Four Years Later

I guess that is a while. I haven't written in that long. I bet I've probably improved since then.

So what's new with me? I got a Masters, I had kids, I moved to the suburbs. You know that's not true, other than the Masters part.

I'm making a horror movie soon, it's called Wine Party. It's going to be pretty bloody and I doubt any of my friends or family will want to watch it. But I'll watch it, I guess. If you make me.

Revision revision revision

Hey, so now I pretty much just write scripts.  And they suck at first, and then you go through and make things make sense.  It's a breakthrough.  Here's a stupid one I've been working on.

EXCITING OPENING

Jack:  Brace yourself, behind this door there’s something the likes of which you have never seen.  Rarely a man has seen it.

Dom:  Ok.  Is it just sitting back there waiting for someone to go through?

Jack: Well yeah but this is what we’re getting paid for.

Dom:  Let’s go over the brief one more time. tries to grab it from him

Jack:  It’s confidential, rook.  There’s nothing you need to know.

Dom:  My life’s on the line, I demand to know what we’re in for.

Jack:  If you know what we’re in for, you’re probably not going to want to go through that door.

Doorknob starts to jiggle.  Jack grabs it and pushes it closed

Walky talky starts going off

Dispatch: This is a code six Dom and Jack, we need you to return immediately.

Dom: steps away from door Jack puts his back into it

Jack:  We’re in too deep, can’t return.  Over.

Dispatch:  We have reason to believe the thing behind that door is not your ordinary demon.  

Dom:  What is it, then?

Dispatch:  It might be the devil lady.

Jack:  The devil lady?

Dom’s eyes go wide

He flashes back

He’s 12 years old and him and the other boys find a copy of the Necronomicon.  

Mom downstairs

Mom:  What are you boys doing up there?

Dom:  Just reading comic books. a stack of comics sits on the table, untouched

He’s got one nerdy blonde friend with glasses (Chris), and another fat friend (Darren)

Chris:  Can we just read comics?

Darren:  I have to take it back to my brother, or he’s going to beat me up.

Dom:  We have to at least open it.  

Book makes creepy groaning noise

Darren and Chris look at eachother terrified

Dom:  Cool!

He opens the cover a little, and wind blows his hair back.  

Darren tries to grab the book from him and it bites his hand, he starts crying

Dom:  Shut the fuck up!  

The wound immediately starts to change colors, becomes black

Darren starts convulsing, not even crying

Chris jumps to his feet and scrambles towards the door

Dom opens the book anyway

Snap back into real time.  The door is rocking.

Jack:  Now, it’s important we’re as professional as possible here.  We get in, I’ll subdue her, you get the picture.

Dom:  I have a bad feeling about this.

(there are some ghosts the camera doesn’t work on)

Dom pushes through door

Flashback again to the house

Mom:  Boys, is everything all right up there?

Dom:  Everything is fine!

Chris:  Are you crazy?  What do you think you’re doing?

He punches Chris in the face.  Chris runs down the stairs sobbing

Chris:  Mrs. Lampley!

Dom:  Reads the first page he flips to out loud Aminus parnivus mostey (change this later)

Chris screams downstairs.  Runs back up the stairs.  His nose looks broken, face is bleeding.

Chris:  Your mom...

Dom:  What?

Chris:  She’s not your mom anymore.

The devil lady cries loudly.  Jack (Lost Jack) slaps her across the face, as she rebounds back up Dom (Charlie from Lost) snaps a picture.  Jack takes her down, and she looks up directly into Dom’s eyes.

It's stupid, yes. But it at least almost makes sense.

Stupid movie I'm working on

EXCITING OPENING

Jack:  Brace yourself, behind this door there’s something the likes of which you have never seen.

Dom:  Ok.

Jack: Don’t be so casual about it.

Dom:  I’m not sure if I want to go through with it.

Jack:  What?

The devil lady cries loudly.  Jack (Lost Jack) slaps her across the face, as she rebounds back up Dom (Charlie from Lost) snaps a picture.  She knocks Jack onto his back, and Charlie bolts from the room.

He hears Jack scream from behind the door.  He grabs a fire poker stick, bolts into the room and the door is slammed right back in his face.

We cut to his hotel room in Translyvania, he drops the camera as he opens the door.  There’s obviously nothing chasing him, but he’s still obviously shaken.  He hears a flapping outside, and opens the window.  A guy is walking his dog and it gets away and runs off.  It’s scared of something.

He lights a cigarette, steps out onto the porch.  Pops a couple of pills.  Does a quick prayer in Latin.

He answers a phone call.  The voice is tough-guy super spy.

How does this guy live?

He packs up all of his crap into a suitcase and leaves as soon as the knocking subsides for a minute.  There’s a shadow person at the end of the hallway.

He goes into the darkroom, and drops the camera again.  The film has come unraveled, and we see his eyes Pee Wee Herman style as he scrambles in the dark.  Someone enters his apartment, and he backs against the darkroom wall.

Dom:  Jack?

No answer

He demonstrates how to mix the photo liquid, combines it all together.  

A girl shows up, “no no no this is a bad time no no no”.  She rings the doorbell

Dom hides, peaks through blinds

She’s waving up at him

He sees the black limo at the end of the block

Presses the button to let her up, she closes the door nonchalantly and a stake strikes against it.

Cut to him running down the stairs, he grabs her by the hand

“Dom!”

They rush up the stairs, she refuses to run.

Dom slams door

Kathy:  Dom!  What’s the big idea!

Dom:  Shhh.  they listen, there’s no sound.  She rolls her eyes at him.

Kathy:  You aren’t even ready.

Dom: Ready for what?

Kathy:  You don’t remember what today is?

Dom:  We have a lot more serious things to be worrying about right now.

Kathy:  More serious than your sons birthday?

window glass starts vibrating

Dom:  Get down!

He tackles her under the window, something fragile in her purse breaks

Kathy:  What are you doing?  she opens purse, a present is in there broken

Dom:  There’s an evil energy out here...

Kathy:  Are you on drugs, again, Dom?  

cut to next scene, she’s rummaging through his drawers

Dom:  I’m not on drugs, it’s not how it looks.  This isn’t about our shit.  

There’s a loud noise from outside, he grabs a gun from inside a book and closes the door and blocks it off

The picture in the darkroom has finished developing, it’s an evil demon.  It moves inside of the picture.

He points the gun at the door as the key rattles.  Jack stumbles through, beat up.  He shoots and misses.

Jack:  You left me there, you son of a bitch.

Dom:  I wasn’t ready for this, I thought you were dead.

Jack:  We’re both dead.

Dom:  I kind of had that feeling.

Jack uses his fingerprints to activate a special service on his phone

Random notes for thesis

Notes on senior theses:

“The Subjective Imagination”

Power defined as “the potential of an individual to change the behavior of another”

Relational dyads

dy·ad

  [dahy-ad]  Show IPA

noun

1.

a group of two; couple; pair.

2.

Biology .

a.

a secondary morphological unit, consisting of two monads: a chromosome dyad.

b.

the double chromosomes resulting from the separation of the four chromatids of a tetrad.

3.

Chemistry . an element, atom, or group having a valence of two. Compare monad, triad (  def 2a ) .

4.

Mathematics . two vectors with no symbol connecting them, usually considered as an operator.

5.

Sociology .

a.

two persons involved in an ongoing relationship or interaction.

b.

the relationship or interaction itself.

Dyadic partners is an oxymoron?

“Arterial affect” where smaller outlets look for guidance from larger ones

“My study is unique in that…”

“When I moved from the field to academia, I found the observations I made in the field were not represented in the literature I read about journalistic news processes, and journalists’ understanding of the audience.  My interest in studying journalists’ uses of social media grew from these experiences.  The purpose of this thesis is to capture and explain the ways in which journalists are using social media to engage the audience, and how such uses are affecting news processes and changing the role the audience plays in the construction of the news”

Another new one!

(The chef brings out a gross looking sandwich on a dirty plate)

Captain:  I haven’t trusted any of the food we’ve seen since leaving port.

Duke:  (Pulls out Velcro Mickey Mouse wallet)

Captain:  We need to get you a new wallet.

Quentin:  Say, that’s a good idea.  Why doesn’t everyone take their wallets out?

Captain:  Not a chance.

Quentin:  Did you see what I did to the other guy?

Captain:  He got thrown out.

Quentin used to be a big criminal and now he’s stranded on this island.  His crew abandoned him with their boat when they came to shore here.  He’s trying to steal their boat.

Quentin:  Alright, anyone mind that I’m the dealer?

Duke:  I’ll deal.

Quentin:  You don’t know how to deal.

Captain:  This doesn’t seem like a clean game.

Quentin:  Siddown!  How about my friend here Marco deals?

(Marco is a pretty shady character.  Big scar across his face, enormous arms, wife beater)

Captain:  No, see, impartial means that it’s not someone you are associated with.

Quentin:  Big slick coming in here with his country grammar.  Well I’m sorry this is my casino, my rules.  Do you want to play or not?

Captain:  No we don’t want to play, we want to be on our way.

(police boat pulls up outside dinging its police bell)

Captain:  Saved by the bell.

Quentin:  It’s all the same you two penniless penny pinchers probably don’t have a penny to your name.

(They’re walking quickly outside)

Duke:  How do you just let him talk to you like that?

Captain:  We’ll wait for the correct opportunity; maybe he’s facing the other direction standing at the end of a pier in shark infested waters.  Then we’ll kick that bugger in there.

Duke:  Captain, I’m just going to let you know about this for future reference.  I’ve got my grandfathers bowie kni…  (starts unwrapping it)

Captain:  What business you have with a big knife like that?  Cleaning fish? Put that damn thing away.

(Captain doesn’t like violence)

Duke:  My grandfather was an admiral.

Captain:  You have a little bit of a conflict of interest going on, don’t you?

Duke:  What do you mean?

Captain:  You say you’re here for field work, or school, or whatever.  But you got pirate in your blood.

Duke:  When did you decide you were going to be a pirate?

Captain:  Decide?  You think this is a choice?

Duke:  Captain, it’s pretty clear you haven’t been out here very long.  You don’t know what to do in the face of adversity, you run off pretty much every time.

Captain:  That’s what a good thief does; run away unscatched.

Duke:  But I haven’t seen you steal anything yet either!

Captain:  Well we just got here.

Duke:  Ok so look in the window of that store.  There’s a golden candlestick.  Steal it.

Captain:  I’ll steal it when we’re leaving.  We still haven’t met up with our contact.

Duke:  You don’t know who he is or what his name is!

Captain:  Jeez Duke, you make this pirate thing sound so easy.  How do you fathom we do this?

Duke:  You aren’t even a real pirate.  It says in the oath that if a pirate is challenged he’s gotta take on that challenge.  It’s what makes a captain a captain.

Captain:  Where’s it say this?  Pirates don’t use books.

Duke:  You aren’t even a captain!

Captain:  You want me to steal that candlestick?  Alright.

Duke:  Wait!  Captain!  You were right, we just got here!  And we have to find Isaac…

Quentin:  This must be their ship… what a pathetic little vessel.

Doris:  Charles, there’s a strange man looking at us.

Quentin:  (puts hat over heart)  Excuse me miss, who is the captain of this vessel?

Doris:  (looks at Charles disapprovingly)  What’s it to ya?

Quentin:  I just ran into an affable pair of men in the saloon, said they just parked their boat in the harbor here.  I’m afraid I beat those boys gambling, and now this is my ship.

Charles:  Captain’d be dumb enough to bet the ship, but Dukey wouldn’t have let him do something so stupid.

Quentin:  Ah yes, Captain and Duke.  Those were their names.  What business does your Captain have calling himself that?

Charles:  Beats me.  He’s probably trying to hide some past underneath all of that fancy pirate stuff.  He hasn’t exactly fooled any of us.

Quentin:  He said the deed of ownership should be here somewhere.

Captain turns around right before he enters and talks to duke

Captain:  Alright, duke.  There’s a few skills I’ll be using in here.

Duke:  Looks pretty suspicious, doesn’t it?  Two of us out here talking before we enter?

(Captain smiles in at storekeeper, who looks at him perplexed)

Captain:  See, doesn’t expect a thing.  We hold all of the cards here.  This is an old mom and pop store for sure, probably been here a hundred years.  They haven’t seen the tricks I have up my sleeve.

Duke:   Ok, like what?

Captain:  First of all, compliment the crap out of the shop.  Secondly, misdirection.  I’m going to say I like something in the case in front of him.

Cut to him walking in, looking really closely at knick knacks on table, picking up salt shaker and shaking it in his ear and making weird face and putting it back down.

Captain:  Excuse me sir, and a fine night to you.  I like your hat.

Duke:  (groans inaudibly and touches his face)

Storekeeper:  Don’t be touching anything you don’t plan on buying, pirate.

Captain:  I may look like a pirate, yes, I may, but rest assured I am not one.  Until just a few days ago, I was an ordinary Joe working as a baker, your average baker.

Storekeeper:  Baker?  Why’d you stop doing that?

Captain:  Place burnt down.  I won’t let it get me down, though, no.  I’ve came here to try to start anew, a brand new business.

(Backs over by candle, still facing storekeeper)

Storekeeper:  What are you walking all the way over there for if you want to talk to me?  Are you interested in that candle?

Duke:  Excuse me, sir.  We’re here actually more interested in these… ropes you have behind the counter here.

Storekeeper:  I’d appreciate if your friend would come back over here and stop trying to misdirect me.

Duke:  I excuse my uncle, he’s a little bit seasick.  You see, he’s telling the truth, he really doesn’t like to be out at sea.

Captain:  I don’t get seasick, Duke, and you know it.

Duke:  (blank faced)  Do we still need that rope?  You know, to tie the cannons down.  You see, we’re such amateur pirates that we don’t even tie our cannons down, and they roll around down in the basement of the boat all over the place…

Captain:  It’s called a galley, not a basement.

Duke:  We don’t even have cannonballs!

Storekeeper:  S’at right?  You’re also two of the worst thief’s in the world.  What, you think I wouldn’t notice you picked that up?

Captain:  Just admiring the craftsmanship, that’s all.  Real artisan work here.

Storekeeper:  Say, you two boys aren’t from (wherever they’re from, I forget), are ya?  Look just about right, younger weasily guy and incompetent older guy with a death wish. 

Captain:  Maybe… (pockets candlestick)

Storekeeper:  Been sent about a week ago?

Captain:  That’s us!

Storekeeper:  So where is it?

Captain:  Where’s what?

Storekeeper:  Don’t tell me you think the queen would send you here just to chat with an old shopkeeper like myself.

Captain:  Oh, yeah *snaps fingers*.  The… the…

Storekeeper:  Should be a box about this big (gestures). 

Captain:  What’s in it?

Storekeeper:  That’s none of your business, pirate.