MENU BAR

What I'm Working On Now

Three short films are in Post-Production, soon to be submitting to film festivals.
Producing/editing a pilot for a new web-series inspired by the Alice in Wonderland tales.
Producing/editing a documentary on Gene Roddenberry and the genesis of Star Trek The Original Series.
There are a number of other projects in development, just waiting their turn to be produced.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

SHORT STORY: AMERICAN REAPER Script

Here's a screenplay for a mockumentary I would love to see finished. An attempt was made a while back but technical difficulties made it unwatchable. Have you ever seen any mockumentaries? If so, which ones? If not, why not?

NOTE: V.O. means Voice Over, O.S. means Off Screen, (CONT.) means the character's line is continued following some action, words in all caps are props or sound FX or a character's first appearance. INT. means interior, EXT. means exterior. Pan, Tilt, Shift Focus, are all camera directions. Any other questions, feel free to ask.

American Reaper
By
Gabriel C. Taylor

1 INT. OFFICE - DAY 1

Credits Begin
Close on Office wall. Pan across CALENDER, PHOTO-BOOTH PICTURE STRIP of Death and young woman, PLAYING CARD, other assorted ITEMS.

INTERVIEWER V.O.
What do people say when you tell
them what you do?

Close on desk, littered with PAPERWORK. Pan across revealing messy stacks of SPREADSHEETS, SCHEDULES and OBITUARIES in either the IN-BOX or OUT-BOX.

DEATH V.O.
Everyone thinks I’m joking, so they
try to be funny. You know, it’s a
living...Someone’s got to do
it...You can make a killing in that
line of work...I’ve heard them
all...

Continue panning across the desk to reveal a computer with a black keyboard. The screen saver is on, "R.I.P."

INTERVIEWER V.O.
But you’re not joking, are you?

DEATH V.O.
(serious)
No...I’m not.

Finish pan on a COFFEE MUG displaying the words "Worlds Best Reaper", "#1 Reaper", something to that effect. Or a NAMEPLATE: DEATH BLACK
Credits End

2 EXT. BUSY SIDEWALK - DAY 2

DEATH stands still in a sea of people, all of whom are rushing about (time lapse, blur?). Even though the mans face looks young (30’s), he has streaks of gray in his hair around his temples. This man is Death. Close on Death as his head snaps to the side and (slow motion) watches a woman walk by. Death SNAPS his fingers and a counter appears above her head, counting down. The counter reads as Year:Month:Day. i.e. 45:11:8 means 45 years, 11 months and 8 days.

DEATH V.O.
It starts with a feeling...usually.
Then I start looking around, and
when I see who it is, it’s like
electricity.

Death follows the woman and taps her shoulder and the
counter turns white. She continues on, glancing back only
briefly.

INTERVIEWER V.O.
So you just show up when
it’s...time?

3 INT. SUPERMARKET - DAY 3

Death is walking down the isles, pushing an empty cart looking at people as he goes. Death comes up to a pregnant woman and SNAPS his fingers. A counter appears above both her head and her pregnant belly. Both have lots of time remaining.

DEATH V.O.
Well, I try to catch people before
then if I can, make things easier
for me. But It’s an individual
thing, you know, when they’re
ready.

Death pats the woman on the shoulder and she smiles. Death walks on, SNAPS his fingers again and the counters disappear.

4 EXT. CEMETERY - DAY 4

Death walks among rows of headstones with the Interviewer at his side. Death waits for no man and presses forward. The Interviewer is eager to do his work. This is the interview of all interviews. He looks like he’s walked out of a 1970’s news room in his blue/gray suit

INTERVIEWER
Now, you have to reap every soul?

DEATH
Every soul.

INTERVIEWER
And you’ve been doing this since
the dawn of time?

DEATH
More or less, yeah. It’s a full
time job.

INTERVIEWER
Do you ever get overwhelmed by it
all?

DEATH
How so?

They come to a WWII veteran’s marker.

INTERVIEWER
Take for instance major events,
like wars and natural disasters.
How do you handle those?

5 EXT. WAR - DAY 5

Stock footage of combat. Stock footage of mass graves Counters above each soldier change rapidly as they move, gaining or losing time with each step.

DEATH V.O.
It gets...complicated. My In-Box
explodes, names get lost or
mislabeled. It’s a filing
nightmare.

6 EXT. CEMETERY - DAY 6

DEATH walks among the headstones. The INTERVIEWER follows,
holding the microphone, trying to catch Death’s responses.

INTERVIEWER
What do you do?

Death pauses at one of the headstones, SNAPS his fingers and checks the counter over the grave. It reads in the negatives.

DEATH
This.

Death pats the headstone and the counter fades away.

DEATH (CONT.)
It’s an awful mess. I work myself
to death and it can still take,
weeks, months, years even to clean
things up.

INTERVIEWER
Have you ever tried just cutting
your losses and letting them go
un-Reaped?

Death stops and pats another headstone.

DEATH
Once, briefly.

Death shudders.

INTERVIEWER
And what happened?

Death resumes walking.

DEATH
(darkly)
Oh it was terrible. People...so
many people...thrashing and
screeching. It spread to the living
before I could stop it. It’s mostly
under control now. Though it still
crops up in movies.

INTERVIEWER
You mean...zombies?

DEATH
(startled/shocked)
Disco.

7 INT. CONCERT - NIGHT 7

Stock Footage of people singing and dancing during the height of the age of Disco. Lights flash and a man in a white suit does a solo dance number.

DEATH V.O.
So after that I knew I had to be
more responsible.

8 INT. SANTA’S CORNER IN THE MALL - DAY 8

CHILDREN are lined up, waiting to see Santa. A BOY is butting his way to the front. Death sits in a Santa suit, the Interviewer at his side in the Elf suit. Children are lined up to sit on Santa’s lap. The Interviewer is noticeably uncomfortable with the situation. The boy, now at the front of the line, gets up on Death's lap. Death SNAPS his fingers and checks his time.
DEATH (CONT.)
Have you been a good boy this year?

The boy nods and Death gives him a long look. The boy wilts slightly under Deaths gaze.

DEATH (CONT.)
Liar!

The boy runs for it.

INTERVIEWER
(hushed voice)
They let you do this every year?

DEATH
(playfully creepy)
Ho ho ho.

A sickly girl climbs up onto Death’s lap. Death holds his gaze on the Interviewer for a moment longer.

DEATH (CONT.)
Have you been a good girl this
year?

The girl nods and Death SNAPS his fingers and checks her counter. 00:04:16. Death hands her a candy cane and her counter changes to 82:08:24.

DEATH (CONT.)
Merry Christmas.

GIRL
Thank you Santa.

The girl leaves. The Interviewer smiles at Death and nudges him.

INTERVIEWER
That was-

DEATH
Shut it.

INTERVIEWER
What?

DEATH
Not a word.

The Interviewer hesitates, then opts to return to his interviewing.

INTERVIEWER
Does anyone hold on after they’re
dead?

9 INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT 9

A PERSON lies dead in bed. MOURNERS have gathered around the deceased. DEATH is there, in normal attire. Death approaches the bedside, touches the deceased hand.

DEATH V.O.
A few try.

The deceased slaps Death’s hand and goes back to being ’dead’. The mourners don’t seem to notice the interaction.

INTERVIEWER V.O.
What do you do?

Death’s form fades out and back in, now wearing the cloak and scythe.

DEATH V.O.
That’s when the cloak and scythe
come out.

Death gestures with the scythe and the deceased gets up and follows sheepishly.

10 INT. OFFICE - DAY 10

Death is picking his nails. His back to his desk.

INTERVIEWER O.S.
People are wondering, I’m sure, how
much does fate play into when it’s
time for us to die?

DEATH
You think Fate bothers with
individual lives?

INTERVIEWER O.S.
Some people do, yes.

DEATH
(chuckle)
She’s far too busy with wars,
lightning strikes, and lotto
numbers to start micromanaging.

INTERVIEWER O.S.
She?

DEATH
...Yeah...

Death shifts uncomfortably.

INTERVIEWER O.S.
There’s a story there, I think.

DEATH
(uncomfortable)
We dated for a while.

Shift focus to the photo strip on the office wall of Death and the woman.

INTERVIEWER O.S.
And?

Pan over to an ACE playing card tacked next to the photo. Written in bold letters "CHEATER"

DEATH
You remember Santa's Workshop?
Yeah, stay on her good side.

Death shifts in his seat multiple times, straightening his clothes, etc. and avoiding eye contact.

11 EXT. SIDEWALK - DAY 11

A WOMAN is walking along the sidewalk toward Death and the Interviewer. Her counter has plenty of time. The Interviewer follows, microphone at the ready. A car is driving along the street in the background coming closer.

INTERVIEWER
So, can people influence when they
die?

DEATH
Of course. Some choices lead
directly to their death.

INTERVIEWER
Suicide.

DEATH
Yes, but there’s also the choice to
zig when you should’ve zagged.

The woman steps out to cross the street just as Death and the Interviewer reach her and her counter drops to a couple seconds.
A cry of surprise catches in the Interviewer’s throat.

12 INT. CAR - SAME 12

DRIVER screams and slams on the breaks. THUD.

13 EXT. SIDEWALK - DAY 13

Death takes the Interviewer by the shoulder and guides him away from the accident. The Interviewer keeps glancing back to the frantic driver who can’t see them. Death pulls out a mint box and offers it to the Interviewer.

DEATH (CONT.)
Mint?

14 INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT 14

An overweight MAN sits in a dark room in front of his TV, stuffing his face with junk food. The TV, though the screen is not seen, plays a sports game. CROWD CHEERS/BOOS periodically. As the man eats, Death SNAPS his fingers and a counter appears above the mans head. Each mouthful knocks off a couple minutes/hours of his time.

DEATH V.O.
More often, though, it’s the daily
choices you make that get you.

The man continues to gorge himself. A loud CHEER erupts and the man leaps to his feet. His counter drops the remaining time, he clutches his chest and falls back to the couch.

BEAT.

15 INT. OFFICE - DAY 15

The Interviewer and Death are seated across from one another in Death’s office. The Interviewer checks his wrist watch.

INTERVIEWER
(somewhat relieved)
Well, it’s been quite the
experience.

The Interviewer stands, Death follows suit. The Interviewer extends his hand to shake Deaths.

INTERVIEWER
But sadly our time is up.

Death hesitates, eying the Interviewer, then SNAPS his
fingers.

BLACK

DEATH
Speak for yourself.

2 comments:

  1. Excellent story. So this is what a screenplay looks like. I've been toying with the idea of writing one, so this is an excellent layout to go by. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. David, an excellent, and free, resource for script writing is a program called celtx (found at celtx.com, go figure). It handles a lot of the formatting for you so you can focus on writing and not so much on making sure your margins are set correctly.

      Delete