoy them. They should all go home with her. Michael agrees and rides home with Violet and his animals.
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Lori’s High-Speed Beat Sheet
What I learned from this assignment is to keep moving forward even though I don’t have it all figured out yet.
Act 1:
EXT. QUANT SMALL TOWN AT CHRISTMAS TIME – DAY
Opening – Introduce the main characters as a small town prepares for Christmas. Pastor Thomas seems distraught.
INT. /EXT. PASTOR THOMAS’ OFFICE – DAY
Inciting Incident – The phone rings. A member of the church dies in an accident. Through the window of his office, Thomas sees a happy couple. Then a mysterious man gets his attention. The man seems to upset him.
INT. HOSPITAL – DAY
Turning Point – Thomas says that death has won again and is unable to comfort a grieving family.<div>
Act 2:
INT./EXT. THOMAS’ HOUSE
A small group gathers in Thomas’ home to help him decorate his tree and mantle for Christmas. Once everyone leaves, Thomas removes all the decorations and shoves the decorated tree into a coat closet. Miriam comes back to Thomas’ house with her yearly traditional pie gift, and Thomas refuses to accept it, which upsets her. Miriam and Thomas have a heart to heart, but Thomas isn’t honest with her. Thomas prays when he hears a siren in the distance.
INT./EXT. STORE
New plan – He will make sure one impoverished family has a perfect Christmas even though he won’t be. So he shops for food for a Christmas feast and toys for their children.
Act 3:
EXT. FAMILY’S HOME
Plan in action – He crosses boundaries and is asked to stop helping. The father of the impoverished family is embarrassed and wants to provide for his own family.
INT. /EXT. CHURCH – DAY
Thomas’ misplaced anger hurts his friends. Midpoint Turning Point – Thomas spirals downward into depression and isolates himself. Rethink everything – He can’t go on this way. New plan – He will try to pretend that everything is okay. Turning Point: Huge failure / Major shift – Pretending nearly destroys him. Christmas seems to be falling apart.
Act 4:
INT. THOMAS’ HOME – NIGHT
Climax/Ultimate expression of the conflict – Thomas is brought to the end of himself and pleads with God. He is honest with his friends about his feelings.
INT. CHURCH – DAY
Resolution – Hope is restored by Christmas day when Thomas gives a sermon about the hope of Christmas.
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