Nick Rotolo
Systems Engineering II
Math and Science Analysis
Math
Budgeting
One aspect of filming that involves math is budgeting. Budgeting has to take place to separate the creative vision of the movie from what is financially feasible. Budgeting can help to make wise decisions to help get “every penny on the screen.”
Editing
Math can be used during post-production. Editors use math to calculate transition lengths. Eventually, an experienced editor will actually be able to feel the difference between certain calculations.
Camera
For my movie, the most frequent camera angle I am going to use is the midshot. This shot is ideal for showing action while still keeping it close enough to the camera. A closeup would obviously show only a small amount of this, and a longshot would be way too far away. The headshot that I am using is ideal for dialogue scenes. The camera can dramatically change the look of the film by using different lenses or filters.
Science/Technology
Film History 1900s-2000
Technology in the film industry has grown very rapidly. From its beginning in the early 1900s, to the current era of digital special effects, filming has come a very long way.
Film was born in the late 1890s. It started growing in the early 1900s, with a plethora of silent films. During this time period, Hollywood came into being in California. In 1910, Thomas Edison created the kinetophone, which enable film producers to make “talkies,” or films with sound. With this new technology, the film industry grew even more. It was during this time that the industry really came together. The 1920s saw a large amount of films coming out. New techniques such as the montage were pioneered.
Then came the 1930s, a time when the world was sunk in a great depression. Despite that, the film industry still grew. The era is referred to as the “Golden Age of Hollywood.” More and more genres sprouted up to make their debut in the world of film, including musicals, gangster films, newspaper movies, westerns, comedies, melodramas and horror.
In the 1950s, television was gaining popularity, and the film industry was trying to counteract this with various gimmicks. These ranged from increasing the use of color, using widescreen formats, making 3D movies, and using Smell-O-Vision. The latter two were obviously not very successful, although you may find it interesting to know that 3D movies still pop up every now and again, despite their rather unsuccessful history.
By the 1960s and 1970s, special effects were starting to be used more and more. Films such as Star Wars, made in 1977, relied heavily on special effects. Another thing that happened during this time and still continues to happen is the breakaway from Hollywood. “Indies,” or independent filmmakers, were starting to create films of their own, and instead of using Hollywood’s equipment to create special effects, they did so through the use of computers. The use of the computer was primitive at this point, but during the 1990s and 2000s, it became much more sophisticated, and digital film making became much more commonplace.
Video Camera
The digital video camera is the essential tool of the independent filmmaker. It is the equipment used to physically film the action taking place. Without this, there would be nothing to put together. Once the filming is complete, the camera can be plugged via USB port into the computer, and the rest of the movie will be created with the editing software.
Microphone Input
When I will be filming my movie, I am going to use a microphone input. This is a port on the camera in which a microphone can be attached during filming. This device will help to pick up sound as if it were up close even if the camera is at a distance from the actors.
Editing Software
The editing software is what is used to put the movie together. When the camera is plugged into the computer, all of the scenes will be put into the image pool. From there, they can be rearranged or shortened. Sound files can be added to play overtop of the video. At the cost of slightly decreasing image quality, various special effects can be added to the footage as well. The specific software I will be using is called Sonic Studio. It was actually given to me by my mentor, who was able to walk me through its use and various functions.
Conclusion
Math, science, and technology all come into play in the film industry. Without them, filming could not exist as it does today. Advances in computer technology have enabled filmmakers to create unimaginably realistic effects that really feel like they are happening. Different camera angles can be used to better tell the story that is trying to get across. I plan on taking every possible advantage to ensure the success of my project, and I will have to rely heavily on the technology needed to do it.
Works Cited
1. Dirks, Tim. Film History by Decade. http://www.filmsite.org/filmh.html.
1996-2008.
2. Wagner, Jane. DiFeliciantonio, Tina. Mathline. http://www.pbs.org/teachers/mathline/career/career0300b.shtm
Pictures1. http://img.epinions.com/images/opti/fd/02/SAMSUNG_D353_MINIDV_DIGITALVID EO_CAMERA_Camcorder-resized200.jpg
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Script
“Strange Brew”
By: Nick Rotolo
Script
Nick sprinted down the road. He did not look back, because he knew they were behind him. He couldn’t look back. He couldn’t stop running. If he stopped, he would die. There was tall grass on the right of him. Seeing no other option, dove into it. Nick could see the zombies shambling by as he tried to lie as quietly as possible. It seemed as if they were walking by. He stood up to make sure it was clear, when something grabbed him from behind.
*TWO WEEKS EARLIER*
Business Meeting Scene
George sat down at the head chair in the meeting room. He confidently awaited the arrival of his business associates.
George (to his assistant): I would like for Harry to update me about the problem he mentioned. Could you get him for me?
Assistant: Right away, sir. *exits room*
As the assistant leaves, seven of George’s business associates enter the room and sit down at the table.
George: Ahh, excellent. Please, sit down, sit down. Well let’s get this meeting started, shall we? We’ll start with the distribution plan. John, would you like to explain what has been going on?
John: Certainly George. As you all know, this product is excellent at doing what it is supposed to do. It is an energy drink that lasts for up to thirty-six hours, and does not end with the infamous “crash.” It is also quite delicious. The main problem we are facing is cost. It is a bit more expensive then other energy drinks out there. It is also brand new, and we don’t know how it will fare in the free market as of yet. Therefore, the plan we have proposed is to distribute it as if we were putting it out on the open market to a single county in the country. We chose New Jersey because that is our company’s home base state, and the county we chose to try this in is Monmouth.
Businesswoman: When was the test started?
John: We distributed the product three months ago, and plan to collect all the feedback in another month. At that point we will analyze it and continue from there.
Businessman: What is your plan for obtaining feedback?
John: We have created an online survey and we have sent representatives to the various stores to personally collect feedback. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe it was every two weeks, yes?
George: Yes, yes that’s right.
At that moment, Harry walks into the room. He is motioning towards George to come outside with him.
George: Ahh, great timing. I was meaning to speak with you, Harry. Everyone, I’m sure you have met Harry, our head researcher, at one time or another.
Harry (walks up to George and whispers): I need to speak to you immediately.
George: Please excuse me for a moment. And please enjoy the dinner our chef has laid out.
Businessman: Please give him my compliments.
George and Harry exit the room.
Harry (in a quiet voice): Reports are going around about people getting sick, George.
George (in a quiet voice): Well that’s odd, none of our product testers got sick.
Harry (in a quiet voice): George, within a few months all of our product testers left the country. The FDA board that approved it can’t be found either.
George (in a quiet voice): Okay…how many reports.
Harry (in a quiet voice): As of now we’re up to seven, but there’s no telling if it will continue.
George (in a quiet voice): Look, if you get asked about it, say it is nothing more than a false rumor. And keep me informed, Harry.
Harry: Alright George, I will.
Car Outbreak Scene
It was a typical late Saturday afternoon. Godfrey Dodson was driving home from work. He was sent through a winding detour and was getting very annoyed. He knew the area pretty well though, and decided to take a backstreet to get around traffic. When he turned onto the road, there was a car stopped in the middle.
Godfrey: Oh come on! This is ridiculous. Get to the side of the road!!
Godfrey honks his horn a few times.
Godfrey: Get off the road!!! Who does this guy think he is?!
Godfrey gets out of his car and walks up to the car in front of him. He goes over to the window and looks inside. There is a young woman slumped over in the driver seat. Her head is resting on the steering wheel.
Godfrey (slightly shocked): Oh god, oh my god!
Godfrey starts searching his pocket for his cell phone. He tries to open the driver side door, but it is locked. He goes to the rear door, but the tinted windows make it hard to see inside. Then all of a sudden a hand hits the window.
Godfrey (jumpy): Jesus!
He tries to pull open the rear door and is able to do so.
Godfrey (anxious): Are you alright in there?
The hand that was pounding the window reached out of the car. It pulled the rest of the person forward. The hand belonged to a teenage boy, about seventeen years of age. His face and mouth had blood smeared on it.
Godfrey (now very shocked): Are you alright? What happened??
The boy seems unresponsive. He had just finished crawling out of the door and was lying on the ground. He began to get up, and then started walking towards Godfrey. After taking a few steps, he tripped and fell. He seemed to be struggling to get up again.
Godfrey: Alright look, let me help your friend in the front seat. I’m going to help you, just give me one second.
Godfrey reaches through the backseat door to unlock the front seat door. He opens the door and tries to help the girl out. She looks the same age as the boy. Godfrey sees why she was unconscious. There was a bite mark on her neck. He lets go instinctively and takes a few steps back.
Godfrey: Oh m-my god! Oh my god! What the-?! (Turning to boy on the ground) D-did you-? Did you bite her?! What the hell happened here!?
The girl on the ground opens her eyes and grabs Godfrey’s ankle. He tries to kick her off, and eventually breaks free. The boy on the ground had gotten up and was slowly walking towards Godfrey.
Godfrey: Get the hell away from me
Godfrey pushes the boy away and gets in his car.
Godfrey puts the car in reverse and drives away from the scene. Once he gets far enough away Godfrey stops the car and pulls out his phone. He dials 911.
Godfrey: Hello? My name is Godfrey Dodson. I am calling to report two teenagers that tried to attack me… (Fades out/volume gradually decreases to nothing.)
Park Scene
A few teenage friends are out at a park. There is a small playground with a few children on it. Their parents are close by. The friends are hanging out by the snack bar.
Nick: Hey Jack, what are you doing later tonight man?
Jack: I don’t know. Why did you have something in mind?
Nick: We haven’t chilled in Red Bank in a while; we could get Paul to meet us there with a few of his buds.
Heather: That sounds fun, I’m up for it.
Jack: Yeah, I guess we could do that. I’ll give him a call in a little bit.
Nick: Alright. I’ll be right back; I’m gonna get a soda or something. Anyone want anything?
Kate comes back from the bathroom.
Kate: Yea, get me one too.
Nick: Alright, anything else?
(No one answers)
Jack: Kate, you up to go to Red Bank tonight? We’re gonna get Paul to get some people to meet us there.
Kate: I can’t, I got stuff to do.
Snack bar guy: Can I get you something?
Nick: Yeah, give me two cokes please.
Snack bar guy (goes to get the order): Alright that’ll be…$2.00.
Nick hands him the money.
Nick: Thanks.
On his way back, he sees a group of about seven people, slowly walking toward the playground. The parents there get anxious and walk with their kids toward the snack bar. The crowd follows slowly behind them. Nick ignores them and goes to the table.
Nick: Hey, check that out (pointing to the crowd).
Jack: Yeah? And?
Heather: That’s weird.
Jack: Everything weird to you. Who cares Heather; it’s just a group of people. Nick you should know by now not to point this stuff out.
Heather: Oh stop. I mean, seriously, look at the way they’re walking.
Kate: I have to get home soon. Can one of you guys take me?
Nick: Yeah, I’ll give you a ride. Jack, take Heather and meet me at my house. We’ll organize this whole thing with Paul.
Jack: Yeah, alright. Let’s get going.
They walk around the group of people. They have just about reached the tables around the snack bar. About ten seconds later, as the group of friends near their cars, they hear a scream from behind them. They turn around and see that there looks like a fight. The group of people was attacking the others at the snack bar.
Nick: What the hell is going on over there?
More screams are heard.
Jack: I have no idea.
Heather: Oh god, there’s more of them over here!
The others turn around to see more of these people in the parking lot. Now that the strange people were close, the teens could see how pale they looked. In fact, they looked almost dead. Some of them had some blood on their face. The people were walking, rather, shambling towards them.
Nick: Get in the car!
Kate: C’mon Nick, hurry!
Nick and Jack start their cars, and start navigating through the crowd of zombies. The zombies are all around, some of them trying to get into the cars. Slowly, they make their way through the crowd. They drive to Kate’s house, but some zombies are nearby.
Nick: Look, Kate I’ll take you to my house for now. It looks pretty dangerous here. Here, take my phone and call Jack. Tell him what we’re doing.
Kate: Ok.
Kate calls Jack. Heather answers the phone.
Heather: Nick?
Kate: No, it’s Kate. Nick wanted me to call you and tell you that we are going to his house.
Heather: Alright, I’ll tell him.
They hang up.
Kate: They said they’re going.
Nick: Alright, let’s go.
House Scene
Both cars pull up in front of Nick’s house. There are two or three zombies outside the house, but none that would get in the way of getting to the front door.
Nick: Alright, look. We’ll run straight to the door. Don’t worry they probably won’t even notice us. I called Jack and they know what to do.
Kate: Alright. I’m ready.
The doors of the car open and the four friends race to the door. When they reach the door the zombies notice them and begin to shamble towards them. The door is locked, and Nick starts searching his pockets for the key.
Heather: Hurry! Hurry! They’re getting closer!!
Nick: There I got it!
He gets the door open and the four of them run into the house, breathing very heavily. They hear thuds on the other side of the door.
Kate: Will they get in?
Jack: No way, the door will hold.
Heather: Lock the door Nick.
Nick: I can’t lock the door, my folks aren’t home yet.
Jack: We’ll keep a watch by the door until they get home
Evening House scene
It’s been about two hours. There has been no sign of anyone alive. The only thing to break the silence was the occasional conversation between the four friends and the almost constant pounding on the door. Jack was currently keeping watch at the door. Nick was walking over towards him.
Nick: Anything?
Jack: No man. Sorry. Look I’m sure that they are safe somewhere else.
Nick: Yeah, you’re probably right. Hey, what’s that noise?
It was a car. A car was slowly moving down the road. It came to a stop pretty close to the house.
Jack: That isn’t your parents’ car, is it?
Nick: No, its not. Why the hell did they stop?
Jack: Well they’re driving, so they must be human. Look all the zombies by the front door are moving away!
The man in the car uses the car door to knock down the crowd of zombies around it. He gets out of the car.
Jack: He doesn’t stand a chance out there.
Nick: There aren’t any zombies by the door. Open it and let him know its safe in here.
Jack opens the door and Nick and he start yelling and waving the stranger over. The zombies hear this and turn around to see what all the commotion is. Some of them start heading back to the door, others still have their attention drawn by the newcomer. The man starts running towards the door. He gets inside and Nick attempts to shut the door as a zombie thrusts its arm into the doorway.
Nick: I can’t get it closed!!
More arms start to pop through the doorway! Jack and the man start to try and kick and push the arms out.
Nick: Get them out Jack! Don’t let them in!
Jack: We’re trying Nick!
The man goes over to the closet and quickly pulls out a work boot.
Jack: Nick you think you could help us out?!
Nick: Yeah sure I’ll let go of the door Jack, no problem!
After another minute they get the zombies out and slam the door closed.
Godfrey (breathing heavily): Th-…thanks guys.
Nick: Hey, don’t worry about it. What’s your name?
Godfrey: Godfrey Dodson.
Jack: Mind telling us what you were doing driving around?
Godfrey: Well, about three hours ago I saw this car parked in the middle of the road. It had two of those things inside. Since then I’ve seen a lot more. I wanted to get home, but when I got to the street it was filled with them. You think there’s a lot outside this house? There must have been twenty around my house at least.
Jack: Well, we’ve been here about two hours, and it only seems to be getting worse.
Godfrey: You should board up that door. They don’t seem strong, but enough of them might get through.
Nick: Well, we got plenty of 2x4’s…in the garage.
Jack: Nick, what are Heather and Kate up to?
Nick: Well, they were upstairs. I really don’t have a clue. Hey, you hungry? We got some food up in the kitchen, just help yourself.
Godfrey: That would be nice, thanks.
Godfrey goes up the stairs.
Nick: Get a little rest, Jack. I’ll take over watch for now.
Jack: Alright man. I’ll come back in a few hours.
Jack heads up the small staircase into the living room and walks to the kitchen. Kate and Heather heard noises and came downstairs.
Heather: What the hell happened?
Jack: We saw this guy outside and let them in. The zombies tried to get in after him.
Kate: Did they? Did they get in?
Jack: Well, no. Otherwise we wouldn’t be having this conversation.
Godfrey: Nice to meet you. I’m Godfrey Dodson.
Jack is searching through the fridge and cabinets.
Jack: Well, we got burgers. (Yells to Nick) Hey Nick, where’s the grill?!
Nick (yells back): Its out in the backyard! You aren’t going out there are you??
Jack: I don’t see any of those things…and I’m in the mood for burgers! Hey Kate come outside with me, just make sure I don’t get attacked.
Kate: This is so stupid…
Jack: C’mon we’ll be fine!
Kate: Alright alright.
They both open the back door and go to the grill.
Heather: …Umm…
Godfrey: He seems pretty sure it’s safe around here… (Turns to Nick) But I have my doubts. We really do need to somehow block off the doors. Maybe even the first floor windows.
Jack and Kate come back inside.
Jack: I was wrong. They’re out there too.
Kate: That was a really stupid idea…
Jack: Well, yea. I guess so.
Godfrey: Let’s try not to lead them to the backdoor too, okay?
Jack: No worries. They can’t even get up on the deck. Stairs seem to be a bit of an obstacle.
Nick comes upstairs.
Nick: Man, sometimes I just don’t know about you.
Godfrey: So...about those 2x4’s…
Nick: Look, you’re right. We do need to take care of that. But right now I think we should all get some rest. If you’re hungry, grab something out of the fridge or one of the cabinets. You can use the oven too, whatever you got to do. I’m going to stay by the front door to keep a watch.
Godfrey: I can take the next one if you want.
Nick: Yeah sure, that’ll be fine. Come down in a few hours.
Godfrey: Alright, sure.
Daytime House Scene
Jack was on watch. He was sitting in the television room, which was near the door. He had been watching reports on the news of what was going on in Monmouth County, although none of them really knew what was going on. Then one hour ago, everything went dead and the only thing that came on the screen was a “Please Stand By” message.
Nick walks into the room.
Nick: Jack, turn that thing off, man.
Jack: What? It might come back. It would be kind of nice to know what’s going on.
Nick: Yeah, well that buzzing is loud, and I can’t sleep.
Jack: Fine, fine.
Jack turns off the television. Godfrey walks into the room.
Godfrey: Man, what were you watching?
Jack: Well, I was hoping the news would come back, but I’ve been getting that technical difficulties message. I left it on just in case, but I think it’s pretty much hopeless.
Godfrey: Hey pull those blinds up for a second.
Jack pulls the blinds up. There are zombies out there, but not nearly as many as there were.
Godfrey: I think we can get those 2x4s to block up the door.
Jack: Yeah sounds good to me. Nick what you got around here to fend them off with just in case they get close.
Nick: Well, I think my old baseball bat is in that closet. I’ll go check.
Nick leaves the room.
Godfrey: Alright, Jack we’ll grab what we need. If Nick finds that bat he can fend them off until we have everything. Then we get inside and start blocking off the doors.
Nick (from outside the room): Found it!
Nick comes back in with a short, aluminum bat.
Jack: Nice dude!
Godfrey: Alright can you fend them off while we get the wood?
Nick: Yeah I can. There’s another one in there too. We should probably get the other two to help out.
Jack: Yeah I’ll go get them up.
Jack and Nick leave the room. Nick comes back with the other bat and gives it to Godfrey. Jack comes back into the room after a minute. Heather and Kate are with him.
Heather: So, what are we doing exactly?
Godfrey: We’re getting some stuff out of the garage to board up the doors so the zombies can’t get in.
Kate: What about the zombies?
Godfrey: Nick and I will keep them from getting near you three. Don’t worry; there aren’t a lot out there.
Jack: I see four.
Heather: Alright, I’m in. I don’t want them getting in here.
They file out the door and walk over to the garage. Jack opens the garage, and the noise gets the zombies’ attention.
Nick: Alright, they see us. Hurry up and grab the stuff guys.
Godfrey: Just get what you can and bring it inside. Then come out again and keep doing it until we get it all.
Heather, Kate, and Jack start bringing in pieces of wood as Godfrey and Nick are distracting the zombies.
Godfrey: Nick, look out behind you!
Nick spins around and instinctively swings the bat, hitting the zombie in the shoulder. It stumbled for a few steps, and then looked up directly at Nick. It began shuffling towards him. Nick swung the bat again and this time the zombie fell down. It seemed to be trying to get up again.
Nick: Thanks, man.
Godfrey: No problem, now get back over here. They almost have it all.
Jack: Hey Nick, how about that piece up there?
Nick turned to see what Jack was talking about. When he turned around, he saw a zombie only a few feet away from Jack.
Nick: Jack behind you!
Jack tried to turn around to see what was behind him, but not fast enough. The zombie lunged and grabbed him from behind. It bit down on his shoulder.
Jack: AAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!!
Jack tried to grab the zombie behind him, but he couldn’t get at him. Nick had started to run over and he ran into the zombie, pushing him off his friend. Nick and Godfrey picked Jack up and brought him into the house. They set him down on the couch.
Nick: Damn, man I can’t believe this happened. I wasn’t paying attention.
Godfrey: Nick you got a first aid kit somewhere?
Nick: Yeah, upstairs bathroom. Kate can you go grab it it’s under the sink.
Kate: Yeah, sure.
She runs up the stairs.
Godfrey: Nick, you can’t blame yourself for this. Trust me. Guilt isn’t going to help.
Nick: But…I was supposed to be looking out…
Godfrey: Don’t think about it. We need you to be able to focus. Thinking about this isn’t going to help.
Jack (coughing): Nick...sorry man. I wasn’t paying attention, and look what happened to me. Heh.
Nick: C’mon man, you’re gonna be fine.
Jack: Don’t…count on it.
Jack seems to be dead. Kate comes down the stairs.
Kate: I found the first aid- Is he…oh my god. Is he dead?
Nick: Yeah.
Godfrey: Not for long. We should put him somewhere so he can’t attack us when he comes back. Maybe the basement?
Nick: Yeah…Yeah I guess that’ll be good.
Nick and Godfrey carry Jack’s body out of the room.
Heather: I can’t believe he’s dead…
Kate: Neither can I. Why did we go out there?
Heather: We shouldn’t have. This shouldn’t have happened.
Nick and Godfrey come back upstairs.
Godfrey: We should start putting up the barricade now.
Nick: Hey, take it easy man. Jack just died. It wasn’t like he was some total stranger. He was a good friend, and he’s dead. Maybe you should give them some time.
Godfrey: Give them some time? Time? Is that what you want? Look, if we wait much longer, it’ll be too late. We’ll all be dead.
Nick (raising his voice): Oh yeah? You know, we were fine until you decided that we absolutely needed to set up a barricade. They weren’t going to get in. But now look what happened.
Godfrey (also raising his voice): They would have got in! And they still might, because the barricade isn’t up yet. Do you want for him to have died for nothing?
Nick: I’m starting to think he may have!
Godfrey: Well, you’re wrong! Then again, you might be right if we don’t get to work.
Nick: Man, listen to you! It’s as if you don’t care at all that someone just died.
Godfrey: That’s not it. I-
Nick: You know if it wasn’t for Jack, you probably wouldn’t even be alive. He’s the one who saw you out there. But do you care? Do you really care about anyone else here? No, you just want to save yourself!
Heather: Stop! Both of you please just stop. (Takes a deep breath) We can’t do anything about Jack. Its over, and he’s gone. Nick, whether or not it’s necessary, we probably should put a barricade up to be safe.
Godfrey: I don’t have time for this.
Godfrey goes downstairs.
Kate: I’m going to go help him. Maybe you too should go get some rest. Come down after you feel a little better.
Nick: I’ll come down and help. Just give me a few minutes.
Kate goes downstairs to help.
*TWO WEEKS LATER*
Night House Scene
The barricade was up on the front and back door. There was the constant sound of fists pounding on the doors. There was also the sound of footsteps down in the basement. Three of the survivors were in the living room. Nick was currently in the kitchen.
Kate: I’m so hungry.
Heather: It feels like I haven’t eaten in so long.
Godfrey: Well, it’s only going to get worse. The food supply is getting low, and the way it’s going now, we’re going to end up starved before they do. (muttering) Should have taken my chances out there.
Heather: What?
Nick walks back into the room.
Godfrey: Well?
Nick: It isn’t much. I found a half empty bag of potato chips, a handful of carrots, six apples, a half a bag of bread, a few cans of soup, and eight frozen dinners.
Godfrey: Anything else?
Nick: Nope. That’s it.
Godfrey: Great. That’s great news.
Nick: Well, I’m sorry you were expecting a thanksgiving feast.
Kate: Guys, just stop, ok? This is the last thing we need right now.
Nick (as he sits down on the couch): Yeah, sorry. I’m just…
Heather: Stressed? We all are. I mean, seriously. Have you looked outside? There are a bunch of cannibalistic dead people walking around, trying to get in here. You aren’t-
Heather is interrupted by a very loud bang. It came from downstairs.
Godfrey: Jesus what the hell was that?
Nick: I think it came from the basement…I think Jack got up the stairs.
Kate: Do we have any stuff to barricade the door?
Nick: Not anything from the garage, no. We used all that.
Godfrey: Well, lets get something up there. Before he figures out how to open the door. Grab some stuff and bring it down. I’ll go hold the door closed.
Godfrey walked down the stairs. It was coming from the basement. He could see the door shake a little bit every time Jack hit it from the other side. Nick came down with a chair.
Nick: Here, I’m going back up to get more.
Godfrey: Alright, I’ll get it set up.
Heather and Kate each came down with a stool from the kitchen.
Godfrey: Good. Actually, call Nick down; tell him to grab the chairs in this room.
Kate (yelling): Nick, come down here and use these chairs.
Nick came down and they began stacking the chairs in front of the door.
Nick: Think that’ll hold?
Godfrey: I sure hope so.
After a few seconds they heard a pounding at the front door. However it sounded different. It wasn’t the slow, consistent noise that the survivors had grown used to. It was fast, and sounded panicky.
Heather: Is…is someone there?
The noise was now paired with a person yelling.
Voice: Is anyone in here? Please help! They’re coming! Open the door!
Kate: We have to help her.
Kate starts towards the door. The pounding continues.
Godfrey: No! We can’t risk it, they could get in!
Voice: Please, open the door!
Nick: Godfrey, we can’t just let them die. I’m opening that door.
Godfrey: Nick, stop! They’ll get in the house!
Nick started moving the barricade aside, and Kate began to help him. Nick opened the door, and three people, two men and a woman, dove inside as soon as it was open.
Nick: Are there any more?
Man: No close it!
Nick closed the door. They started putting the barricade back in place.
Woman: Thank you so much. You saved us.
Nick: What were you doing out there?
Man: We were hiding in a house down the block. They got in. There were so many. Only us three escaped.
Heather: How many of you were there?
Woman: Twelve. Four didn’t even make it out of the house.
Man: I’m Frank Weimer. This is Katherine Williams and John Reid.
Godfrey: What’s in the bag?
Frank: Oh this? We stuffed as much food as we could into it.
Kate: Hopefully you got a lot. We are running pretty low.
Frank: We completely stuffed the bag, but I don’t know how long it will last.
John: What’s that noise coming from the basement?
Nick: Someone that was with us was bitten. He died two weeks ago and we put him down there. He obviously became one of them, so we barricaded the door.
Katherine: I’m so sorry…I-
More banging from the other side of the doors, but this time it seemed to be coming from the laundry room.
Godfrey: Nick…How would they have gotten in there?
Nick: Oh god. There…is a side door. They could’ve gotten in…
Heather: Quick get something on the door!
Nick ran to grab a chair, but it was too late. The laundry room door flew open, revealing three zombies on the other side. The side door behind them was open.
Frank: Oh, hell.
Katherine, Godfrey, and Heather run up the stairs. The other four run into the TV room and locked the door.
Godfrey: Where do we go?!
Heather: They normally can’t get up stairs, right? At least, Jack said they couldn’t get up on the deck. Look out the window, there aren’t any there.
Katherine: Move the barricade off the back door. Hurry before they get up here! They started to move it. When they got outside, however, they saw a lot of zombies all around.
Some had also begun to crawl up the stairs.
Heather: Oh god, no!
Heather ran back in the house and darted up to the second floor. She ran into Nick’s room and shut the door behind her.
Godfrey (mutters): Figures.
A zombie that had crawled up the stairs just grabbed Katherine’s ankle.
Katherine: *screams*
Meanwhile
Nick, Kate, Frank, and John are in the TV room. They hear someone scream.
Kate: Oh god, who was that?
Frank: That sounded like Katherine.
John: Crawl out of one hole and into another eh?
Frank: Looks like it. Well, looks like we’ll be on the move again. If they haven’t already, the ones outside will figure out the side door is open. We should get out now before it gets too crowded.
John: Yeah, I don’t want to go through that again. Where are the exits, Nick?
Nick pulls up the blinds of the window. Zombies can be seen in close proximity to the front door.
Nick: Well, not this one.
He closes the blinds.
Frank: Ok, what else?
Nick: There’s the backdoor, which leads to onto a deck. There’s also the side door. We might also be able to use a window to get out.
Footsteps can be heard above.
Nick: Wait. Listen. Sounds like someone is upstairs. But I only hear one person.
John: Well, that scream sounded like it came from out near the backyard, not upstairs.
Hell that could be why someone is up there.
Zombies begin banging on the door.
John: Well, we’re out of options. Looks like we got the window.
Nick: Well, my car keys are right here. If we can get to it, we might have a chance.
Frank: Sounds like the best plan we have. Alright, let’s do it.
Heather is sitting on the bed in Nick’s room. She hears Katherine scream.
Heather: Oh god, oh god. What do I do now?
She then looks at the window. She opens it and takes the screen off. She sticks her head out the window. Heather crawls through the window and does her best to close it behind her. Heather is looking around anxiously. She can see the zombies in the streets from up there and finally understands how many there are. She then hears people yelling from below and to the left. Nick, Kate, Frank, and John come into view.
Heather: Guys! Get up here!
Nick: Heather! The car! Get to my car!
Heather sees Nick waving his keys in the air.
Heather: Nick, behind you!
Nick turns around and pushes the zombie. Kate ran up to the car, but the door was locked.
Kate: Nick, unlock the door!
Nick pushes the unlock button on the keychain and Kate pulls the door open and gets inside. Nick starts running towards the car when he hears John.
John: Help! Get it off me!
John is bit on the arm.
John: GAAAHH!!
Frank runs over to him and pushes the zombie off. Nick has gotten in the car.
Nick: Frank, hurry up! Heather, get down from there and come to the car!
Heather: Ok, I’m coming down!
Heather is about to jump down. From where she is it looks safe. However from Nick’s point of view, you can see the zombies on the porch but below the overhang that Heather is on top of.
Nick: No! Heather! Wait!
It was too late. Heather jumped down and was immediately tackled to the ground by the closest two zombies. They fall down with her and attempt to eat her. The ones behind follow suit.
Heather: *screams*
Nick: Heather!!
Kate: Oh my god, they got Heather.
Nick is looking over towards Frank, and he sees Godfrey carrying Katherine.
Nick: Over here! Get in!
Godfrey sees them and starts running over to the car. Meanwhile, Frank is fending off multiple zombies. John is helping him, and has also been bit three times. He seems to not care anymore, being as he has already been bitten once. Then suddenly he drops to the ground, presumably dead. Frank is able to get free and helps Godfrey get Katherine into the car. Godfrey and Frank get in the back.
Godfrey: Go, now!The car drives away.
Nick: Why were you carrying her?
Godfrey: She wasn’t bitten. One of those things grabbed her ankle, and she fell and sprained it.
Nick (look of relief on his face): I had to ask.
Godfrey: I know.
Nick: Where should we go?
Godfrey: I don’t know, but we probably won’t be able to drive out of here. The roads out are probably blocked off.
Frank: How about a boat?
Nick: A boat?
Frank: Yeah. The roads are probably blocked off, but maybe we could get a boat and get to New York or something.
Nick: Where then?
Godfrey: Go across highway 36 to Port Monmouth. Hopefully we can find a boat docked there.
Kate: I hope you’re right.
Godfrey: Yeah. So do I.
Port Monmouth Scene
The car is driving across a bridge when it stops.
Godfrey: What is it?
Nick: Outta gas. Looks like we’re walking.
Katherine: Walking?!
Nick: Don’t worry. I don’t even see any of them. It looks pretty safe. And we’ll help you walk, too.
Frank: Do you know exactly where we’re going?
Godfrey: Yeah I know a place. It’s as good a place to look as any, really. Hopefully we’ll be able to find a boat docked.
Nick: Alright let’s hurry up and go.
The five of them got out of the car. Godfrey was supporting Katherine. They walked as fast as they could, avoiding the few zombies they encountered. They couldn’t move very fast, however, because they were staying together, and Katherine couldn’t run.
Kate: Wait! Stop! I hear something.
A fairly large crowd of zombies was slowly making its way towards the survivors.
Nick: Where did they come from?
Godfrey: Who cares, run!
The five survivors start running down the street. Godfrey is practically carrying Katherine. Nick is slightly ahead of everyone else. There is a turn ahead, and Nick immediately turns left.
Nick (Yelling back to them): I’ll go check if it’s clear!
The survivors got far enough away that they could wait. It only took Nick a minute to come back.
Kate: Well? Is it clear?
Nick: Not exactly.
Frank: How many?
Nick: Only a few.
Katherine: Yeah, well let’s get going before the one’s behind reach us.
Kate: If we go there, the zombies will just follow us. We have to lead them away somehow.
Godfrey: Too late, run!
The zombies had gotten close. The group scattered. Nick was running away from the boats.
Nick: I’ll try and lead them away! Hurry up and get one ready!
Katherine: But-
Godfrey: C’mon let’s go, he’ll be fine.
Frank: Hurry back, Nick, we’ll be at the dock!
The four of them started towards the boats. Frank and Godfrey are supporting Katherine as they run up the hill towards the marina.
Kate: How do we get over to the boats?
Godfrey: Hmm… (He points over to some stairs going down.) Maybe that will bring us over. Katherine, can you make it down?
Katherine: Uh…yeah. Yeah I think so.
Godfrey goes down first, then turns around and assists Katherine. Kate comes down after them. Frank climbs down last. They walked down the pier and search some of the boats. Godfrey came back out of one of them.
Godfrey: The key is in this one; bring Katherine inside.
There was a dead body inside, presumably the owner of the boat. Godfrey took the keys and started walking out again.
Kate: Where are you going?
Godfrey: I’m going to try and find Nick.
Frank: I’ll come too.
Godfrey: No. No I’ll go alone. Just make sure everything is ready.
Nick ran as fast as he could. There was tall grass on his right. After putting some distance between him and the zombies, he dove into it. A minute went by. The zombies had passed by and not noticed him. He began to stand up, and a figure stood up behind him. It grabbed his shoulder. Nick screamed.
Godfrey: Jesus calm down its me!
Nick: Why the hell did you grab my shoulder?
Godfrey: I’m sorry I scared you, alright? We should go now, we found a boat, and the keys to go with it.
Nick: That’s great news, let’s go.
They climbed out of the tall grass, only to realize that some of the zombies did not stay with the crowd. One of them lurched forward too far and fell down, but was able to bring Godfrey down with him. Nick moved towards him to help, but more zombies were closing in.
Godfrey: Go! Go! You can’t save me!
Nick: I’m sorry.
Reluctantly, Nick turned and ran.
Katherine: When are they coming back?
Kate: I’m sure they’ll be here soon.
Almost on cue, Nick walked through the door.
Kate: Oh thank god, you’re alright!
Katherine: Where’s Godfrey?
Nick: He didn’t make it. They got him.
Kate: What?
Nick: Look we have to go!
Frank: Nick, he had the keys!
Zombie moans from outside.
Nick: Dammit!
Two zombies appeared in the doorway. One of them Nick instantly recognized as the walking corpse of Godfrey Dodson.
Nick: Where’s the bat? Hurry!
Frank: Catch!
Frank threw him the bat, and Nick hit Godfrey. He then hit the next zombie, and was able to find the keys in Godfrey’s pocket. Nick threw them to Frank, who started the boat silently.
Nick: Are you alright? You don’t look so good.
Katherine: Yeah, I’ll be fine. I promise.
As they moved towards the harbor exit, Katherine wondered if she should reveal her secret. She decided not to, and hoped to god there was a cure.
Nick sprinted down the road. He did not look back, because he knew they were behind him. He couldn’t look back. He couldn’t stop running. If he stopped, he would die. There was tall grass on the right of him. Seeing no other option, dove into it. Nick could see the zombies shambling by as he tried to lie as quietly as possible. It seemed as if they were walking by. He stood up to make sure it was clear, when something grabbed him from behind.
*TWO WEEKS EARLIER*
Business Meeting Scene
George sat down at the head chair in the meeting room. He confidently awaited the arrival of his business associates.
George (to his assistant): I would like for Harry to update me about the problem he mentioned. Could you get him for me?
Assistant: Right away, sir. *exits room*
As the assistant leaves, seven of George’s business associates enter the room and sit down at the table.
George: Ahh, excellent. Please, sit down, sit down. Well let’s get this meeting started, shall we? We’ll start with the distribution plan. John, would you like to explain what has been going on?
John: Certainly George. As you all know, this product is excellent at doing what it is supposed to do. It is an energy drink that lasts for up to thirty-six hours, and does not end with the infamous “crash.” It is also quite delicious. The main problem we are facing is cost. It is a bit more expensive then other energy drinks out there. It is also brand new, and we don’t know how it will fare in the free market as of yet. Therefore, the plan we have proposed is to distribute it as if we were putting it out on the open market to a single county in the country. We chose New Jersey because that is our company’s home base state, and the county we chose to try this in is Monmouth.
Businesswoman: When was the test started?
John: We distributed the product three months ago, and plan to collect all the feedback in another month. At that point we will analyze it and continue from there.
Businessman: What is your plan for obtaining feedback?
John: We have created an online survey and we have sent representatives to the various stores to personally collect feedback. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe it was every two weeks, yes?
George: Yes, yes that’s right.
At that moment, Harry walks into the room. He is motioning towards George to come outside with him.
George: Ahh, great timing. I was meaning to speak with you, Harry. Everyone, I’m sure you have met Harry, our head researcher, at one time or another.
Harry (walks up to George and whispers): I need to speak to you immediately.
George: Please excuse me for a moment. And please enjoy the dinner our chef has laid out.
Businessman: Please give him my compliments.
George and Harry exit the room.
Harry (in a quiet voice): Reports are going around about people getting sick, George.
George (in a quiet voice): Well that’s odd, none of our product testers got sick.
Harry (in a quiet voice): George, within a few months all of our product testers left the country. The FDA board that approved it can’t be found either.
George (in a quiet voice): Okay…how many reports.
Harry (in a quiet voice): As of now we’re up to seven, but there’s no telling if it will continue.
George (in a quiet voice): Look, if you get asked about it, say it is nothing more than a false rumor. And keep me informed, Harry.
Harry: Alright George, I will.
Car Outbreak Scene
It was a typical late Saturday afternoon. Godfrey Dodson was driving home from work. He was sent through a winding detour and was getting very annoyed. He knew the area pretty well though, and decided to take a backstreet to get around traffic. When he turned onto the road, there was a car stopped in the middle.
Godfrey: Oh come on! This is ridiculous. Get to the side of the road!!
Godfrey honks his horn a few times.
Godfrey: Get off the road!!! Who does this guy think he is?!
Godfrey gets out of his car and walks up to the car in front of him. He goes over to the window and looks inside. There is a young woman slumped over in the driver seat. Her head is resting on the steering wheel.
Godfrey (slightly shocked): Oh god, oh my god!
Godfrey starts searching his pocket for his cell phone. He tries to open the driver side door, but it is locked. He goes to the rear door, but the tinted windows make it hard to see inside. Then all of a sudden a hand hits the window.
Godfrey (jumpy): Jesus!
He tries to pull open the rear door and is able to do so.
Godfrey (anxious): Are you alright in there?
The hand that was pounding the window reached out of the car. It pulled the rest of the person forward. The hand belonged to a teenage boy, about seventeen years of age. His face and mouth had blood smeared on it.
Godfrey (now very shocked): Are you alright? What happened??
The boy seems unresponsive. He had just finished crawling out of the door and was lying on the ground. He began to get up, and then started walking towards Godfrey. After taking a few steps, he tripped and fell. He seemed to be struggling to get up again.
Godfrey: Alright look, let me help your friend in the front seat. I’m going to help you, just give me one second.
Godfrey reaches through the backseat door to unlock the front seat door. He opens the door and tries to help the girl out. She looks the same age as the boy. Godfrey sees why she was unconscious. There was a bite mark on her neck. He lets go instinctively and takes a few steps back.
Godfrey: Oh m-my god! Oh my god! What the-?! (Turning to boy on the ground) D-did you-? Did you bite her?! What the hell happened here!?
The girl on the ground opens her eyes and grabs Godfrey’s ankle. He tries to kick her off, and eventually breaks free. The boy on the ground had gotten up and was slowly walking towards Godfrey.
Godfrey: Get the hell away from me
Godfrey pushes the boy away and gets in his car.
Godfrey puts the car in reverse and drives away from the scene. Once he gets far enough away Godfrey stops the car and pulls out his phone. He dials 911.
Godfrey: Hello? My name is Godfrey Dodson. I am calling to report two teenagers that tried to attack me… (Fades out/volume gradually decreases to nothing.)
Park Scene
A few teenage friends are out at a park. There is a small playground with a few children on it. Their parents are close by. The friends are hanging out by the snack bar.
Nick: Hey Jack, what are you doing later tonight man?
Jack: I don’t know. Why did you have something in mind?
Nick: We haven’t chilled in Red Bank in a while; we could get Paul to meet us there with a few of his buds.
Heather: That sounds fun, I’m up for it.
Jack: Yeah, I guess we could do that. I’ll give him a call in a little bit.
Nick: Alright. I’ll be right back; I’m gonna get a soda or something. Anyone want anything?
Kate comes back from the bathroom.
Kate: Yea, get me one too.
Nick: Alright, anything else?
(No one answers)
Jack: Kate, you up to go to Red Bank tonight? We’re gonna get Paul to get some people to meet us there.
Kate: I can’t, I got stuff to do.
Snack bar guy: Can I get you something?
Nick: Yeah, give me two cokes please.
Snack bar guy (goes to get the order): Alright that’ll be…$2.00.
Nick hands him the money.
Nick: Thanks.
On his way back, he sees a group of about seven people, slowly walking toward the playground. The parents there get anxious and walk with their kids toward the snack bar. The crowd follows slowly behind them. Nick ignores them and goes to the table.
Nick: Hey, check that out (pointing to the crowd).
Jack: Yeah? And?
Heather: That’s weird.
Jack: Everything weird to you. Who cares Heather; it’s just a group of people. Nick you should know by now not to point this stuff out.
Heather: Oh stop. I mean, seriously, look at the way they’re walking.
Kate: I have to get home soon. Can one of you guys take me?
Nick: Yeah, I’ll give you a ride. Jack, take Heather and meet me at my house. We’ll organize this whole thing with Paul.
Jack: Yeah, alright. Let’s get going.
They walk around the group of people. They have just about reached the tables around the snack bar. About ten seconds later, as the group of friends near their cars, they hear a scream from behind them. They turn around and see that there looks like a fight. The group of people was attacking the others at the snack bar.
Nick: What the hell is going on over there?
More screams are heard.
Jack: I have no idea.
Heather: Oh god, there’s more of them over here!
The others turn around to see more of these people in the parking lot. Now that the strange people were close, the teens could see how pale they looked. In fact, they looked almost dead. Some of them had some blood on their face. The people were walking, rather, shambling towards them.
Nick: Get in the car!
Kate: C’mon Nick, hurry!
Nick and Jack start their cars, and start navigating through the crowd of zombies. The zombies are all around, some of them trying to get into the cars. Slowly, they make their way through the crowd. They drive to Kate’s house, but some zombies are nearby.
Nick: Look, Kate I’ll take you to my house for now. It looks pretty dangerous here. Here, take my phone and call Jack. Tell him what we’re doing.
Kate: Ok.
Kate calls Jack. Heather answers the phone.
Heather: Nick?
Kate: No, it’s Kate. Nick wanted me to call you and tell you that we are going to his house.
Heather: Alright, I’ll tell him.
They hang up.
Kate: They said they’re going.
Nick: Alright, let’s go.
House Scene
Both cars pull up in front of Nick’s house. There are two or three zombies outside the house, but none that would get in the way of getting to the front door.
Nick: Alright, look. We’ll run straight to the door. Don’t worry they probably won’t even notice us. I called Jack and they know what to do.
Kate: Alright. I’m ready.
The doors of the car open and the four friends race to the door. When they reach the door the zombies notice them and begin to shamble towards them. The door is locked, and Nick starts searching his pockets for the key.
Heather: Hurry! Hurry! They’re getting closer!!
Nick: There I got it!
He gets the door open and the four of them run into the house, breathing very heavily. They hear thuds on the other side of the door.
Kate: Will they get in?
Jack: No way, the door will hold.
Heather: Lock the door Nick.
Nick: I can’t lock the door, my folks aren’t home yet.
Jack: We’ll keep a watch by the door until they get home
Evening House scene
It’s been about two hours. There has been no sign of anyone alive. The only thing to break the silence was the occasional conversation between the four friends and the almost constant pounding on the door. Jack was currently keeping watch at the door. Nick was walking over towards him.
Nick: Anything?
Jack: No man. Sorry. Look I’m sure that they are safe somewhere else.
Nick: Yeah, you’re probably right. Hey, what’s that noise?
It was a car. A car was slowly moving down the road. It came to a stop pretty close to the house.
Jack: That isn’t your parents’ car, is it?
Nick: No, its not. Why the hell did they stop?
Jack: Well they’re driving, so they must be human. Look all the zombies by the front door are moving away!
The man in the car uses the car door to knock down the crowd of zombies around it. He gets out of the car.
Jack: He doesn’t stand a chance out there.
Nick: There aren’t any zombies by the door. Open it and let him know its safe in here.
Jack opens the door and Nick and he start yelling and waving the stranger over. The zombies hear this and turn around to see what all the commotion is. Some of them start heading back to the door, others still have their attention drawn by the newcomer. The man starts running towards the door. He gets inside and Nick attempts to shut the door as a zombie thrusts its arm into the doorway.
Nick: I can’t get it closed!!
More arms start to pop through the doorway! Jack and the man start to try and kick and push the arms out.
Nick: Get them out Jack! Don’t let them in!
Jack: We’re trying Nick!
The man goes over to the closet and quickly pulls out a work boot.
Jack: Nick you think you could help us out?!
Nick: Yeah sure I’ll let go of the door Jack, no problem!
After another minute they get the zombies out and slam the door closed.
Godfrey (breathing heavily): Th-…thanks guys.
Nick: Hey, don’t worry about it. What’s your name?
Godfrey: Godfrey Dodson.
Jack: Mind telling us what you were doing driving around?
Godfrey: Well, about three hours ago I saw this car parked in the middle of the road. It had two of those things inside. Since then I’ve seen a lot more. I wanted to get home, but when I got to the street it was filled with them. You think there’s a lot outside this house? There must have been twenty around my house at least.
Jack: Well, we’ve been here about two hours, and it only seems to be getting worse.
Godfrey: You should board up that door. They don’t seem strong, but enough of them might get through.
Nick: Well, we got plenty of 2x4’s…in the garage.
Jack: Nick, what are Heather and Kate up to?
Nick: Well, they were upstairs. I really don’t have a clue. Hey, you hungry? We got some food up in the kitchen, just help yourself.
Godfrey: That would be nice, thanks.
Godfrey goes up the stairs.
Nick: Get a little rest, Jack. I’ll take over watch for now.
Jack: Alright man. I’ll come back in a few hours.
Jack heads up the small staircase into the living room and walks to the kitchen. Kate and Heather heard noises and came downstairs.
Heather: What the hell happened?
Jack: We saw this guy outside and let them in. The zombies tried to get in after him.
Kate: Did they? Did they get in?
Jack: Well, no. Otherwise we wouldn’t be having this conversation.
Godfrey: Nice to meet you. I’m Godfrey Dodson.
Jack is searching through the fridge and cabinets.
Jack: Well, we got burgers. (Yells to Nick) Hey Nick, where’s the grill?!
Nick (yells back): Its out in the backyard! You aren’t going out there are you??
Jack: I don’t see any of those things…and I’m in the mood for burgers! Hey Kate come outside with me, just make sure I don’t get attacked.
Kate: This is so stupid…
Jack: C’mon we’ll be fine!
Kate: Alright alright.
They both open the back door and go to the grill.
Heather: …Umm…
Godfrey: He seems pretty sure it’s safe around here… (Turns to Nick) But I have my doubts. We really do need to somehow block off the doors. Maybe even the first floor windows.
Jack and Kate come back inside.
Jack: I was wrong. They’re out there too.
Kate: That was a really stupid idea…
Jack: Well, yea. I guess so.
Godfrey: Let’s try not to lead them to the backdoor too, okay?
Jack: No worries. They can’t even get up on the deck. Stairs seem to be a bit of an obstacle.
Nick comes upstairs.
Nick: Man, sometimes I just don’t know about you.
Godfrey: So...about those 2x4’s…
Nick: Look, you’re right. We do need to take care of that. But right now I think we should all get some rest. If you’re hungry, grab something out of the fridge or one of the cabinets. You can use the oven too, whatever you got to do. I’m going to stay by the front door to keep a watch.
Godfrey: I can take the next one if you want.
Nick: Yeah sure, that’ll be fine. Come down in a few hours.
Godfrey: Alright, sure.
Daytime House Scene
Jack was on watch. He was sitting in the television room, which was near the door. He had been watching reports on the news of what was going on in Monmouth County, although none of them really knew what was going on. Then one hour ago, everything went dead and the only thing that came on the screen was a “Please Stand By” message.
Nick walks into the room.
Nick: Jack, turn that thing off, man.
Jack: What? It might come back. It would be kind of nice to know what’s going on.
Nick: Yeah, well that buzzing is loud, and I can’t sleep.
Jack: Fine, fine.
Jack turns off the television. Godfrey walks into the room.
Godfrey: Man, what were you watching?
Jack: Well, I was hoping the news would come back, but I’ve been getting that technical difficulties message. I left it on just in case, but I think it’s pretty much hopeless.
Godfrey: Hey pull those blinds up for a second.
Jack pulls the blinds up. There are zombies out there, but not nearly as many as there were.
Godfrey: I think we can get those 2x4s to block up the door.
Jack: Yeah sounds good to me. Nick what you got around here to fend them off with just in case they get close.
Nick: Well, I think my old baseball bat is in that closet. I’ll go check.
Nick leaves the room.
Godfrey: Alright, Jack we’ll grab what we need. If Nick finds that bat he can fend them off until we have everything. Then we get inside and start blocking off the doors.
Nick (from outside the room): Found it!
Nick comes back in with a short, aluminum bat.
Jack: Nice dude!
Godfrey: Alright can you fend them off while we get the wood?
Nick: Yeah I can. There’s another one in there too. We should probably get the other two to help out.
Jack: Yeah I’ll go get them up.
Jack and Nick leave the room. Nick comes back with the other bat and gives it to Godfrey. Jack comes back into the room after a minute. Heather and Kate are with him.
Heather: So, what are we doing exactly?
Godfrey: We’re getting some stuff out of the garage to board up the doors so the zombies can’t get in.
Kate: What about the zombies?
Godfrey: Nick and I will keep them from getting near you three. Don’t worry; there aren’t a lot out there.
Jack: I see four.
Heather: Alright, I’m in. I don’t want them getting in here.
They file out the door and walk over to the garage. Jack opens the garage, and the noise gets the zombies’ attention.
Nick: Alright, they see us. Hurry up and grab the stuff guys.
Godfrey: Just get what you can and bring it inside. Then come out again and keep doing it until we get it all.
Heather, Kate, and Jack start bringing in pieces of wood as Godfrey and Nick are distracting the zombies.
Godfrey: Nick, look out behind you!
Nick spins around and instinctively swings the bat, hitting the zombie in the shoulder. It stumbled for a few steps, and then looked up directly at Nick. It began shuffling towards him. Nick swung the bat again and this time the zombie fell down. It seemed to be trying to get up again.
Nick: Thanks, man.
Godfrey: No problem, now get back over here. They almost have it all.
Jack: Hey Nick, how about that piece up there?
Nick turned to see what Jack was talking about. When he turned around, he saw a zombie only a few feet away from Jack.
Nick: Jack behind you!
Jack tried to turn around to see what was behind him, but not fast enough. The zombie lunged and grabbed him from behind. It bit down on his shoulder.
Jack: AAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!!
Jack tried to grab the zombie behind him, but he couldn’t get at him. Nick had started to run over and he ran into the zombie, pushing him off his friend. Nick and Godfrey picked Jack up and brought him into the house. They set him down on the couch.
Nick: Damn, man I can’t believe this happened. I wasn’t paying attention.
Godfrey: Nick you got a first aid kit somewhere?
Nick: Yeah, upstairs bathroom. Kate can you go grab it it’s under the sink.
Kate: Yeah, sure.
She runs up the stairs.
Godfrey: Nick, you can’t blame yourself for this. Trust me. Guilt isn’t going to help.
Nick: But…I was supposed to be looking out…
Godfrey: Don’t think about it. We need you to be able to focus. Thinking about this isn’t going to help.
Jack (coughing): Nick...sorry man. I wasn’t paying attention, and look what happened to me. Heh.
Nick: C’mon man, you’re gonna be fine.
Jack: Don’t…count on it.
Jack seems to be dead. Kate comes down the stairs.
Kate: I found the first aid- Is he…oh my god. Is he dead?
Nick: Yeah.
Godfrey: Not for long. We should put him somewhere so he can’t attack us when he comes back. Maybe the basement?
Nick: Yeah…Yeah I guess that’ll be good.
Nick and Godfrey carry Jack’s body out of the room.
Heather: I can’t believe he’s dead…
Kate: Neither can I. Why did we go out there?
Heather: We shouldn’t have. This shouldn’t have happened.
Nick and Godfrey come back upstairs.
Godfrey: We should start putting up the barricade now.
Nick: Hey, take it easy man. Jack just died. It wasn’t like he was some total stranger. He was a good friend, and he’s dead. Maybe you should give them some time.
Godfrey: Give them some time? Time? Is that what you want? Look, if we wait much longer, it’ll be too late. We’ll all be dead.
Nick (raising his voice): Oh yeah? You know, we were fine until you decided that we absolutely needed to set up a barricade. They weren’t going to get in. But now look what happened.
Godfrey (also raising his voice): They would have got in! And they still might, because the barricade isn’t up yet. Do you want for him to have died for nothing?
Nick: I’m starting to think he may have!
Godfrey: Well, you’re wrong! Then again, you might be right if we don’t get to work.
Nick: Man, listen to you! It’s as if you don’t care at all that someone just died.
Godfrey: That’s not it. I-
Nick: You know if it wasn’t for Jack, you probably wouldn’t even be alive. He’s the one who saw you out there. But do you care? Do you really care about anyone else here? No, you just want to save yourself!
Heather: Stop! Both of you please just stop. (Takes a deep breath) We can’t do anything about Jack. Its over, and he’s gone. Nick, whether or not it’s necessary, we probably should put a barricade up to be safe.
Godfrey: I don’t have time for this.
Godfrey goes downstairs.
Kate: I’m going to go help him. Maybe you too should go get some rest. Come down after you feel a little better.
Nick: I’ll come down and help. Just give me a few minutes.
Kate goes downstairs to help.
*TWO WEEKS LATER*
Night House Scene
The barricade was up on the front and back door. There was the constant sound of fists pounding on the doors. There was also the sound of footsteps down in the basement. Three of the survivors were in the living room. Nick was currently in the kitchen.
Kate: I’m so hungry.
Heather: It feels like I haven’t eaten in so long.
Godfrey: Well, it’s only going to get worse. The food supply is getting low, and the way it’s going now, we’re going to end up starved before they do. (muttering) Should have taken my chances out there.
Heather: What?
Nick walks back into the room.
Godfrey: Well?
Nick: It isn’t much. I found a half empty bag of potato chips, a handful of carrots, six apples, a half a bag of bread, a few cans of soup, and eight frozen dinners.
Godfrey: Anything else?
Nick: Nope. That’s it.
Godfrey: Great. That’s great news.
Nick: Well, I’m sorry you were expecting a thanksgiving feast.
Kate: Guys, just stop, ok? This is the last thing we need right now.
Nick (as he sits down on the couch): Yeah, sorry. I’m just…
Heather: Stressed? We all are. I mean, seriously. Have you looked outside? There are a bunch of cannibalistic dead people walking around, trying to get in here. You aren’t-
Heather is interrupted by a very loud bang. It came from downstairs.
Godfrey: Jesus what the hell was that?
Nick: I think it came from the basement…I think Jack got up the stairs.
Kate: Do we have any stuff to barricade the door?
Nick: Not anything from the garage, no. We used all that.
Godfrey: Well, lets get something up there. Before he figures out how to open the door. Grab some stuff and bring it down. I’ll go hold the door closed.
Godfrey walked down the stairs. It was coming from the basement. He could see the door shake a little bit every time Jack hit it from the other side. Nick came down with a chair.
Nick: Here, I’m going back up to get more.
Godfrey: Alright, I’ll get it set up.
Heather and Kate each came down with a stool from the kitchen.
Godfrey: Good. Actually, call Nick down; tell him to grab the chairs in this room.
Kate (yelling): Nick, come down here and use these chairs.
Nick came down and they began stacking the chairs in front of the door.
Nick: Think that’ll hold?
Godfrey: I sure hope so.
After a few seconds they heard a pounding at the front door. However it sounded different. It wasn’t the slow, consistent noise that the survivors had grown used to. It was fast, and sounded panicky.
Heather: Is…is someone there?
The noise was now paired with a person yelling.
Voice: Is anyone in here? Please help! They’re coming! Open the door!
Kate: We have to help her.
Kate starts towards the door. The pounding continues.
Godfrey: No! We can’t risk it, they could get in!
Voice: Please, open the door!
Nick: Godfrey, we can’t just let them die. I’m opening that door.
Godfrey: Nick, stop! They’ll get in the house!
Nick started moving the barricade aside, and Kate began to help him. Nick opened the door, and three people, two men and a woman, dove inside as soon as it was open.
Nick: Are there any more?
Man: No close it!
Nick closed the door. They started putting the barricade back in place.
Woman: Thank you so much. You saved us.
Nick: What were you doing out there?
Man: We were hiding in a house down the block. They got in. There were so many. Only us three escaped.
Heather: How many of you were there?
Woman: Twelve. Four didn’t even make it out of the house.
Man: I’m Frank Weimer. This is Katherine Williams and John Reid.
Godfrey: What’s in the bag?
Frank: Oh this? We stuffed as much food as we could into it.
Kate: Hopefully you got a lot. We are running pretty low.
Frank: We completely stuffed the bag, but I don’t know how long it will last.
John: What’s that noise coming from the basement?
Nick: Someone that was with us was bitten. He died two weeks ago and we put him down there. He obviously became one of them, so we barricaded the door.
Katherine: I’m so sorry…I-
More banging from the other side of the doors, but this time it seemed to be coming from the laundry room.
Godfrey: Nick…How would they have gotten in there?
Nick: Oh god. There…is a side door. They could’ve gotten in…
Heather: Quick get something on the door!
Nick ran to grab a chair, but it was too late. The laundry room door flew open, revealing three zombies on the other side. The side door behind them was open.
Frank: Oh, hell.
Katherine, Godfrey, and Heather run up the stairs. The other four run into the TV room and locked the door.
Godfrey: Where do we go?!
Heather: They normally can’t get up stairs, right? At least, Jack said they couldn’t get up on the deck. Look out the window, there aren’t any there.
Katherine: Move the barricade off the back door. Hurry before they get up here! They started to move it. When they got outside, however, they saw a lot of zombies all around.
Some had also begun to crawl up the stairs.
Heather: Oh god, no!
Heather ran back in the house and darted up to the second floor. She ran into Nick’s room and shut the door behind her.
Godfrey (mutters): Figures.
A zombie that had crawled up the stairs just grabbed Katherine’s ankle.
Katherine: *screams*
Meanwhile
Nick, Kate, Frank, and John are in the TV room. They hear someone scream.
Kate: Oh god, who was that?
Frank: That sounded like Katherine.
John: Crawl out of one hole and into another eh?
Frank: Looks like it. Well, looks like we’ll be on the move again. If they haven’t already, the ones outside will figure out the side door is open. We should get out now before it gets too crowded.
John: Yeah, I don’t want to go through that again. Where are the exits, Nick?
Nick pulls up the blinds of the window. Zombies can be seen in close proximity to the front door.
Nick: Well, not this one.
He closes the blinds.
Frank: Ok, what else?
Nick: There’s the backdoor, which leads to onto a deck. There’s also the side door. We might also be able to use a window to get out.
Footsteps can be heard above.
Nick: Wait. Listen. Sounds like someone is upstairs. But I only hear one person.
John: Well, that scream sounded like it came from out near the backyard, not upstairs.
Hell that could be why someone is up there.
Zombies begin banging on the door.
John: Well, we’re out of options. Looks like we got the window.
Nick: Well, my car keys are right here. If we can get to it, we might have a chance.
Frank: Sounds like the best plan we have. Alright, let’s do it.
Heather is sitting on the bed in Nick’s room. She hears Katherine scream.
Heather: Oh god, oh god. What do I do now?
She then looks at the window. She opens it and takes the screen off. She sticks her head out the window. Heather crawls through the window and does her best to close it behind her. Heather is looking around anxiously. She can see the zombies in the streets from up there and finally understands how many there are. She then hears people yelling from below and to the left. Nick, Kate, Frank, and John come into view.
Heather: Guys! Get up here!
Nick: Heather! The car! Get to my car!
Heather sees Nick waving his keys in the air.
Heather: Nick, behind you!
Nick turns around and pushes the zombie. Kate ran up to the car, but the door was locked.
Kate: Nick, unlock the door!
Nick pushes the unlock button on the keychain and Kate pulls the door open and gets inside. Nick starts running towards the car when he hears John.
John: Help! Get it off me!
John is bit on the arm.
John: GAAAHH!!
Frank runs over to him and pushes the zombie off. Nick has gotten in the car.
Nick: Frank, hurry up! Heather, get down from there and come to the car!
Heather: Ok, I’m coming down!
Heather is about to jump down. From where she is it looks safe. However from Nick’s point of view, you can see the zombies on the porch but below the overhang that Heather is on top of.
Nick: No! Heather! Wait!
It was too late. Heather jumped down and was immediately tackled to the ground by the closest two zombies. They fall down with her and attempt to eat her. The ones behind follow suit.
Heather: *screams*
Nick: Heather!!
Kate: Oh my god, they got Heather.
Nick is looking over towards Frank, and he sees Godfrey carrying Katherine.
Nick: Over here! Get in!
Godfrey sees them and starts running over to the car. Meanwhile, Frank is fending off multiple zombies. John is helping him, and has also been bit three times. He seems to not care anymore, being as he has already been bitten once. Then suddenly he drops to the ground, presumably dead. Frank is able to get free and helps Godfrey get Katherine into the car. Godfrey and Frank get in the back.
Godfrey: Go, now!The car drives away.
Nick: Why were you carrying her?
Godfrey: She wasn’t bitten. One of those things grabbed her ankle, and she fell and sprained it.
Nick (look of relief on his face): I had to ask.
Godfrey: I know.
Nick: Where should we go?
Godfrey: I don’t know, but we probably won’t be able to drive out of here. The roads out are probably blocked off.
Frank: How about a boat?
Nick: A boat?
Frank: Yeah. The roads are probably blocked off, but maybe we could get a boat and get to New York or something.
Nick: Where then?
Godfrey: Go across highway 36 to Port Monmouth. Hopefully we can find a boat docked there.
Kate: I hope you’re right.
Godfrey: Yeah. So do I.
Port Monmouth Scene
The car is driving across a bridge when it stops.
Godfrey: What is it?
Nick: Outta gas. Looks like we’re walking.
Katherine: Walking?!
Nick: Don’t worry. I don’t even see any of them. It looks pretty safe. And we’ll help you walk, too.
Frank: Do you know exactly where we’re going?
Godfrey: Yeah I know a place. It’s as good a place to look as any, really. Hopefully we’ll be able to find a boat docked.
Nick: Alright let’s hurry up and go.
The five of them got out of the car. Godfrey was supporting Katherine. They walked as fast as they could, avoiding the few zombies they encountered. They couldn’t move very fast, however, because they were staying together, and Katherine couldn’t run.
Kate: Wait! Stop! I hear something.
A fairly large crowd of zombies was slowly making its way towards the survivors.
Nick: Where did they come from?
Godfrey: Who cares, run!
The five survivors start running down the street. Godfrey is practically carrying Katherine. Nick is slightly ahead of everyone else. There is a turn ahead, and Nick immediately turns left.
Nick (Yelling back to them): I’ll go check if it’s clear!
The survivors got far enough away that they could wait. It only took Nick a minute to come back.
Kate: Well? Is it clear?
Nick: Not exactly.
Frank: How many?
Nick: Only a few.
Katherine: Yeah, well let’s get going before the one’s behind reach us.
Kate: If we go there, the zombies will just follow us. We have to lead them away somehow.
Godfrey: Too late, run!
The zombies had gotten close. The group scattered. Nick was running away from the boats.
Nick: I’ll try and lead them away! Hurry up and get one ready!
Katherine: But-
Godfrey: C’mon let’s go, he’ll be fine.
Frank: Hurry back, Nick, we’ll be at the dock!
The four of them started towards the boats. Frank and Godfrey are supporting Katherine as they run up the hill towards the marina.
Kate: How do we get over to the boats?
Godfrey: Hmm… (He points over to some stairs going down.) Maybe that will bring us over. Katherine, can you make it down?
Katherine: Uh…yeah. Yeah I think so.
Godfrey goes down first, then turns around and assists Katherine. Kate comes down after them. Frank climbs down last. They walked down the pier and search some of the boats. Godfrey came back out of one of them.
Godfrey: The key is in this one; bring Katherine inside.
There was a dead body inside, presumably the owner of the boat. Godfrey took the keys and started walking out again.
Kate: Where are you going?
Godfrey: I’m going to try and find Nick.
Frank: I’ll come too.
Godfrey: No. No I’ll go alone. Just make sure everything is ready.
Nick ran as fast as he could. There was tall grass on his right. After putting some distance between him and the zombies, he dove into it. A minute went by. The zombies had passed by and not noticed him. He began to stand up, and a figure stood up behind him. It grabbed his shoulder. Nick screamed.
Godfrey: Jesus calm down its me!
Nick: Why the hell did you grab my shoulder?
Godfrey: I’m sorry I scared you, alright? We should go now, we found a boat, and the keys to go with it.
Nick: That’s great news, let’s go.
They climbed out of the tall grass, only to realize that some of the zombies did not stay with the crowd. One of them lurched forward too far and fell down, but was able to bring Godfrey down with him. Nick moved towards him to help, but more zombies were closing in.
Godfrey: Go! Go! You can’t save me!
Nick: I’m sorry.
Reluctantly, Nick turned and ran.
Katherine: When are they coming back?
Kate: I’m sure they’ll be here soon.
Almost on cue, Nick walked through the door.
Kate: Oh thank god, you’re alright!
Katherine: Where’s Godfrey?
Nick: He didn’t make it. They got him.
Kate: What?
Nick: Look we have to go!
Frank: Nick, he had the keys!
Zombie moans from outside.
Nick: Dammit!
Two zombies appeared in the doorway. One of them Nick instantly recognized as the walking corpse of Godfrey Dodson.
Nick: Where’s the bat? Hurry!
Frank: Catch!
Frank threw him the bat, and Nick hit Godfrey. He then hit the next zombie, and was able to find the keys in Godfrey’s pocket. Nick threw them to Frank, who started the boat silently.
Nick: Are you alright? You don’t look so good.
Katherine: Yeah, I’ll be fine. I promise.
As they moved towards the harbor exit, Katherine wondered if she should reveal her secret. She decided not to, and hoped to god there was a cure.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
MP2 Calendar
January
1
Web log update
2
filming
3
filming
4
Web log update
5
filming
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filming
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Web log update
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Web log update
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filming
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filming
18
Web log update
19
filming
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filming
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filming
22
Web log update
23
Log sheet due
24
filming
25
Web log update
29
Web log update
1
Web log update
2
filming
3
filming
4
Web log update
5
filming
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filming
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filming
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filming
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Web log update
16
filming
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18
Web log update
19
filming
20
filming
21
filming
22
Web log update
23
Log sheet due
24
filming
25
Web log update
29
Web log update
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