FADE IN
Act 1
INT. BEDROOM - 23:45 (THE NIGHT BEFORE)
In bed, PETER is in thoughts.
PETER (V.O.): Should I visit an outlying island beach tomorrow? But all lifeguard services have been suspended.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): If I don't swim, I can focus on songwriting.
Peter sleeps. Later, Peter wakes up. Checking the time, he sees 02:45.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Anything to do with the coffee that I had at lunch?
Thinking of something, Peter jots down some words in Chinese and English on sheet#1.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've just cooked up the lyrics of a possible trilingual song!
Going back to bed, Peter tosses and turns all night.
Act 2
INT. DINING ROOM - 08:15
Peter is having breakfast with KAJI, the family pet.
PETER (V.O.): Feeling unrefreshed, I've no inclination to go anywhere today.
INT. STUDIO - 09:15
Lying on a sofa, Peter checks Yahoo!Finance on his phone screen.
PETER (V.O.): Despite good news, the Hong Kong stock market fell considerably yesterday.
Peter checks his investment portfolio.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The market may rise today. Let me place some "Sell" orders. I need cash to pay the taxman.
Having typed on screen, Peter picks up a 12-string Fender Villager acoustic guitar.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I haven't played this one for a long time. I've many guitars at home.
Peter tunes the guitar with the Guitar Tuna app.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I go to outlying islands, I take the handy ukulele and learn to play it well.
Having tuned the 12 strings, Peter strums the guitar. We hear special rich sounds.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me use it to compose the melody for the lyrics that I wrote in the small hours this morning.
Playing guitar chords C, Am, F, G7, Peter is improvising a song.
PETER (V.O.): OMG, I'm singing different lyrics as they sound better with the melody being improvised.
Peter jots down his new lyrics on sheet#2.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Same unique theme, but more emotional. I like the new lyrics.
Peter then taps Voice Memo on his phone screen.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me record my new song.
Abruptly, Peter pauses.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, my heart speaks....
Peter hums catchy notes: Ah...Ah...Ah...Ah...
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): A really good tune!
Recording. Peter first hums Ah...Ah...Ah...Ah...and then continues to play other guitar chords.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've got another new melody. It's completely different from the one I improvised moments ago.
After jotting down the song's melodic structure on sheet#3, Peter stares at sheet#2.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've already forgotten the melody. It's done.
Frustrated, Peter puts aside his smart phone and guitar.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That's enough for today.
Later, Peter plays the piano. We hear the John Lennon song: Imagine.
PETER (V.O.): In "McCartney's 3,2,1", the celebrity says that in the early 1960s, there wasn't any mobile recording machine, but John Lennon could remember their new songs.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): He must have higher IQ than others.
As he's about to play another song, Peter stops.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, I've forgotten how to play other songs.
Exhausted, Peter retreats to the sofa.
Act 3
INT. BEDROOM - 20:00
Peter works on a laptop.
PETER (V.O.): Two of my stock orders were executed. The Hong Kong stock market has recovered yesterday's loss.
From the radio, we hear: On Dec 1980, John Lennon was shot to death outside his apartment building in New York City. He was 40.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Sometimes, things don't go as planned. They take unexpected twists and turns. It's fortunate that I can still face them.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): What looks like a very bad day can be just clearing the way for good things to come. Let me embrace my tomorrow.
THE END
FADE OUT
top of page
Search
Recent Posts
See Allbottom of page
Comments