Screenplay - Draft #3

Lost

Dominic Griffiths

FADE UP:

INT. DAY. GREY OVERCAST. COLD DOMESTIC LIGHTING. NO MUSIC. AMBIENT SOUND OF QUIET HOUSE WITH INFREQUENT PASSING CARS AND SIRENS IN THE DISTANCE. THE DISTANT SOUND OF ONE CONTINOUS SYNTH BASS BEGINS PLAYING. OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT SIX SHOTS IT SLOWLY GETS LOUDER.

Close up shot. Slow pan across a dark marble dust covered mantel piece.

Cut to a close up shot of the frame of a detailed mirror. A slow pan at the same speed moves up the detailing of the frame.

Cut to a close up shot of a shelf filled with mugs. Slowly panning, parallel with the shelf, past the multiple mugs with various touristy prints. Including ‘Findhorn, Scotland’, ‘Orlando, Florida’, ‘Niagara Falls, New York’.

Cut to a close up shot of a white marbled drawer top. The shot begins with focus on a pot with an almost dead orchid. Slowly panning past the orchid and on to a series of family photos. All the photos however have each face blurred out. 

Cuts to a static establishing long shot of an empty Edwardian house style hall. On one side of the hall are stairs upwards. On the left side, the hall continues. One pair of shoes are set neatly against the wall on the right side of the shot. Introducing the voice of LAURA in the distance.

LAURA: Anyway, so now Claire wants to come with us to the party after-

Cuts to a close-up profile of a mixed-race MAN, appearing to be in his early fifties. You can see he is a wearing a plain shirt with a dark green woollen jumper over the top. This shot begins already slightly blurred. The shot continues to become more and more blurry as the volume of LAURA’s dialogue increases along with the introduction of a ringing ear sound effect and static.

- I asked her three weeks ago if she wanted to car share and she said “No”. And now our car is full because I offered my sister a lift and I can’t pull out on my sister especially after our argument about commitment to plans last week. 

After LAURA has finished her line and the other SFX have reached a climax, all the sound cuts out suddenly leaving just the ambient sound of the house. Along with the sound, the clarity of the shot returns and you can see MAN perfectly for the first time.

LAURA: Are you listening to me?

MAN: (Continuing to stare forward) Yes, yes. Party at 19:00.

DAUGHTER: Dad?

LAURA continues on her tangent as the MAN continues to look out.

LAURA: (Said less than a millisecond after DAUGHTER’s ‘Dad?’) So, what am I supposed to do now Clai-

MAN blinks suddenly and looks downwards. The shot pans down slightly with him onto a shot of two mugs sitting on a counter. One of the mugs has a polka dot design. The other is slightly turned away, however you are able to make out ‘Number 1 Gra’

MAN: -Coffee?

LAURA: Please, you know how I feel about interrupting. 

Cuts to a midshot of DAUGHTER on the other side of the kitchen in the forefront of the shot. She appears to be in her thirties and is wearing a light blue shirt with a smart black jacket over the top. She has a similar complexion to her father, with dark her that is tied in a neat bun. In the back of the shot is LAURA, however she is blurred out, and all you can make it is a light floral dress and a lighter complexion and dark blonde hair. 

DAUGHTER: For me please.

A distant 0.2second exert of ‘Wish Someone Would Care’ by Irma Thomas plays, accompanied by a crackling record noise, sounding as if it came from another floor or the neighbours. As this occurs we cut to the prior profile shot of MAN as he looks up suddenly.

MAN: Did you hear that?

DAUGHTER: What?

The same 0.2s combination plays again. Cut to a close up, parallel with the surface, of the now full mugs. MAN’s hands reach into pick them up, however, these hands appear much older and wrinkled.

LAURA: And we’ve got to sort out the frame for the present as well.

Cut to the same midshot of DAUGHTER with LAURA blurred in the back. MAN turns around and converses, still holding the two mugs.

LAURA: Did you find the photos of them because we’ve got to get that sorted by tonight?

MAN: I’ll go get them now.

DAUGHTER: Get what?

MAN: The photos from the attic.

LAURA: I asked you last week. And you also need to go get the frames.

MAN hands over the polka dot mug to DAUGHTER.

MAN: Yes sir. (Winking)

Cut to midshot of DAUGHTER against the counter, smiling.

DAUGHTER: (She wraps her hands fully around the mug) Cheers Dad.

Cut to a midshot of MAN as he passes the camera, into the hall. The camera turns to see the MAN turn a corner into the hall.

Cut to same hall wide shot as before. You see MAN walk towards the camera and turn at the banner of the stares and begin to walk up them.

Cut to a profile shot of his head as he walks up the stairs. The camera moves with him perfectly level and smooth. He passes three family photos on the stairwell behind him. Once the camera approaches the top of the stairs the camera movement slows down and he walks out of the shot, coming to rest on the final picture of an elderly man with DAUGHTER.

Cut to a wide shot of his full body from behind. He is in another hall, similarly plain. In the ceiling is a square hatch. MAN reaches up and pulls down the hatch from which a ladder unfolds, letting out a small grunt as he reaches.

DAUGHTER (raised voice from downstairs): I’m off now, you gonna be ok?

MAN (unfolding the stairs down): Don’t worry about me, I’ve got Laura to protect me.

Beat

He begins to climb up ladder.

LAURA (raised voice from downstairs): Careful

DAUGHTER: (Slight wavering in ‘Ok’) Ok dad, be safe.

Sound of front door closing.

Cut to shot level with the ground in the dark attic, as the MAN’s hands come into shot, wrapped around the side of the hatch as to pull himself up. He pulls himself up more, with just his head in shot. His hand reaches up to a light cord, as he pulls it, the click matches to the following cut.

A completely black shot at first, followed by a rustling sound. The lid is lifted of the top of the camera – realising that the camera is inside of a cardboard box. As his hand reaches in towards the camera cut to close-up, over the shoulder, pulling out a knackered black photo album. He begins to flip through the album.

Cut to a static close-up of an old developed photo of a man in a garden with his face blurred out. Cut to similar picture, except man is now looking down at a baby crawling into the frame of the photograph, except face blurred out. Cut to another picture, of a house. A quiet undistinguishable bus horn begins to build.

A midshot from the front, showing his face, suddenly look up as bus horn suddenly jumps in volume. He begins to squint his eyes as a warm light, turning white, increases in brightness more and more, along with the sound of the horn and other road ambient sounds getting louder.

As the noise reaches climax it cut to a wide shot of a bus passing by a bus stop. Shot frames the bus stop with MAN standing centred in it. Natural volume of the roadside ambient sound still present.

Another bus passes. Before the bus has finished passing by it cuts to a graphic match of the doors of a super market opening, wide shot, with MAN once again centred between the doors. INTERIOR DAY.

Cut to a shot panning smoothly across the aisles of the supermarket, with the MAN walking along the aisles at the other end of the aisle. The camera rests as the MAN walks down the aisle towards the camera. The camera mirrors this, smoothly going down the aisle towards the MAN. The camera curves round to an over the shoulder shot as he pulls a frame from the shelf. It falls to rest on the side of his body at a midshot, looking down at the frame. 

Cut to midshot of him as ‘Wish someone would care’ plays over the supermarket speakers. He looks up. Cut to close-up shot of one of the speakers. Cut to a close-up shot of another of the speakers. Cut to same mid-shot of MAN staring up, in a different direction. In the back of the shot you see a woman in her late 40s, white, casual clothing and a trench coat style jacket on.

FRIEND: Hi. Hello? Are you alright? (muffled)

MAN turns to woman. Cut to mid-shot, on the profile of the MAN looking to FRIEND, angled towards the camera. The music cuts, and so does the muffling, return to ambient super market sound.

MAN: Yes, sorry, in my own world.

Cut to mid-shot on FRIEND

FRIEND: Don’t be silly, how are you doing?

Cut to mid-shot of MAN

MAN: Good, just doing some house chores.

Return to shot of FRIEND.

FRIEND: It’s so nice to see you out and about.

Cut to mid-shot of MAN

MAN (laughing uncomfortably): I try

Return to mid-shot of FRIEND, as she reaches to rub his arm, the camera follows acting as a point of view as he looks down at where she is rubbing her arm, and then back up to her smiling face.

FRIEND: How are you getting on at home?

Cut to mid-shot of MAN

MAN (laughing): LAURA’s not that bad.

Cut to mid-shot of FRIEND

The FRIEND’s face drops discreetly and she looks down for a moment and then back up.

FRIEND: Yes, of course. 

Focus is drawn from the FRIEND to the speaker on the ceiling in the background. The supermarket announcement speaker, static plays mixed with a tiny portion of barely recognizable music, ‘Wish someone would care’, followed by a normal staff announcement ‘Please can – come to check out 3’. The FRIEND continues to talk about something. As a heavy bass begins to grow, the camera zooms in smoothly onto the shelfs in the background of the shot as the items on the shelves start to vibrate more and more aggressively.

FRIEND:(muffled) Are you alright?

Cut to mid-shot of MAN’s face staring, as the bottles and items behind him begin falling off the shelf.

Cut to mid-shot of WOMAN with the items behind her falling off also. The items closer and closer to the WOMAN begin falling off.

Cut to mid-shot of MAN as he looks downwards. Cut to close up on the frame in his hand. With the bass still growing, and the supermarket speaker system becoming more and more erratic, the POV shot sees the MAN’s hands beginning to shake aggressively, as he drops it on the ground the shot goes into slow motion. As it is about to hit the ground, speed up to normal volume, and have regular roadside ambient noise return as it cuts to a wide shot of MAN in his doorway, with the frame landing on the floor and smashing.

MAN: Shit.

MAN rings the doorbell. Cut to a POV shot, as he bends down to pick up the glass. However, the hands, once again, are an older man’s hands. Picking up the glass. Return to the long shot again as he rings the doorbell again. You hear the sound of the letter box opening as he looks through it.

Cut to a static long shot from inside the house, metres away from the front door, you can see him peering through the letterbox. SFX of ambient ‘silence’.

Cut to Close up shot. Slow pan across a dark marble dust covered mantel piece, you can slightly make out the bottom of some birthday cards reading 75^th.

Cut to a close up shot of the frame of a detailed mirror. A slow pan at the same speed moves up the detailing of the frame.

Cut to a close up shot of a shelf filled with worn out mugs. Slowly panning, parallel with the shelf, past the multiple mugs with various touristy prints. Including ‘Findhorn, Scotland’, ‘Orlando, Florida’, ‘Niagara Falls, New York’.

Cut to a close up shot of a white marbled drawer top. The shot begins with focus on a pot with an almost dead orchid. Slowly panning past the orchid and on to a series of family photos. The faces in the photos are no longer blurred out.

We return to the shot of the MAN at the letterbox, he slightly raises his head to put his mouth by the letterbox as he shouts.

MAN: Hello. Laura?

Halfway through LAURA it will switch to the same interior shot of the door, with the MAN on the inside of the house finishing the line, as he closes the door. He walks towards the camera calling out again, as it cuts to the interior of the kitchen.

MAN (Calling out):  Laura?

The camera follows the MAN as he leaves the kitchen and goes into the front room. Continuing to follow him as he leaves the front room and begins to go up the stairs. We return to the slow panning shot from the beginning with the frames along the stares. However, now in the reflection of the glass of the frame is an old MAN. Subtle.

MAN: Laura?

As he finishes that 

We cut to an interior shot of the front room. You hear the light footsteps on the stairs getting louder for a moment until the MAN turns into the room. This is all seen through the reflection of a mirror, placed on a wall ahead of the door. Therefore, as he enters, you see his actual figure move to the right of the camera. He goes to pick up the landline from a table to the right and stands in front of the mirror, by the MANtelpiece. It stays on this shot as you see him look down towards the phone and type in a phone number. 

As you hear the ringing begin and he holds the phone up to his ear, the shot cuts to a close up of the MANtelpiece from below the MAN. With the MAN in the left corner of the shot and the focus on cards in the front of the shot, the focus quickly switches from the cards to the MAN. However, you may be able to make out ‘happy 80^th’ on the inside of some of the cards.

As the ringing cuts to a FRIEND’s voice on the phone of a voicemail the camera look over the shoulder of the MAN.

Daughter: Sorry I’m not at the phone right now, leave a message although I’m not amazing at checking.

Operator: Leave a message after the tone.

A tone plays.

MAN:Insert daughter’s name is LAURA with you? I just went out and came back and now I can’t find her anywhere – Is she ok? Please call me back? 

MAN puts his phone down on the MANtel piece and looks into the mirror. He catches eyes with a grey hair on his head, he grips onto it and jolts his hand to pull it out. In this moment, there is a flash of the old MAN in the exact same position.

The focus on this shot shifts. In the reflection, you see a record player come into focus. A small light on it switches on and it appears to turn on by itself as the crackling of a needle begins to play. The song ‘Wish Someone Would Care’ by Irma Thomas begins to play, originally diegetically, then as the focus is drawn back to the MAN’s neutral face, the sound switches to non-diegetic.

During this ten second hold on the MAN’s face there would be a few 0.2s cuts in which two versions of the MAN would be super-imposed over each other, in the same position as prior. Both shots would have their speeds distorted and would show the MAN screaming and contorting his face. In the background of these three 0.2 second shots would be the same ringing and static sound from the beginning.

Upon the final shot ending the music on the record would cut off and the MAN would turn over his shoulder to look at the record player.

Cut to a POV shot of the record player without any light on or movement.

Cut back to the same shot of the MAN looking over his shoulder. The MAN turns around and walks out of the room. 

Cut to a static CCTV angled shot of the empty kitchen. The sound of the MAN gets louder as he walks down the hall towards it.

MAN: What should we have for dinner then Lau?

Cut to a close up of his face as he looks around and sees that she is not there.

A phone ringing is heard from the other room.

As the MAN turns to exit the kitchen he shouts, however, not in a worried tone.

MAN: LAURA?