The Summit Treatment

Image by: Holden Southards

THE SUMMIT WRITTEN BY: MADISON ALFORD AND EMILIE KEFALAS SCAD’S THEMED ENTERTAINMENT PROJECT: WINTER 2018 CREATIVE DIRECTOR: ALEXANDER KRIKES

Opening Image: EXT. VISITOR’S CENTER: • Guests approach the Visitor’s Center that stands in the foreground of the foreboding mountain behind it. The center is framed by trees and and is illuminated by the soft glow of the moonlight.

• Welcome to Cima de Sombras, a mountain located in Northern California.

Setup: INT. VISITOR’S CENTER: • Guests will enter the Visitor’s Center and will be greeted by the warmth of a campfire. The wood interior is homey and rustic, bringing wilderness vibes to everyone inside. The walls are plastered with newspaper articles and National Parks Awards.

There’s a small newspaper clipping of Bigfoot in Image by: Holden Southards the corner, talking about how he may have been spotted at the base of the mountain.

• Guests will register for a night hike with the park ranger at the desk and take a seat while they wait. They can explore all the knick-knacks and get to know the past of the mountain. There will be a newspaper clippings about the mine and when all of the miners died from poisonous gas. There are also notes, newspaper clippings, and photos about the urban legend, “The breath of the mountain”. There’s a map with pins it in where people can put where they’re from on it.

• A ranger will call for a specific group and lead them outside. The ranger welcomes the group for their night hike and directs them into the gondola.

INT. GONDOLA: • The guests get in and the ranger closes the door. The gondola starts moving up the mountain. The ranger, without being too expositional, tells the story about how people from ancient civilizations from a long time ago journeyed over to Northern California and settled. They believed the mountain was a god and as long as they protected it, it would return the favor with a bountiful harvest. When the gold rush began, Spanish and Asian miners tried to colonize around the mountain. But the people who had lived there for hundreds of years, protected the mountain. One day, some white miners came and blew a hole into the side of the mountain. This awoke the mountain and made it angry. The humans betrayed it and it wanted revenge.

Image by: Michael G. Vidal

Themed Stated: INT. GONDOLA: • Earthquakes started to happen, which would cause rock slides, and killed many miners. When the miners stayed inside the mines too long, they would go mad. But the mountain had one last trick up it’s sleeve. When most of the miners were inside, the mountain released a poisonous gas that killed most of the miners. No one has ever dared to go back in since.

• Harmony with nature, respect it. Said by the ranger.

INT. GONDOLA/WALKWAY: • The ranger tells everyone that before they go on their hike, that they’re going to take the guests through the back way of the mine. This is so that they can experience the mystery of the mountain.

• They get out of the gondola.

Catalyst: EXT. MINE: • When they arrive, a light is illuminating the interior of the mine and the exterior looks like jaws of an animal.

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Debate: EXT. MINE: • The ranger wonders if they should go investigate the front entrance of the mine. This has never happened before. The ranger leads the guests to the front door of the mine.

Break Into Two: EXT. MINE: • The ranger the door to the mine open, letting the rest of the guests go in first. The ranger remembers that they should get their camera, since they’ve never seen inside the actual mine except for the back route.

INT. MINE - FIRST ROOM • The guests enter the inside of the mine. It hasn’t been open to people in a long time and it shows. It is dark for except for the illuminating glow of the lanterns inside.

Image by: Abbie Lewis

B Story: INT. MINE - FIRST ROOM • A boulder closes off the entrance behind the guests, blocking the ranger from entering. The ranger tells you there’s another way out and to grab a lantern so you can venture deeper into the mine. They also warn you to be wary of the maddening affect the mountain has on people and watch out for the poisonous gas.

Fun and Games: INT. MINE - FIRST ROOM • A lantern turns on in the room, directing the guests towards a journal. Inside the journal, all the pages are ripped out except for one. It gives a hint that there’s a secret button to open the door in the room.

• The guests us the clue to find a specific rock to press, that unlocks the door. They venture deeper into the mine.

INT. MINE - SECOND ROOM • The guests are let out into a maze in the second room and the door closes behind them. A page of the journal is pasted on a Image by: Alexander Krikes wall, giving them a slight clue to the task ahead. Guests will be able to venture around and find a lever. Once they pull the lever, it shifts the mine around to reveal another lever (which is back the way you came). When the guests pull the second one, the wall changes again to reveal the way forward.

Midpoint: INT. MINE - RELIC ROOM • Guests will notice a slight dip in the floor when they enter the treasure room and see the relic across the room in a crack in the wall. In between them and the relic is a step-tile puzzle. Another page of the journal has a map for them, but the end pathway is marked by question marks. Guests follow the steps and either way they go, they will set off a booby trap.

Bad Guys Close In: INT. MINE - RELIC ROOM • As the guests approach the crack in the wall, the relic disappears from sight. The lights turn red and the room darkens.

Image by: Michael G. Vidal

All is Lost: INT. MINE - RELIC ROOM • The mountain doesn’t want you to escape. It wants you to be trapped inside forever. The ceiling starts to collapse and the sound of wood snapping can be heard. Wind blusters into the room. The guests will have to find their way out.

Dark Night of the Soul: INT. MINE - HALLWAY • The ranger opens the secret door, which sends them into a claustrophobic hallway where rock work and statues are “falling” over. They have to move quickly. When the reach the end of the hall, the guests have to push tree roots out of the way to return to the gondola.

Break into Three: INT. GONDOLA • The guests jump into the gondola. The ranger puts it into motion as you slowly go back down the mountain. You can hear the mountain groaning in anger.

Finale: INT. GONDOLA • The windows start to fog up with the poisonous gas and all that can be heard is the snapping of trees Image by: Kristine Huston outside. The gondola shakes as trees fall on it and the rumble of rocks can be heard. A rock slide collides into the gondola and almost snaps the cable. The ranger is afraid they’re not going to make it.

Final Image: INT. GONDOLA • The gondola halts to a stop and, practically, “crashes” into the port. The guests all sigh a breath of relief.

They made it. The ranger thanks them and helps them unload out into the visitor center. They thank them again for coming out and before calling in the next group.

Image by: Nick Hammond