Shutter release copy
- 1. (Shutter Release) by (Tasiah K Johnson) ‘When you look into the darkness, the darkness looks into you’ Name (of company, if applicable) Address
- 2. 2 EXT. BRIDGE - SUNSET CUT IN: Alima is walking throughout the street trying to find someone or something to photograph. She is wearing her camera around her neck with a brown satchel across her body - she’s wearing glasses and has her hair pulled back in a ponytail. As she continues walking, she sees a group of people looking up towards a bridge and screaming. She runs up and stops, takes off her glasses, switches her camera to continuos shutter and points her camera at the man on top of the bridge. As the man falls from the bridge Alima takes pictures of him until he hits the ground. Alima takes her camera from her face to which a middle-aged woman looks at her and approaches her. MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN H-how could you photograph something like that? ALIMA What do you mean? You were the one watching. The middle-aged woman then walks away from Alima mumbling to herself. Alima then puts her glasses back on and puts her camera into her satchel - and carries on walking past the incident, she takes a second look at the man on the ground in the mist of chaos. She walks further along and begins to breathe heavily as she feels guilty for photographing a man falling to his death. INT. HOME - EVENING CUT IN: Alima then gets home from her walk and enters her house, she goes into her living room and sits down on the sofa. She takes her camera from out of her bag and begins to flick through the pictures that she took. Alima’s mom then comes into the room from the kitchen and takes a oppose Alima. ALIMA’S MOM Hi, how was your day? ALIMA It was extremely chaotic. I was the witness of a suicide and honestly, i’d rather not talk about it at the moment. My left eye has become incredibly itchy
- 3. 3 and right now I just want to be alone. ALIMA’S MOM My day was great thanks for asking. Your eye is going red, clear it out before you go to sleep. ALIMA (sighs) I will. Anyways, what’s for dinner? I’m - ALIMA’S MOM What’s on the camera? ALIMA Nothing, just changing the settings. Alima then gets up off from the sofa and leaves the living room to go and get changed into her pyjamas. Alima’s mom then gets a hold of the camera and sees what Alima was photographing earlier on in the day, she places her hand over her mouth in disbelief. She hears Alima coming down the stairs and puts the camera back down on the sofa. Alima enters the living room again and grabs the camera from the chair - and brings it into her bedroom. INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT CUT TO: Alima gets into her room and throws her camera onto her bed - she hears scratching coming from her window. Alima walks up to her window and sees a young boy walking with what appears to be his mother, the young boy then drops and lands in a similar position to the man who fell from the bridge. Alima begins to panic as this reminds her of what happened earlier on in the day - she immediately closes her curtains, grabs the camera and deletes the images of the man she took, she then places it on her dressing table. Alima then gets into bed and reaches for her lamp and turns it off. INT. SKATEPARK - NOON FADE IN:
- 4. 4 The following day Alima arrives at a skatepark to photograph skaters. As she’s walking she spots a boy and a girl who she wants to photograph. She lifts the camera from around her neck and places it towards her left eye (which is now significantly red) - in the viewfinder she sees the same man who she saw on the bridge falling from the previous day. She then lets out a shriek and lets go of the camera, she then starts to walk away from the skatepark whilst shaking. SKATER 1 (shouts) Hey! Are you okay? SKATER 2 I dunno what’s going on with her, I swear she’s lost the plot. As Alima is walking back home her eye begins to itch again, at this point her eye is extremely red. She then gets out her phone and calls her friend Oscar. ALIMA Hi Oscar, it’s Alima. Are you available right now to come to the library? It’s urgent. OSCAR (voice over) Hey, and no I’m not doing anything right now. I’ll meet you there in 5. ALIMA That’s great, see you later. INT. LIBRARY - AFTERNOON FADE IN: Alima is sitting down at a computer desk in the library, while she waits for Oscar she begins to investigate in the camera - she grabs the camera and turns it on its side in order to see the make. She places the camera on the desk and begins typing on the computer - we then see Oscar’s hands behind Alima to which he startles her, he then laughs and sits beside her. ALIMA (in shock) Oh my gosh Oscar, don't do that! OSCAR (whilst laughing)
- 5. 5 I’m sorry, anyways… what’s up ALIMA The other day, I-I was walking and I saw a guy on a bridge. OSCAR and? ALIMA He jumped OSCAR No way, is that all you wanted to tell me? ALIMA well… there’s something else. OSCAR go on… ALIMA I photographed him as he fell to his death. Oscar starts to roll his eyes as if Alima is lying to him. Ever since, my left eye has been incredibly itchy… the same eye I bring my camera up to. I keep seeing people fall and each time I look into my viewfinder I-I see him falling from the bridge. OSCAR Give me the camera Alima, you’re going mad. Alima hands the camera over to Oscar. Say cheese! Oscar brings the camera up to his eye, he gets an instant sharp pain in his eye. Aaah! Oscar pulls the camera away from his face and places his hand on his eye in agony ALIMA (in shock) What?!
- 6. 6 OSCAR My eye Alima, it’s as if the camera shocked me. That’s not right. ALIMA (quietly) Now you believe me? OSCAR Okay okay fine I believe you, so now what? ALIMA I’m not sure. Listen, I have to get back home now, my mom’s going to kill me - i’m already late. Alima gets up, hugs Oscar and leaves the library. Oscar begins to itch his eye and it looks slightly pink. He gets up and also leaves the library. INT. HOME - SUNSET CUT IN: Alima comes into the house and quietly closes the door behind her, she walks slowly and quietly into the living room. She takes a seat to which her mom walks in. ALIMA’S MOM You’re late ALIMA I know, I'm sorry. I was with Oscar. Alima’s mom rolls her eyes and sighs - she begins to put her coat on. ALIMA’S MOM Your foods on the stove since you missed dinner. I’m leaving to go to your grandmas. ALIMA Have fun, see you later.
- 7. 7 We hear the door close. She then enters the kitchen to get her food. As she’s picking up the food she has another vision of the man falling from the bridge from her kitchen window. Alima gasps, closes her eyes, shakes her head and opens her eyes again, she looks out the window again and nothing’s there. She carries the plate and runs up to her room in complete and utter shock. INT. BEDROOM - EVENING CUT IN: Alima closes the door behind her and immediately closes her blinds, she places her diner plate on her bed and takes off her coat and shoes. She gets into her bed and grabs a book from her drawer, she begins eating whilst reading. Shortly after, her phone starts to ring, she reaches over and answers it - it’s Oscar. ALIMA Hey, is everything okay? OSCAR No, I saw what you saw. ALIMA I’m confused, what did you see? OSCAR (panting) Was the man on the bridge wearing a red jumper with black jeans and white trainers? You know, with a black beanie on and was the bridge blue? ALIMA Y-yes, exactly that. How did you know? OSCAR Because, I see him too. ALIMA Okay i’m about to say something that may sound completely insane but… what if… we’re cursed or something because of me, or what if I cursed the guy who fell! I photographed a tragedy Oscar, the camera has retained that incident… the camera isn’t cursed because we’re the ones seeing the visions. It’s us Oscar. Us.
- 8. 8 OSCAR We need to go to the bridge. It’s the only way we can get to the bottom of this. Tomorrow, meet me there at 11:30, bring your camera and don’t be late. Oscar then puts the phone down and Alima brings the phone down from her face. She then calls her cousin who she had photographed since the bridge event took place. JODIE Hey Alima ALIMA Hey! Err, you know when I photographed you the other day? JODIE Yeah… ALIMA Have you been seeing or feeling anything weird lately? JODIE Like what? ALIMA Itchy eyes? Seeing people fall too often? Any visions of a blue bridge? JODIE No. Nothing. That’s a bit random Alima, is everything alright? What’s going on? ALIMA Nothing Jodie, don’t worry about it. I’ll explain another time just not now. JODIE I’ll take your word for it. Listen, it’s getting late. I’ll talk to you later Alima. ALIMA Speak to you later, bye. Alima hangs up the phone and a tear falls from her face. She puts her unfinished food and book on the floor next to her bed.
- 9. 9 (mumbles) Why did I shoot him? So, so, so idiosyncratic. Alima tucks herself deeper into her bed, turns off her lamp and closes her eyes. EXT. BRIDGE - MORNING FADE IN: Oscar is standing near the bridge, he sees Alima walking towards him in the distance. OSCAR (raised) You’re late. ALIMA (raised) I’m aware. I kinda known for that. From the top of the bridge Alima and Oscar can hear multiple whispers saying ‘two days’ - they both turn around and look up to see what’s happening. ALIMA What’s tha- FADE TO BLACK: FADE FROM BLACK: We see Alimas camera on the ground next to her clothes, glasses and bag. To the right of this we see Oscars baseball cap and gloves on the ground, neither of them are anywhere to be seen. After this we see two boys walking through the bridge location - the first boy notices Alima’s camera on the ground, he looks around and picks it up and places it around his neck. BOY 1 Let me photograph you. Boy 1 brings the camera up to his left eye and presses the shutter, he begins to itch his eye. BOY 2 Ew. Your eye looks gross. BOY 1 What the hell is going on?
- 10. 10 Extreme close up of Boy 1’s eye, we see the camera lens within his eye. The shutter releases within his eye. After this both boys can hear whispers which appear to be laughing whilst saying ‘two days boys’. Boy 2 looks up first and his face is in shock. He repeatedly taps Boy 1 in order for him to look up too. Boy 1 turns around and looks up. BOY 2 Y-you see tha- CUT TO BLACK We hear them both scream.
- 11. 1 FADE IN:
- 12. 1. SCENE INDEX EXT. BRIDGE - SUNSET ..................................2 INT. HOME - EVENING ...................................2 INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT ..................................3 INT. SKATEPARK - NOON .................................3 INT. LIBRARY - AFTERNOON...............................4 INT. HOME - SUNSET ....................................6 INT. BEDROOM - EVENING.................................7 EXT. BRIDGE - MORNING .................................9