I have now written the first draft of the screenplay which I will be adapting into a short film. I went for a horror concept in the end, as I think that this could make for some unique and (hopefully) creepy visuals. The screenplay is very rough, both in terms of the style of writing and the story itself. I will definitely be modifying the screenplay as I don't think it's ready yet to be adapted into a film. It's a little on the short side at 2 1/2 pages, although it has minimal dialogue, so will probably equate to about 3 minutes or so on screen (and it must be 4-5 minutes). It's also definitely more ambiguous than I would like it to be - I started out with a concept I liked and pretty much just made the rest up as I went along with writing it, so it will need some editing. There are also some parts which, while they may make sense on the page, do not yet translate visually, so I will need to think about how I could modify these parts so that they make sense. I won't bother refining the style of writing too much since I will be filming the screenplay, however I would definitely like to re-draft it as I don't yet feel ready to film.
Logistically, the film is relatively straight-forward. It only requires one location (a house) and two actors, one of whom doesn't have to do much actual acting. I will probably film it in my own house, which will allow me to experiment before the shoot with lighting, camera angles, etc. As it's set during the night, I could black out the windows and pull down the blinds in my house and film it during the day-time, which would probably give me longer to film. The main challenge will be makeup, as the screenplay draft which I currently have requires lots of blood, scars and a dead body. I've made decent-looking fake blood before, but never in such a large quantity, so I'll have to research and practice some of these techniques. Other than this, I will have to work out a way to make it look like there is more blood appearing on the main character's face as she tries to wipe it off (this will probably come down to careful editing and cutting between different shots). It will also be a challenge to film in small spaces, so I will have to think carefully about how I can realistically position my actors and the camera to make best use of the space.
Once I have re-drafted my screenplay and am happy with it, I will begin assembling a cast (I already have a couple of people who are willing to help) and creating my storyboard, shot list, shooting schedule, risk assessment, etc.
THERE'S SOMETHING ON YOUR FACE
by
Neil Thomson
INT. BATHROOM, NIGHT
We open in an empty bathroom. The room has a sense of quiet
unease about it, and it feels as if there are secrets hidden
behind the walls and beneath the floorboards. There is a
deafening silence in the room, broken only by the slow,
steady dripping of a tap.
A girl, BETH, walks into the bathroom. She appears to be in
her late teens and wears a pair of black pyjamas. She has
bags under her eyelids and seems restless.
She picks up a tube of toothpaste and squeezes it onto her
toothbrush. Just as she lifts the brush to her mouth, she
looks in the mirror and spots something on her cheek. She
puts down the toothbrush and looks closer. There's a small
streak of what appears to be a sticky, red substance. As we
cut to a reverse shot of her face, we see that it only
appears to be on her face in the mirror. She runs her thumb
over the mark and looks at her thumb, but none of the stuff
appears to have wiped off. She picks up a cloth and wipes the
surface of the mirror to see if it's just a stain on the
glass, but the streak remains. She takes a make-up remover
pad and wipes at it, but to no avail. Beth sighs, and walks
out of the room.
INT. CORRIDOR, NIGHT
She walks down the corridor and into her bedroom.
INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT
Once she enters her bedroom, she fumbles around on the wall
before finding the light switch. She flicks on the light to
reveal a full-body mirror at the other end of the room. She
sees her reflection in the mirror and the substance is still
there, but there appears to be more of it. She moves closer
to the mirror to examine her face more closely. What was at
first a small streak has grown, and the red substance is now
covering her entire cheek. Beth can feel her heart rate
rising. She picks up a tissue and scrubs at her face
furiously. When she stops scrubbing, she looks in horror to
see that more of the liquid has materialised on her face,
almost covering it entirely. As we cut to the reverse shot of
her face, we notice a blurred figure standing behind her. It
inhales with a sickening rasp, and Beth turns around with a
shriek.
The figure is a girl, around the same age as Beth, with long
black hair. She has a look of innocence about her and stands
with a neutral expression, staring at Beth with piercing blue
eyes. Beth screams at the sight of her and backs into a
corner. Her expression shows more horror than it does
surprise. We can tell that she recognises the girl
BETH
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
The girl does nothing, but just stands there making the
sickening rasping sound and staring at Beth. Beth covers her
eyes with her hands.
BETH (CONT’D)
This isn't happening, this isn't
happening, this isn't happening.
Slowly, the girl starts to move towards Beth with heavy
footsteps.
BETH (CONT’D)
Stay away from me! Stay away from
me!
The girl pulls out a mirror from behind her back. She holds
it up to Beth. Beth reluctantly looks into the mirror, and
screams at the sight of her reflection. Her face is covered
in it. Blood. It oozes out of scars which are scattered
around her face and neck. Her eyes are bloodshot. She knocks
the mirror out of the girl's hands and shoves her to one
side. She runs out of the room, not bothering to shut the
door.
INT. CORRIDOR, NIGHT
Beth runs down the corridor and swings open the bathroom
door.
INT. BATHROOM, NIGHT
Beth runs into the bathroom and bolts the door behind her.
She ducks behind the bathtub and curls into a ball, shutting
her eyes. The door is being banged and pulled at furiously
from the other side, but the lock holds it shut.
BETH
None of this is real, it's all in
your head.
Beth gradually slows her breathing, trying to calm herself.
Gradually, she opens her eyes. There is a trail of blood next
to her. Reluctantly, she follows the trail. It leads towards
a body. The body of the black-haired girl. She is covered in
stab wounds and her face is pale and lifeless. She lies in
a pool of her own blood. We cut to the reverse shot of Beth,
revealing a kitchen knife in her hand. She looks at her hand
and drops the knife in horror. She steps backward from the
body and lets out a piercing scream.
INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT
We hear the scream, muffled by the walls. Once again,
everything seems uncomfortably still. The camera slowly pans
around the room eventually stopping on a table. As we
move in, we see a picture on top of the table. The picture
shows two girls, happy and smiling. On the left is Beth, a
few years younger, and next to her is a girl with black hair
and blue eyes.
FADE TO BLACK.
Logistically, the film is relatively straight-forward. It only requires one location (a house) and two actors, one of whom doesn't have to do much actual acting. I will probably film it in my own house, which will allow me to experiment before the shoot with lighting, camera angles, etc. As it's set during the night, I could black out the windows and pull down the blinds in my house and film it during the day-time, which would probably give me longer to film. The main challenge will be makeup, as the screenplay draft which I currently have requires lots of blood, scars and a dead body. I've made decent-looking fake blood before, but never in such a large quantity, so I'll have to research and practice some of these techniques. Other than this, I will have to work out a way to make it look like there is more blood appearing on the main character's face as she tries to wipe it off (this will probably come down to careful editing and cutting between different shots). It will also be a challenge to film in small spaces, so I will have to think carefully about how I can realistically position my actors and the camera to make best use of the space.
Once I have re-drafted my screenplay and am happy with it, I will begin assembling a cast (I already have a couple of people who are willing to help) and creating my storyboard, shot list, shooting schedule, risk assessment, etc.
THERE'S SOMETHING ON YOUR FACE
by
Neil Thomson
INT. BATHROOM, NIGHT
We open in an empty bathroom. The room has a sense of quiet
unease about it, and it feels as if there are secrets hidden
behind the walls and beneath the floorboards. There is a
deafening silence in the room, broken only by the slow,
steady dripping of a tap.
A girl, BETH, walks into the bathroom. She appears to be in
her late teens and wears a pair of black pyjamas. She has
bags under her eyelids and seems restless.
She picks up a tube of toothpaste and squeezes it onto her
toothbrush. Just as she lifts the brush to her mouth, she
looks in the mirror and spots something on her cheek. She
puts down the toothbrush and looks closer. There's a small
streak of what appears to be a sticky, red substance. As we
cut to a reverse shot of her face, we see that it only
appears to be on her face in the mirror. She runs her thumb
over the mark and looks at her thumb, but none of the stuff
appears to have wiped off. She picks up a cloth and wipes the
surface of the mirror to see if it's just a stain on the
glass, but the streak remains. She takes a make-up remover
pad and wipes at it, but to no avail. Beth sighs, and walks
out of the room.
INT. CORRIDOR, NIGHT
She walks down the corridor and into her bedroom.
INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT
Once she enters her bedroom, she fumbles around on the wall
before finding the light switch. She flicks on the light to
reveal a full-body mirror at the other end of the room. She
sees her reflection in the mirror and the substance is still
there, but there appears to be more of it. She moves closer
to the mirror to examine her face more closely. What was at
first a small streak has grown, and the red substance is now
covering her entire cheek. Beth can feel her heart rate
rising. She picks up a tissue and scrubs at her face
furiously. When she stops scrubbing, she looks in horror to
see that more of the liquid has materialised on her face,
almost covering it entirely. As we cut to the reverse shot of
her face, we notice a blurred figure standing behind her. It
inhales with a sickening rasp, and Beth turns around with a
shriek.
The figure is a girl, around the same age as Beth, with long
black hair. She has a look of innocence about her and stands
with a neutral expression, staring at Beth with piercing blue
eyes. Beth screams at the sight of her and backs into a
corner. Her expression shows more horror than it does
surprise. We can tell that she recognises the girl
BETH
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
The girl does nothing, but just stands there making the
sickening rasping sound and staring at Beth. Beth covers her
eyes with her hands.
BETH (CONT’D)
This isn't happening, this isn't
happening, this isn't happening.
Slowly, the girl starts to move towards Beth with heavy
footsteps.
BETH (CONT’D)
Stay away from me! Stay away from
me!
The girl pulls out a mirror from behind her back. She holds
it up to Beth. Beth reluctantly looks into the mirror, and
screams at the sight of her reflection. Her face is covered
in it. Blood. It oozes out of scars which are scattered
around her face and neck. Her eyes are bloodshot. She knocks
the mirror out of the girl's hands and shoves her to one
side. She runs out of the room, not bothering to shut the
door.
INT. CORRIDOR, NIGHT
Beth runs down the corridor and swings open the bathroom
door.
INT. BATHROOM, NIGHT
Beth runs into the bathroom and bolts the door behind her.
She ducks behind the bathtub and curls into a ball, shutting
her eyes. The door is being banged and pulled at furiously
from the other side, but the lock holds it shut.
BETH
None of this is real, it's all in
your head.
Beth gradually slows her breathing, trying to calm herself.
Gradually, she opens her eyes. There is a trail of blood next
to her. Reluctantly, she follows the trail. It leads towards
a body. The body of the black-haired girl. She is covered in
stab wounds and her face is pale and lifeless. She lies in
a pool of her own blood. We cut to the reverse shot of Beth,
revealing a kitchen knife in her hand. She looks at her hand
and drops the knife in horror. She steps backward from the
body and lets out a piercing scream.
INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT
We hear the scream, muffled by the walls. Once again,
everything seems uncomfortably still. The camera slowly pans
around the room eventually stopping on a table. As we
move in, we see a picture on top of the table. The picture
shows two girls, happy and smiling. On the left is Beth, a
few years younger, and next to her is a girl with black hair
and blue eyes.
FADE TO BLACK.
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