Pre-production

SCRIPT

INT. INSIDE HER HOUSE 

VIA IS SITTING ON THE SOFA, A BOOK IN HAND, QUITE ABSORBED IN HER READING.

VIA'S SISTER, REINA, ENTERS.

REINA (SITTING DOWN BESIDE HER): 

Mum said dinner's almost ready.

VIA (WITHOUT LOOKING UP):

 Alright, coming, just let me finish this chapter.

REINA:

What are you reading, anyway?

VIA:

A book some woman gave me at the shop today. Got it for free, too.

REINA:

Bit sketchy.

VIA:

Maybe. It's good though so far - it's about some girl running away from some evil mystical creature that's trying to catch her.

REINA:

That sounds boring.

VIA (THROWING A PILLOW AT HER):

To you. Go away.

VIA TURNS OVER A PAGE, CONFUSED. SHE SEES THAT THE REMAINING PAGES ARE BLANK.

VIA:

That's weird. The book just finishes here, the last chapter is empty.

REINA (THROWING THE PILLOW BACK):

Makes sense why you got it for free. Anyways, Mum said that we have to set the table.

VIA:

Fine, I'm coming.

SHE SETS THE BOOK ON THE TABLE, LEAVING IT OPEN ON THE FIRST EMPTY PAGE.

EXT. A PARK

VIA'S EYES SLOWLY OPEN. SHE LOOKS AROUND, CONFUSED BY HER SURROUNDINGS.

VIA:

Where am I?

SHE IS BRIEFLY DISTRACTED BY A RUSTLING IN THE BUSHES. SHE WALKS CLOSER TO IT.

VIA:

What-

A PAIR OF EYES STARE BACK AT HER.

VIA BEGINS TO RUN, WITH SOMETHING SPRINTING NOT FAR BEHIND. SHE FINDS HERSELF RUNNING INTO A MAZE.

SHE LOOKS AROUND DESPERATELY, WARY OF WHATEVER IS AFTER HER.

SHE ENDS UP IN A DEAD END, BREATHING HEAVILY, THE CREATURE CREEPING CLOSER.

JUST AS SHE ATTEMPTS TO RUN, SOMETHING SLASHES HER ARM. SHE CLUTCHES IT, LOOKING DOWN TO SEE A CLAW-SHAPED SCRATCH THAT'S BLEEDING.

SCREEN GOES BLACK.

INT. INSIDE HER BEDROOM

VIA WAKES UP, BREATHING HEAVILY. SHE LOOKS TO HER BEDSIDE TABLE AND SEES THE BOOK OPEN THERE. SHE SIGHS HEAVILY, RELIEVED.

VIA:

Thank god, I was just dreaming.

SHE FEELS A SUDDEN PAIN ON HER FOREARM, AND WINCES SLIGHTLY, ROLLING HER SLEEVE UP.

SHE LOOKS DOWN AT HER ARM, AND SEES A CLAW-SHAPED MARK. HER BREATH HITCHES.

THE PHONE ON HER BEDSIDE TABLE STARTS TO RING.

VIA (TAKES A DEEP BREATH, HER FACE PALE, AND ANSWERS IT):

Hello?

(STATIC IS HEARD FROM THE OTHER END)

VIA (WHISPERS SHAKILY):

Who is this?

(CALL ENDS HASTILY)

SOMEONE RINGS THE DOORBELL. VIA HEARS THE SOUND OF THE LETTERBOX SLAM SHUT. SHE RUNS DOWNSTAIRS.

SITTING ON THE MAT IS A NOTE, WHICH READS A SET OF WRITING.

UNKNOWN VOICE (VOICEOVER):

TO VIA. THANK YOU FOR FINISHING MY STORY! KEEP YOUR EYE OUT FOR THE SEQUEL. IT MAY COME SOONER THAN YOU EXPECT...

VIA OPENS THE DOOR AND CHECKS OUTSIDE, TO SEE NO ONE THERE. PERPLEXED, SHE SHUTS THE DOOR, FROWNING.

SCENE FINISHES.

FADE TO BLACK

END

SHOT LIST

Living room

LONG SHOT - displays Via reading her book

TWO SHOT - Via and her sister talking

CLOSE-UP - of the book

Park

CLOSE-UP/HIGH ANGLE - Via waking up

WORMSEYE VIEW - Via checking the bushes

OVER-THE-SHOULDER SHOT, CLOSE-UP, EXTREME CLOSE-UP, LONG SHOT - chase scene

Bedroom

CLOSE-UP - of the book, and Via's wound

LONG SHOT - Via running down the stairs

CLOSE-UP/EXTREME CLOSE-UP - the note

MISE-EN-SCENE

Costume: light coloured clothes for Via, dark coloured clothes for antagonist, creates a sense of juxtaposition or binary opposition (light vs dark, good vs evil).

Lighting/time of day: chase scene happens when it is somewhat dark, reinforces a sense of eeriness.

Actors: two teenage girls and an actor (miscellaneous age and gender) for the creature.

Make-up and hair: neutral

Props: a book, a candle, a telephone, a note

Setting: a house and a park

Coursework: Statement of Intent

STATEMENT OF INTENT

Title: The Debt of Time

Genre: Fantasy

Extract: Final two minutes of the pilot episode 

My extract will follow the story of a teenage girl who discovers a diary which appears to be other-worldly, unaware that the same diary is being pursued by a corrupt society which intends to use its power for evil. The ideology of the society is to convey the unscrupulous nature of an arbitrary government, representing real-life issues of today's day and age. She later discovers an ominous lamp on her doorstep (use of Barthes' enigma codes) which, upon opening, transports her to an unfamiliar room where she meets a girl who looks eerily identical to herself, clutching the very same diary in her hands.

To create a disruption in the narrative, I will include a chase scene between my protagonist and an antagonist (both contributing to Propp's character theory), which will be the disequilibrium - an example of Todorov's equilibrium theory. A physical conflict will ensue, resulting in her being injured. She then wakes up from her sleep, believing it was a dream, and comes to realise she still has her injury.

Camerawork:

• establishing shot: to provide a view of the setting
• over-the-shoulder shot: to capture the perspective of each character
• close-up shot: allows the audience to focus all of their attention on a particular person/object
• low angle: to convey a sense of authority
• handheld camera movement: provides an authentic, first-person view

Mise-en-scene:

• setting: four different locations to maintain the flow of the narrative
• lighting: dim and dreary, which connotes eeriness
• props: a diary, telephone, lamp
• costume: protagonist wearing light colours, antagonist wearing black attire (binary opposition - light vs dark, good vs evil).

Sound:

• diegetic: characters' dialogue, footsteps, telephone and doorbell ringing, distorted phone call
• non-diegetic: background music to create a sense of tension and build up suspense

Representations:

My protagonist will be a 13-year-old teenage girl named Via, who discovers a majestic, unearthly diary - a distinct portrayal of the fantasy genre. Typical gender stereotypes are subverted as the main character is a young, independent female, as well as a member of the BAME community (South Asian descent), which is severely lacking within the mainstream media. My antagonist is younger, subverting the stereotype that villains comprise of predominantly older people.

Audience Pleasures:

To appeal to my target audience (family with teenagers), my media extract will explore darker and sinister themes. The targeted psychographic groups are "the explorer" and "the mainstream", as well as those interested in TV series revolving around adventure and discovery.

• visceral pleasure: audience experiences the physical thrill and anticipation of watching a chase scene
• vicarious pleasure: audience is exposed to elements of fantasy, unlike anything within their daily lives
• personal identity: teenagers may relate to the characters as they are of similar age
• personal relationships: audience cares about the fate of the protagonist, they will be concerned about what will follow