Sunday, August 29, 2010
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Two: Hana Goes to Amery High
FADE IN:
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM – EARLY MORNING
SFX: Birds chirping in an ironically happy manner.
It is Hana’s first day at her new high school. She is now sleeping in a proper bed, and the room is more completely set up – although there are still boxes lying haphazardly around the room. There is a knock at the door.
JIM (O.S)
(Cheerily through door)
Rise and shine Hanamoo – it’s
your first day at school!
HANA
(Sarcastically)
Yaaay.
Jim enters with two glasses of juice – one orange, one apple.
JIM
(Unphased)
Orange or apple?
HANA
(Reaching for orange)
Grapefruit.
CUT TO:
EXT. AMERY HIGH SCHOOL – DAY – ESTABLISHING
The black car pulls up in front of the “high school” which is actually just two blocks of land with two houses on them.
Students are arriving at school – the uniform is green/red tartan and white shirts.
CUT TO:
INT. BLACK CAR – DAY
Hana is basically looking really nervous from the backseat. James is staring unbelievingly at the tiny school.
JAMES
Are you sure this is it? It’s two houses.
JIM
Small town, small school. What did you expect
James, the Opera House?
JAMES
Yes, yes I did.
CUT TO:
EXT. AMERY HIGH SCHOOL – DAY
Hana and James get out of the car simultaneously. Hana shrugs on her backpack and James whips a string-satchel over his head onto his back. They walk through the front gate together.
CUT TO:
INT. ENGLISH CLASSROOM – DAY
There are nine students sitting on/at desks around the room. At the front of the class, MS EMMA COLTHORPE, Caucasian, is a 35-year-old English teacher wearing jeans and a folk band t-shirt, with dark hair. She writes the word REALISM on the board and underlines it with a flourish.
EMMA
(Loudly, with confidence)
Realism! The 19th Century attack on
Romanticism. The most -
Emma notices Hana standing nervously in the doorway and turns around, placing the chalk back on the holder under the board.
EMMA
(Continuing)
And you must be Hana. I’m Ms Colthorpe.
Welcome to Amery High.
HANA
Um, thanks.
EMMA
Take a seat.
HANA
Thanks.
Hana sits down at the only spare desk, which has an old wooden kitchen chair as a seat (as opposed to a plastic school chair). Next to her is WILL COLTHORPE, Emma’s 17-year-old son. (Hana doesn’t know this yet.)
EMMA
(Speaking in b.g., simultaneously.)
Take out your copy of The Necklace, by
Guy de Maupassant. Now, Maupassant
believed that fiction should convey reality
as much as possible. He wanted complete
objectivity. Who can tell me what objectivity
means?
WILL
(Stage-whispering, simultaneously.)
Hey, Hana? I’m Will.
HANA
(Whisper)
Um, hi.
WILL
You’re from Sydney?
HANA
Yeah.
WILL
Wish I lived in Sydney. Hippy mum thinks
the country air is better for my development.
HANA
Well we’re both in the middle of nowhere now, huh?
Emma has stopped speaking and turns to look expectantly at Will and Hana. Hana looks up guiltily; Will turns slowly around, annoyed at his mum for breaking up the conversation.
EMMA
Will?
WILL
(Nonchalantly)
No idea.
EMMA
I didn’t think so. Cleo?
CLEO
Objectivity … well … is it when you look at
something from an unbiased point of view? Like...
Cleo is holding a pen and lifts it up, looking at Emma with an innocent, straight face.
CLEO
(Continuing)
Like, this is a pen, not a ‘flimsy
plastic piece of crap'.
EMMA
(Slight grin)
You’ve pretty much got it, thanks.
So your homework for this afternoon
is to write a short story, with
complete objectivity. Any questions?
The bell rings and the class rushes to pack up their books. Hana copies the students around her and is about to leave the classroom when …
EMMA
Hana, can I have a moment of your time?
HANA
Uh, sure.
EMMA
So how have you been settling in here?
HANA
Fine, I guess. I’ve only been here for one class so …
EMMA
Listen, I know that Amery High is
probably a world away from your old
school, but you'll find that you'll
settle in quickly. It's a smaller school,
more personal; we're like a big family. If
you have any problems, though, just come
and talk to me.
HANA
Sure, thanks Miss.
EMMA
Alright. Do you have someone to hang
out with at lunch? If you want you can
come talk to me, I have playground duty.
HANA
(Politely, but mortified by the idea)
Thanks, but I’m sure I’ll be fine.
Hana repositions her bag and turns to walk out of the classroom. Emma watches her go with a mixture of curiosity and confusion, sighs, and then starts to wipe the board.
CUT TO:
EXT. AMERY HIGH GROUNDS – DAY
Hana walks out into the small, relatively crowded playground, hugging her books to her chest and looking around with a disorientated look on her face. The bouncy Cleo rushes up to her.
CLEO
Hi Hana!
HANA
Hi … ?
CLEO
It’s Cleo, I’m Cleo.
HANA
Oh, the pen girl.
Hana and Cleo turn away from the camera and start walking to a bench under a tree, where five students from the class are sitting
CLEO
(Laughing)
Sure, why not? So what did Ms Colthorpe want?
FADE TO:
...
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM – EARLY MORNING
SFX: Birds chirping in an ironically happy manner.
It is Hana’s first day at her new high school. She is now sleeping in a proper bed, and the room is more completely set up – although there are still boxes lying haphazardly around the room. There is a knock at the door.
JIM (O.S)
(Cheerily through door)
Rise and shine Hanamoo – it’s
your first day at school!
HANA
(Sarcastically)
Yaaay.
Jim enters with two glasses of juice – one orange, one apple.
JIM
(Unphased)
Orange or apple?
HANA
(Reaching for orange)
Grapefruit.
CUT TO:
EXT. AMERY HIGH SCHOOL – DAY – ESTABLISHING
The black car pulls up in front of the “high school” which is actually just two blocks of land with two houses on them.
Students are arriving at school – the uniform is green/red tartan and white shirts.
CUT TO:
INT. BLACK CAR – DAY
Hana is basically looking really nervous from the backseat. James is staring unbelievingly at the tiny school.
JAMES
Are you sure this is it? It’s two houses.
JIM
Small town, small school. What did you expect
James, the Opera House?
JAMES
Yes, yes I did.
CUT TO:
EXT. AMERY HIGH SCHOOL – DAY
Hana and James get out of the car simultaneously. Hana shrugs on her backpack and James whips a string-satchel over his head onto his back. They walk through the front gate together.
CUT TO:
INT. ENGLISH CLASSROOM – DAY
There are nine students sitting on/at desks around the room. At the front of the class, MS EMMA COLTHORPE, Caucasian, is a 35-year-old English teacher wearing jeans and a folk band t-shirt, with dark hair. She writes the word REALISM on the board and underlines it with a flourish.
EMMA
(Loudly, with confidence)
Realism! The 19th Century attack on
Romanticism. The most -
Emma notices Hana standing nervously in the doorway and turns around, placing the chalk back on the holder under the board.
EMMA
(Continuing)
And you must be Hana. I’m Ms Colthorpe.
Welcome to Amery High.
HANA
Um, thanks.
EMMA
Take a seat.
HANA
Thanks.
Hana sits down at the only spare desk, which has an old wooden kitchen chair as a seat (as opposed to a plastic school chair). Next to her is WILL COLTHORPE, Emma’s 17-year-old son. (Hana doesn’t know this yet.)
EMMA
(Speaking in b.g., simultaneously.)
Take out your copy of The Necklace, by
Guy de Maupassant. Now, Maupassant
believed that fiction should convey reality
as much as possible. He wanted complete
objectivity. Who can tell me what objectivity
means?
WILL
(Stage-whispering, simultaneously.)
Hey, Hana? I’m Will.
HANA
(Whisper)
Um, hi.
WILL
You’re from Sydney?
HANA
Yeah.
WILL
Wish I lived in Sydney. Hippy mum thinks
the country air is better for my development.
HANA
Well we’re both in the middle of nowhere now, huh?
Emma has stopped speaking and turns to look expectantly at Will and Hana. Hana looks up guiltily; Will turns slowly around, annoyed at his mum for breaking up the conversation.
EMMA
Will?
WILL
(Nonchalantly)
No idea.
EMMA
I didn’t think so. Cleo?
CLEO
Objectivity … well … is it when you look at
something from an unbiased point of view? Like...
Cleo is holding a pen and lifts it up, looking at Emma with an innocent, straight face.
CLEO
(Continuing)
Like, this is a pen, not a ‘flimsy
plastic piece of crap'.
EMMA
(Slight grin)
You’ve pretty much got it, thanks.
So your homework for this afternoon
is to write a short story, with
complete objectivity. Any questions?
The bell rings and the class rushes to pack up their books. Hana copies the students around her and is about to leave the classroom when …
EMMA
Hana, can I have a moment of your time?
HANA
Uh, sure.
EMMA
So how have you been settling in here?
HANA
Fine, I guess. I’ve only been here for one class so …
EMMA
Listen, I know that Amery High is
probably a world away from your old
school, but you'll find that you'll
settle in quickly. It's a smaller school,
more personal; we're like a big family. If
you have any problems, though, just come
and talk to me.
HANA
Sure, thanks Miss.
EMMA
Alright. Do you have someone to hang
out with at lunch? If you want you can
come talk to me, I have playground duty.
HANA
(Politely, but mortified by the idea)
Thanks, but I’m sure I’ll be fine.
Hana repositions her bag and turns to walk out of the classroom. Emma watches her go with a mixture of curiosity and confusion, sighs, and then starts to wipe the board.
CUT TO:
EXT. AMERY HIGH GROUNDS – DAY
Hana walks out into the small, relatively crowded playground, hugging her books to her chest and looking around with a disorientated look on her face. The bouncy Cleo rushes up to her.
CLEO
Hi Hana!
HANA
Hi … ?
CLEO
It’s Cleo, I’m Cleo.
HANA
Oh, the pen girl.
Hana and Cleo turn away from the camera and start walking to a bench under a tree, where five students from the class are sitting
CLEO
(Laughing)
Sure, why not? So what did Ms Colthorpe want?
FADE TO:
...
Monday, August 2, 2010
The first few scenes ...
FADE IN:
EXT. NEW SOUTH WALES COUNTRYSIDE – DAY – ESTABLISHING
SFX: Music - piano theme plays throughout opening credits.
A white removalist van meanders along a quiet road. Around are yellow-grass hills covered with Patterson’s Curse. Behind the van is a sleek black car.
INT. BLACK CAR – DAY – CONTINUOUS ACTION
Drumming on the steering wheel with frustration at the slow speed is DR JIM MITCHAM, a well-kept middle-aged divorcee with a receding hairline. He grimaces at his seventeen-year-old son, JAMES MITCHAM, who is sitting in the front seat and fiddling with the radio.
JIM
Country drivers, huh?
James doesn’t answer. Sixteen-year-old HANA MITCHAM looks at her father from the back seat, smiles dutifully, and then looks out the window.
EXT. OUTSKIRTS OF SLEEPY COUNTRY TOWN – DAY – CONTINUOUS ACTION
BEGIN TITLES
Sweeping footage from HANA’S POV. A flock of sheep stand in the shade of a single tree in a large field. A ten-year-old boy stares jealously at the car from a quad bike. An old-looking sign reading WELCOME TO AMERY rattles in the wake of the removalist van.
The removalist van and black car pull up in front of a small weatherboard house with a huge pine tree in the front garden. A rope-swing hangs from one of the branches. Hydrangea bushes grow outside the front window of the house.
SFX: Music fades out.
HANA (V.O)
When I was sixteen, we moved to Amery. Population 312. A pub and a bakery and a newsagent and a hairdresser’s. A small high school and a swimming pool open in the summer time. Coming from Sydney, Amery was a ghost town.
INT. DARK ENTRANCE CORRIDOR OF HOUSE – DAY
Hana carries a backpack on one shoulder and a pillow. She pulls open the heavy front door and then struggles to keep it open whilst pushing in the rickety fly-screen. Her lips are pursed sceptically as she flicks on the dim light. Jim backs into the corridor carrying a large cardboard box, then turns awkwardly around to his daughter. He grimaces again.
JIM
Dark in here.
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM - DAY
Hana dumps her bag on the ground and walks into the first room on the right of the corridor.
JIM (O.S.)
(Continuing)
A good lick of paint will lighten it up Hana, don’t you worry. And maybe one of those LED light bulbs …
CUT TO:
INT. ENTRANCE CORRIDOR – DAY
Light bulb bursts and the hall goes dark. Beat – then Jim pulls a pen and notepad out of his back jeans pocket.
JIM
(Continuing)
Okay. Light – bulb.
CUT TO:
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM – DAY
HANA
Which one’s my room?
Jim appears in the doorway behind Hana.
JIM
What do you think of this one, Hanamoo? It’s north-facing so -
HANA
(Interrupting)
Yeah. Okay.
Hana moves to the big window at the front of the room and looks out at the garden. There, James and REMOVALIST #1 and #2 are beginning to bring in boxes. Jim goes to help them. Their voices are muffled.
JIM
Those three are for the kitchen.
JAMES
Fine.
REMOVALIST #1
Where’d’ya want these, Jim?
HANA (V.O)
My dad’s a GP and a friend of his begged him to take a job here. Apparently there was a shortage of GPs in the area. No one told me that there was a shortage of people, too.
Jim is in the garden, struggling with a heavy box.
JIM (O.S)
(Puffing)
Hana! Can we have some help, please?
The next moment Hana is in the garden, she walks straight past her father and takes another box from the boot of the car.
CUT TO:
INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT
Hana, James and Jim stand over bowls of soup at the kitchen bench. Boxes are littered around.
JIM
Do you mind passing me a cup, Hana?
Hana bends down to one of the boxes and pulls out a cup. Jim begins to fill it with water from the sink. The water is brown. Jim falters but then drinks the water anyway, wanting to show his kids that it’s not so bad.
JIM
(Continuing)
We have a lot to do in the morning. Don’t be staying up all hours.
JAMES
(Sarcastically)
Because there’s so much to do other than sleep.
JIM
I’m sure there are lots of things for you kids to do in a town like this, if you give it a chance. School discos, fairs, the old B&S, who knows?
HANA
(Disenchanted)
I’m gonna go have a bath.
CUT TO:
INT. BATHROOM – NIGHT
The bathroom has an old-looking stand-alone bathtub and is generally yellowing and old itself. There’s a pile of boxes in the corner and Hana takes a towel out of the one on top. She then moves to turn on the water and it comes out brown. Hana looks in disgust.
HANA (V.O)
There was a lot to get used to about living in a town like Amery. Number one was the water supply.
Hana shuts off the water and pulls out the plug, deciding not to bathe.
CUT TO:
INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT
Hana looks into the kitchen where Jim and James are eating seconds in silence.
HANA
Goodnight.
JIM
See you in the morning Hanamoo.
JAMES
(Grunts)
Night.
CUT TO:
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM – NIGHT
Hana’s mattress is on the floor with a sleeping bag unrolled on top. Hana climbs into the sleeping bag fully dressed and lies on her back, looking up at the ceiling.
HANA (V.O)
At that time, Amery seemed to be hell. A tiny, empty hell, filled with dirty water. And I would do anything to escape.
FADE TO BLACK
EXT. NEW SOUTH WALES COUNTRYSIDE – DAY – ESTABLISHING
SFX: Music - piano theme plays throughout opening credits.
A white removalist van meanders along a quiet road. Around are yellow-grass hills covered with Patterson’s Curse. Behind the van is a sleek black car.
INT. BLACK CAR – DAY – CONTINUOUS ACTION
Drumming on the steering wheel with frustration at the slow speed is DR JIM MITCHAM, a well-kept middle-aged divorcee with a receding hairline. He grimaces at his seventeen-year-old son, JAMES MITCHAM, who is sitting in the front seat and fiddling with the radio.
JIM
Country drivers, huh?
James doesn’t answer. Sixteen-year-old HANA MITCHAM looks at her father from the back seat, smiles dutifully, and then looks out the window.
EXT. OUTSKIRTS OF SLEEPY COUNTRY TOWN – DAY – CONTINUOUS ACTION
BEGIN TITLES
Sweeping footage from HANA’S POV. A flock of sheep stand in the shade of a single tree in a large field. A ten-year-old boy stares jealously at the car from a quad bike. An old-looking sign reading WELCOME TO AMERY rattles in the wake of the removalist van.
The removalist van and black car pull up in front of a small weatherboard house with a huge pine tree in the front garden. A rope-swing hangs from one of the branches. Hydrangea bushes grow outside the front window of the house.
SFX: Music fades out.
HANA (V.O)
When I was sixteen, we moved to Amery. Population 312. A pub and a bakery and a newsagent and a hairdresser’s. A small high school and a swimming pool open in the summer time. Coming from Sydney, Amery was a ghost town.
INT. DARK ENTRANCE CORRIDOR OF HOUSE – DAY
Hana carries a backpack on one shoulder and a pillow. She pulls open the heavy front door and then struggles to keep it open whilst pushing in the rickety fly-screen. Her lips are pursed sceptically as she flicks on the dim light. Jim backs into the corridor carrying a large cardboard box, then turns awkwardly around to his daughter. He grimaces again.
JIM
Dark in here.
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM - DAY
Hana dumps her bag on the ground and walks into the first room on the right of the corridor.
JIM (O.S.)
(Continuing)
A good lick of paint will lighten it up Hana, don’t you worry. And maybe one of those LED light bulbs …
CUT TO:
INT. ENTRANCE CORRIDOR – DAY
Light bulb bursts and the hall goes dark. Beat – then Jim pulls a pen and notepad out of his back jeans pocket.
JIM
(Continuing)
Okay. Light – bulb.
CUT TO:
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM – DAY
HANA
Which one’s my room?
Jim appears in the doorway behind Hana.
JIM
What do you think of this one, Hanamoo? It’s north-facing so -
HANA
(Interrupting)
Yeah. Okay.
Hana moves to the big window at the front of the room and looks out at the garden. There, James and REMOVALIST #1 and #2 are beginning to bring in boxes. Jim goes to help them. Their voices are muffled.
JIM
Those three are for the kitchen.
JAMES
Fine.
REMOVALIST #1
Where’d’ya want these, Jim?
HANA (V.O)
My dad’s a GP and a friend of his begged him to take a job here. Apparently there was a shortage of GPs in the area. No one told me that there was a shortage of people, too.
Jim is in the garden, struggling with a heavy box.
JIM (O.S)
(Puffing)
Hana! Can we have some help, please?
The next moment Hana is in the garden, she walks straight past her father and takes another box from the boot of the car.
CUT TO:
INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT
Hana, James and Jim stand over bowls of soup at the kitchen bench. Boxes are littered around.
JIM
Do you mind passing me a cup, Hana?
Hana bends down to one of the boxes and pulls out a cup. Jim begins to fill it with water from the sink. The water is brown. Jim falters but then drinks the water anyway, wanting to show his kids that it’s not so bad.
JIM
(Continuing)
We have a lot to do in the morning. Don’t be staying up all hours.
JAMES
(Sarcastically)
Because there’s so much to do other than sleep.
JIM
I’m sure there are lots of things for you kids to do in a town like this, if you give it a chance. School discos, fairs, the old B&S, who knows?
HANA
(Disenchanted)
I’m gonna go have a bath.
CUT TO:
INT. BATHROOM – NIGHT
The bathroom has an old-looking stand-alone bathtub and is generally yellowing and old itself. There’s a pile of boxes in the corner and Hana takes a towel out of the one on top. She then moves to turn on the water and it comes out brown. Hana looks in disgust.
HANA (V.O)
There was a lot to get used to about living in a town like Amery. Number one was the water supply.
Hana shuts off the water and pulls out the plug, deciding not to bathe.
CUT TO:
INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT
Hana looks into the kitchen where Jim and James are eating seconds in silence.
HANA
Goodnight.
JIM
See you in the morning Hanamoo.
JAMES
(Grunts)
Night.
CUT TO:
INT. HANA’S BEDROOM – NIGHT
Hana’s mattress is on the floor with a sleeping bag unrolled on top. Hana climbs into the sleeping bag fully dressed and lies on her back, looking up at the ceiling.
HANA (V.O)
At that time, Amery seemed to be hell. A tiny, empty hell, filled with dirty water. And I would do anything to escape.
FADE TO BLACK
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