DOPE - A ghost busting story

So, I am taking a little break from the horror because this little scene came into my head and I wanted to write it down. It's for a script idea I had worked on previously and it can either be molded into it's own little stand alone short, or it can find it's way as a scene in a longer script. Anyway, at least now I have it on the page. 

DOPE – The Department of Paranormal Events is the low level branch of the provincial government where Investigations and Removals specialists Rooney, Ervin and Randal are pitted up against ghosts, goblins, demons, vampires, zombies and more ghosts all for less pay than the city gives to their average parking enforcement officer.

ERVIN - Black male - Very large and put together, very physically capable and smart. Good at his job. A huge nerd.

ROONEY - Caucasian man - Tattooed, surly, strong. The human embodiement of every pissed off, underpaid worker.

RANDAL - An intellectual. Very small and meek.

2 Locations:

Rooney - Interior- An old, dark basement. 

Ervin - Exterior - A nearby cemetary

The two men are standing in different locations, Ervin at a cemetery and Rooney is in a dark basement carrying a computer/tablet which glows brightly in the blackened room. Rooney kneels in position and presses the radio button on his shoulder. Ervin responds.

Rooney
Ok, I am in the dead room. What did you want me to do with this?

Ervin

Easy, just set up your RASS.

Rooney has absolutely no idea what that meant but he'd rather try to figure it out on his own then lose face to Ervin. He looks all over the glowing tablet but can't find any clues, frustratedly he responds back to Ervin.

Rooney

 Say again.

Ervin

Your RASS, I need you to run a spectral. 

Rooney

STOP saying RASS. I don't know what that is. 

Ervin

THE THING YOU'RE HOLDING! Your Radial Analytical Spectral System.

Rooney

What, this little computer you gave me?

Ervin

YES! How do you not know this?

Rooney

I consider it unprofessional to use abbreviations!

Ervin

Rooney. Seriously, do you not know how to run a scan?

Rooney

I was never briefed on this equipment. 

Ervin

YES YOU WERE! I briefed you, we had an hour long training session last week. 

Rooney

When?

Ervin

LAST WEEK!

Rooney

We had FIFTY training sessions last week!

Ervin

We had 6!

Rooney

That's a lot! I don't EVER remember hearing about any RASS or seeing this thing before. There's no way I was at that session.

Ervin

Oh my god. You were there. 

Rooney, why did you agree to run the spectral analysis if you didn't know how to do it? That's why I asked you if you read the manuals. You said you did.

Rooney

I did say that. Yeah. 

Ervin

You messed up bad. When I tell you to do your homework; DO IT. This is dangerous.

Rooney

Why don't you just come down here and help me?

Ervin

I CAN'T. The client said he saw the boy's ghost in the graveyard. 

Rooney

Then why did you send me to a dark basement?

Ervin

Because you'll be able to get a reading from the room the ghost died in. We'll know what kind of spectre it is and we can set our guns to it.

Each is holding a hand held, glowing gun shaped phaser.

Rooney

Ok. FINE. What do I do?

Ervin

Open the start menu

Rooney

Done

Ervin

Chose your classification. What kind of ghost are we looking for?

Rooney

Some little kid ghost.

Ervin

MANIFESTED! As in it's here, it's crossed back over and can interact with things. It can touch stuff.

Rooney

Ok. Now I chose "vapor state being"?

Ervin

Jesus Rooney! Chose Ectoplasmic Identification...god...

Rooney

I WASN'T AT THE TRAINING SESSION!

Ervin

THAT'S IT. I am radioing the Department. I am going to get them to pull the attendance card that you SIGNED when you were AT the meeting.

This annoys Rooney but before he can fire back at Ervin his device starts to glow brightly. Ervin presses the radio on his shoulder, patching through to Randal who's working the desk back at the department. The shot bounces back between the 3 locations. 

Ervin - Cemetary
Rooney - Dark basement
Randal - Working the desk at the department

Ervin

Randal. I need you to pull the attendance sheet from last weeks RASS training session.

Randal

Why?

Ervin
I want to know if Rooney was in that session.

Randal
Rooney's in trouble again?

Back in the basement Rooney's machine is going haywire, he's trying to figure it out when a chilling looking ghost of a young boy bursts through the wall. Rooney is attacked. Ervin and Randal don't notice.

Randal

  Well he was definitely there. 

Ervin

You have the sheet?

Randal

I don't need one. He spilled coffee all over his RASS unit, the Department has to pay to have it serviced. I am filling out the expense report now.

In the basement the room is in chaos. The room is being pulled apart as though a tornado has touched down, Rooney is being pounced upon by the ghost. He's trying desperately to fight back. Over the radio on his shoulder he can hear the conversation between his co-workers.

Ervin

You're an idiot Rooney.

-DOPE-

Imaging Being In The Middle Of The Ocean and Coming Face To Face With A Messed Up Fish-Man? Seriously. Imagine That.

I am at the point in the script where I've already written out this scene, I rewrote a few things for pacing. I am actually making some pretty good progress on this thing, this blog works.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Day - Interior/Boat

Darcy wakes up to find herself alone again, the storm has stopped and the water has settled. There's a soft rocking and the sound of a calm ocean gently splashing against her boat. The door topside is open and gives frame to soft rays of sunlight as the day breaks. The sunlight outside is strong and gorgeous. It lifts Darcy's mood and she heads upstairs to find Cade.

When she gets to the top she can't see Cade, she looks around the small deck but doesn't see him, there are scrapes along the surface of the boat and the sails have be battered by the storm. The boat is in rough shape. Darcy races back down stairs to check for Cade, he's not there.

Now the panic is starting to hit her. She calls out of him.

Darcy

CADE!

Nothing but eery silence.

Darcy looks in the water, running around the boat looking for some sign of Cade. There's nothing. He's vanished.

The disbelief hits her, it only took a few panicked seconds for her to search the small boat and he's nowhere to be found. She runs out onto the bow, her head spinning. He has to be in the water, he HAS to be in the water. She screams out again and again at the top of her lungs until her throat is coarse.

Darcy
CAAAAAADE!

Silence. Darcy is frozen where she stands, silently begging Cade to show himself. She runs over the the radio; it's been destroyed by the storm. She goes back into the boat and tears it apart, looking for anything but finding nothing, no sign of where Cade went. She cries and screams until finally passing out from the stress.

Evening - Interior: Below Deck - It's getting dark

It's much later in the day, Darcy is curled up in a ball on the floor. She's wide awake and silently mouthing something inaudible. The room behind her is torn apart. She's broken, staring off into space trying to keep herself together.

A large splash is heard in the water near her boat, Darcy springs to life and runs to the bow of the ship; she calls out to Cade but there's still no response. The splashing came from about 20 ft away but it's too dark for her to see anything clearly. She frantically searches the boat until she finds a flashlight and races back to the bow to shine the light where she thinks she heard the splashing. She scans the water, her desperation and sense of panic is evidenced by the noticeable shaking of her light.

 

Darcy
CADE! PLEASE!

The light hangs on the water and catches a glimpse of something that disappears in an instant. It startles Darcy off her feet and she almost drops the light in the water, she steadies herself and shines the light back on the water. She refuses to believe what she saw, her mind races with possibilities; looking for an alternative explanation for what she thinks she saw. A face. A face of something in the water watching her, with large fish-like eyes and teeth.

In the distance she hears the strange sound of a high pitched clicking, the same sounds she heard on the first night only this time much, much closer.

-cont'd-

I Hope You Like Cade...He's Doomed.

I am still rolling on this horror script, my goal is to have a finished feature length horror script finished by the end of next month. Once again here's what I am working on:

Logline: Darcy's fiance is missing and she's left alone in the middle of the ocean with a strange creature stalking her broken boat.

 Lurking - Synopsis

Lurking - Part 1

Lurking - Part 2

INTERIOR - Below deck

The next morining Darcy wakes up alone in bed, the ship is rocking and there's a lot of movement up top. Darcy gets up to investigate, as she takes the small flight of stairs leaving to the deck she notices the clouds. It's early morning but there's the ominous darkness to the day, the clouds seem to be making their way downwards; bearing down on her. Cade is racing around the deck securing everything on the boat, he runs over to a radio and tweaks the dials until he hears someone on the other end. He gives his position to the person over the radio who tells him he's going to have to batten down the hatches and make it through the night on his own. This scares Darcy.

Cade races about, he ties down every line, brings supplies below deck and double checks every inch of their small two person sailboat. Finally he races back below deck and comes up with two life vests, he hands one to Darcy, the gesture cements the gravity of the situation in her eyes and it shows. Amongst the rain, the rocking of the boat and the frantic pace of the moment Cade stops to comfort his love.

Cade

I always knew we'd hit a storm Sweetheart, this was always part of the plan. We're ready.

Darcy

Cade, I am freaking out.

Cade

You don't have to. Sweetheart I've stared into the eye of a million storms out here. Do you trust me?

Darcy

Yes.

Cade

I've got this.

Darcy

What do we do?

The storm breaks and pounds down on the small boat.

Cade

I'll do what I always do when the ocean picks a fight with me, I fight back.

The ocean is in chaos around them, Cade stands his ground. He holds Darcy's hand.

Darcy

The sunshine tomorrow is going to be beautiful.

With that Cade takes the wheel of the boat, he ushers Darcy inside as the storm assaults him. Darcy sits back and watches her fiance fight for their boat. He shouts as the waves hit him and break apart on the side of their boat; he taunts daringly at the storm. Thunder shatters the sky, the whole scene is too much for Darcy. She covers her ears, puts her head between her knees and closes her eyes.

INTERIOR - Below deck

The camera immediately cuts to a shot of Darcy in bed, she's curled up into a ball laying motionless with her eyes open. The boat is rocking, the storm outside is still assaulting their boat. Cade is beside her, holding her tightly. It's a touching scene, he kisses her; holds her tightly and comforts her. Outside the storm rages on.

- Cont'd -

Darcy's fiance is missing and she's left alone in the middle of the ocean with a strange creature stalking her broken boat.

Logline: Darcy's fiance is missing and she's left alone in the middle of the ocean with a strange creature stalking her broken boat.

And now here's part two of the horror script I am working on.

 SYNOPSIS

PART 1

INTERIOR - DAY - BAR

Darcy and Cade are seated at the head of a table of well wishers, behind them reads a sign that says "Congratulations Darcy and Cade". At the gathering are Darcy's parents, he mother goes to approach her.

Mom

Hunny are you sure about this?

Darcy

No but I am excited about it. We'll be safe, I told Cade that I want to stay as close to the coastline as we can.

Mom

What happens if you get in trouble, you'll be all alone out there?

Darcy

I WON'T be alone, I'll be with Cade and I trust him. 

Darcy's mom's look of worry doesn't fade but she doesn't want to rain on her daughter's party, Darcy sees her mother's worry and gives her a hug. Elsewhere at the party Darcy's father is grilling Cade comically on his preparations, running down a list of supplies he insists Cade stock for safety. The party guests all profess jealousy and well wishes towards the couple and are even there to see them off the next morning at the docks.

The morning is beautiful, there's a calmness to the ocean and with the sunlight dancing off the water Darcy sees for the first time a piece of the beauty that Cade is so eager to share with her. The two climb aboard the small boat and wave goodbye as the shove off. Together they watch the crowd filter out as they float away. 

EXTERIOR - ON DECK - NIGHT

It's a beautiful night, the lights of the city are at a distance and the stars in the sky have become more vivid, Darcy can't take her eyes off them. In the distance the sound of a high pitched clicking catches her attention but only for second. Darcy is laid out on a red blanket on the bow of the boat, around her are rose petals and candles which blow and flicker in the wind. Cade comes up from below deck holding a bottle of wine and two glasses.

Darcy

You did think of everything.

He lays down beside his fiance and stares deeply into her eyes. 

Cade

How come you never told me how pretty you look underneath the stars?

Darcy

I didn't even know half these stars existed. I can't stop staring at them, the sky is so black out here. It feels like there's no more sky, like I am just looking right out into space.

Cade never looks up, he doesn't take his gaze away from her.

Cade

Space is pretty

Darcy

Space IS pretty.

Cade
I love you Darcy

Darcy kisses him, the two drop their glasses and get lost in a passionate embrace. The camera pulls away from their intimate moment together, across the black water. The light from the candles still illuminate the ship as the camera pans further and further back across the ocean. Finally the boat is so far away that it's just a small flicker on the water. Loudly and startlingly a loud, amphibian sounding high pitched screech can be heard directly into the camera. The unnerving screech is followed by a watery clicking sound. 

Darcy Wakes Up Alone and Stranded In The Middle Of the Sea With Something In The Water Stalking Her Boat

Yeah so; change of plans. I wanted to get to work on a romantic comedy but frankly I just wasn't feeling it. I still really want to write one but I haven't come up with something that feels quite right yet, I've been wrecking my brain trying actually. I've decided to stop.

In the meantime I want to actually get a script finished. ACTUALLY finished. Something I can try shopping around just to see what kind of feedback I get. I am going to write the horror movie that I've already conceived, start to finish.

Here's what I wrote previously for reference:

http://apeday.blogspot.ca/2013/03/horror-movie-idea-dont-steal-it.html
http://apeday.blogspot.ca/2013/03/imagine-being-stranded-in-ocean-and.html
http://apeday.blogspot.ca/2013/03/the-time-bully-had-me-cornered-in.html



Exterior - A dock

We open with a shot of Cade working on a small boat, the framing is such that the boat is in the lower left hand of the screen with the rest of the frame being the expansive ocean which goes on for unthinkable miles in all directions. Cade is going over a checklist, his boat is very well maintained. He has a bunch of supplies on the deck and he's meticulously maintaining a catalog of everything he brings aboard.

Cade is an avid sailor, his olive tan is a testament to how often he takes his boat out. Cade's practically lived on the water his whole life and he gives his lifestyle credit for his relaxed disposition and sense of calm. This trip mean more to Cade, there's a reason he's taking it so seriously. He's going over the numbers on paper, checking all his instruments and surveying weather patterns. Checking over his own work like and inspector. As he scribbles through the pages of his note book he looks away from the water towards a grassy hill which slopes beautifully along a charming dirt pathway towards the docks. Glimmering in the sun he see's something that changes his whole aura, in that moment everything slows down. In that moment as the sun shimmers off the beautiful blond hair of the petite little woman he called his fiance; in that moment he feel like he has all the time in the world and all he wants to do with it is watch her. He loves that girl.  She sees him looking her way and smiles, like always he gets butterflies in his stomach. The girl goes over the hill and down the pathway, for just a second she seems to lose control of the bike but regains her balance quickly. When she looks up again Cade is laughing to himself. She pulls up beside him and walks right into his arms.

Darcy

Oh my God I wasn't expecting the dirt to be so loose at the bottom

Cade

Darcy. Use your breaks, those things attached to your handles. 

Darcy

I hate my breaks.

Cade kisses Darcy on the forehead. 

Cade

I would have run over there and caught you at the last second y'know.

Darcy

Awww...I almost believe that.

Darcy looks around at all the work Cade's been putting in. 

Darcy

Cade, I didn't know you had so much to do. Let  me help you.

Cade

Sure. Help me change out this bilge pump and then re-furl the sails.

Darcy looks at him, defeated by her utter lack of understanding any of the terms Cade just threw at her. Cade smiles back at her.

Cade

Baby I got this. This was my idea, I've been waiting to take you on this trip since we started dating. I'll make sure I have everything covered, I don't want you to worry about anything. Baby. We're going to sail around the world together.

Darcy

We're going to be in the middle of the ocean and I've never sailed before. Cade...what happens if a storm hits?

Cade

Then we get wet and we keep floating. I've been through some incredible storms Darcy, you won't believe how beautiful the water is after one passes. We'll see rainbows for miles. 

Darcy

What if a shark attacks us? 

Cade

Our boat? Baby, sharks can't hurt our boat. Even if they could I wouldn't let them, I'd punch it to pieces the second he looked at you funny.

Darcy laughs and Cade wraps his arms around her.

Cade

Be happy Baby.

As the two lovers embrace the camera pulls back, slowly at first over the water. As the camera pulls away it speeds up and reveals more and more ocean. Soon Darcy and Cade and their little boat are just specks surrounded by water, the endless ocean their about to set sail into.

 -LURKING-

Welcome New Viewers

As my view count has been increasing over the last few weeks I figure now's a good time to re-introduce myself and what this blog's all about.

My name is Thomas Holler and this blog's purpose is to kick me in the ass and get me writing more. I work in a day to day office job that eats up almost all my damn time and I needed something to motivate me to write. Writing is something I've always done, I went to school for media and focused on creative writing and communications. When the economy fell through the floor and left most of us feeling insecure about this marketplace I made the decision to try to build a more professional resume in the field of business, or administration or something corporate. Anything that felt more secure than TV and media did at the time, so I walked away and got a job at a bank. It's a decision I made out of self preservation but it's one that's never sat well. I was a dreamer once, I wanted to create my own films and now here I find myself working the least creative job a man can have. Corporate admin. I like the security it offers and there are perks to being in a big company but it's something I feel like I can never have my heart 100% invested in. My dream is to write. I want to work from home, I want to get paid based on something that I create myself. I want to wake up, make breakfast and sit down in my office in my underwear and start writing and have THAT be how I start each morning rather than racing to get on the disgusting subway everyday.


Hence this blog. It's a place where I can come when I feel inspired, its a place where I can work out ideas and collect an archive of scripts. It's worked too, I am currently putting a production called DOPE together based on a series of scripts I wrote early in the site's history. I've developed ideas for internet shorts called House Arrested which I'll come back to one day and came up with a short script about a brutal anti-hero. One day I'll come up with a link for all the scripts and articles I've written on here but that won't be tonight. Tonight I should actually be in bed getting ready to hop on the disgusting subway.

I'll be back tomorrow trying to write a romantic comedy script...it's not going well so far. I am just not feeling my first Rom Com idea, I need a new one. Tomorrow I am going to try to come up with a really good synopsis for a romantic comedy that I love enough to really want to dive in to the script. Tonight I am going to bed.

-Thomas Holler-

The Beautiful - Written by and staring Thomas Holler

And here's a GREAT little horror I was in hosted by horrorpalace.com, just click this pic.

Tom's Still Writing A Romantic Comedy

Back to it.

Audrey up there is here to remind me that I am writing a romantic comedy, the other day I tried writing some relationship dialogue for the first time in my life. I jumped right into the middle of my movie and wrote the scene where the couple has their key fight, today I am going to try writing something a little earlier in the relationship when things are new and everything's all roses.

I am going to just jump in right in the middle of a conversation:

Once again, my Rom Com idea:

Brandon is madly in love with his girlfriend Mika and is finally invited to meet her friends, he hopes he can win them over because he knows how much they mean to her. He can't. At the diner party he clashes with every single one of them, by the end of the night Brandon can honestly say he genuinely hates every single one of them and he knows the feeling is mutual. Mika's friends mean the world to her and Brandon feels a distance growing between them as she's forced to constantly choose between her boyfriend and her friends. Brandon decides to right his wrong by winning over the affections of a group of people he absolutely can't stand, who absolutely can't stand him.

Mika
Why are you staring at me?

Brandon
Because I am not gay.

Mika
You want to explain those sandals to me then?

Brandon
It's called summer.

Mika
It's called those are girl sandals.

Brandon
It's called there's no way these are made for girls if they fit me.

Mika
What size are your feet?

Brandon
9

Mika
OMG your feet are tiny.

Brandon
What? Size 9 is normal for a guy.

Mika
No way, I am women's size 8 and I think my feet are bigger than yours.

Brandon
ok, feet to feet.

They press their feet together to compare size. 

Brandon

Congratulations your feet are huge.

Mika laughs

Brandon

Do you want to take a walk with me?

Mika

In those sandles?

Sure.

A short Script About 3 Roommates, One Of Whom Eats A Spider

So. I've been wanting to continue with my Romantic Comedy script but I've been a little distracted.

Tomorrow I am back to it but for now here's a re-post of a really short script about three roommates, one of them eats a spider.

From the APE archives:

http://apeday.blogspot.ca/2012/09/dumb-little-script-where-guy-eats-spider.html

And now I've drawn TWO Chocolate Chip Spiders