Page 28 | MASQUERADE | Summer 2009
T h e W r i t e r ' s C r a f t
I n s e r t N a m e H e r e
fi lm script excerpt
Sarah Shelson
grade 12
FADE IN:
1. EXT. TORONTO DAY
Techno music plays as we see a montage of various shots of the city that change in
quick succession to the beat of the music. We change from sweeping visuals of the
Toronto skyline to overhead shots of bustling streets fi lled wriggling lines of people
to kids leaving school with backpacks stuff ed to the brim.
ALLEN
(V.O.)
This
is
our
world.
We see shots from varying angles and closeness of people using technological de-
vices. They are of all ages, genders and ethnic backgrounds. Superimposed graphic
lines and arrows lead from each device to text bubbles that indicate what they are:
"i-Pod Touch 2nd Generation," "Blackberry," etc.
ALLEN
(V.O.
CONT.)
One of the greatest mysteries of evolutionary
biology is the search for the `missing link': the
species that connects humans to beings lower
on the evolutionary chain. But maybe true
understanding of human nature doesn't lie in
the past, but rather in the future. Perhaps humans
are not the ultimate being. Maybe, humans
are the missing link--between apes and cyborgs.
2. EXT. TORONTO PARK DAY
The music cuts out and we see close-up of an i-Phone. The screen is open on a Face-
book profi le page. We can't see a display picture, but we see the status message that
says, "Allen is..." with a fl ashing cursor beside it. The thumbs nimbly type in: "in the
park." The camera violently pitches from left to right, shaking. It rights itself and we
see ANN, a seventeen year old girl with red hair that is messily twisted into pigtails.
Her mouth is puckered in annoyance and her eyes are squinting at ALLEN. The words
"Unknown Girl has just poked you" are superimposed on the screen. This text shifts
upwards and the phrase, "Unknown girl has entered your network" appear. We see AL-
LEN sitting on a bench. ANN sits down beside him, glaring at him. ALLEN crosses his
arms and avoids eye contact. She continues to stare. ALLEN fi nally turns to her.
ALLEN
Ah, do I know you?
ANN
No, but I know you. You are one of those Face
book people. In fact, you're probably thinking
about how to Facebook about this right now.
God forbid the world doesn't know what you're
doing and thinking at every second of every day.
I bet you would write: `So-and-so is having a
conversation with an attractive red-head on a
park bench right now.'
ALLEN
Well, I am not. And if I were, I would write some-
thing more along the lines of: `Allen is in the park
meeting a crazy psycho that won't leave him alone.
ANN
Allen, is it? I'm Ann, and you are on my bench.