Book 2 (aaron gourlay)

Downtown Redemption “Look at me. Wait ‘till you’ve been doing it a few more years. You think you know who you are? You have no idea.”

Story by Aaron Gourlay Screenplay by Aaron Gourlay

Final Draft 15/03/2016

1. EXT. WHEN THE MEMORIAL SERVICE FINISHES, ADAM LEAVES, WALKING BACK TOWARDS HIS OFFICE – LONG SHOT. THE GUILT HE FELT AFTER MAKING EYE CONTACT WITH MEIYING AND LISTENING TO THE WORDS SPOKEN HAD INFLUENCED HIM TO CHANGE HIS BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS OTHER PEOPLE. HE TOOK A DETOUR BACK, WALKING AROUND THE BUILDING LOOKING AT THE SURROUNDINGS AND ENVIRONMENT. INT. ADAM REACHED HIS OFFICE BUILDING GREETED BY THE SECRETARY AND ASSISTANTS – MID SHOT ASSISTANT “How was the memorial, Adam? Are you feeling okay?”

ADAM “It was fine, thanks.”

CONFUSED, ADAM WAS ASKING HIMSELF, ARE THESE PEOPLE GENUINLY WORRIED ABOUT ME? OR ARE THEY ONLY ASKING BECAUSE I’M THEIR BOSS? WALKING INTO HIS OFFICE HE MUMBLED TO HIMSELF ADAM “Why do I have to be such a dick?”

2. INT. SITTING IN HIS OFFICE, ADAM STARED OUT HIS OFFICE WINDOW. ONCE AGAIN, STARING AT THE SURROUNDINGS, THE ENVIRONMENT AND DIFFERENCES AROUND HIM. DIFFERENCES THAT EXISTED IN PEOPLE AND CULTURES AND IN SURROUNDING BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES. BOTH SHARED SIMILAR DIFFERENCES. BLACK, WHITE, TALL, SHORT, WIDE AND THIN. WHILE SITTING IN HIS SEAT, HE PAID ATTENTION TO EVERYTHING AND COULDN’T HELP BUT NOTICE AN ARGUMENT BREWING IN THE PUBLIC. WATCHING THROUGH THE GLASS, THE DISCRIMINATION INVOLVED IN THE ARGUMENT ANGERED ADAM. EXT. OUTSIDE BRITOMART MACDONALDS AN ARGUMENT BREAKS OUT BETWEEN A MALE AND FEMALE. FEMALE “Watch where you’re going. Walk into a girl like that, who do you think you are.”

MALE “Don’t think that just because you’re a girl, everyone has to give way for you.”

FEMALE “Didn’t your mum teach you any manners, it’s not cool you know.”

MALE “My mum wasn’t crazy walking into everyone!”

FEMALE “You walked into me!”

MALE “Whatever, get lost.”

INT. ADAM WATCHED THE ENTIRE ARGUMENT BETWEEN THE TWO, WONDERING HOW ONE CAN BE SO RUDE

3.INT. THE ASSISTANT DROPS A LIST ON ADAM’S DESK ASSISTANT “Excuse me, Adam. Everyone on this list needs to be contacted today.”

INT. ADAM LOOKS AT THE LIST ON HIS DESK AND PICKS UP HIS PHONE. ADAM “Hi there, this is Adam speaking from ANZ credit collection. I’m just calling in regards to your last payment that you have missed.”

TAMATI “Hey man, sorry about that ay, I completely forgot about it, I’ll make the payment now my man.”

ADAM “Thanks for that Tamati, that all checks out fine, have a great day.”

INT. LOOKING AT THE LIST OF NAMES, ADAM DIALS THE NEXT CONTACT – CLOSE UP. ADAM “Hi, this is Adam from ANZ credit collection. –-“ KATERINA “I’m so sorry, I’ve just been so slack the last few weeks with everything. I just paid it.”

ADAM “Your payment just showed up, thank you. Have a good day ma’am.”

INT. ADAM HANGS UP PHONE AND LEANS BACK. – MID SHOT. ADAM “Well that makes my job a lot easier…”

INT. ADAM GETS THROUGH THE CONTACT LIST WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS AND EVERY CUSTOMER WAS POLITE AND COOPERATIVE. IN RETURN, ADAM WAS POLITE TO EVERY CUSTOMER OVER THE DAY.

4. EXT. ADAM GOES OUT FOR A COFFEE RUN, LEAVING THE OFFICE BUILDING. CROSSING THE ROAD, ADAM RECIEVES A PHONE CALL AND WHILE REACHING FOR HIS POCKET, TAKES HIS EYES AWAY FROM HIS PATH. HE SWAYS AWAY FROM HIS ORIGINAL PATH AND WHEN HE FINDS HIS PHONE AND LOOKS UP, HE COLLIDES WITH ANOTHER MAN WALKING TOWARDS HIM - MID SHOT. MALAKAI “What are you doing bro? Walking all over the show, use your eyes.”

ADAM “Sorry, I was just reaching for my phone and took my eyes away for a second.”

MALAKAI “Well maybe your should stay off your phone and watch where you’re going man.”

ADAM “It’s my job to be on my phone and if it weren’t for you and your people I wouldn’t have to be on my phone all day.”

MALAKAI “What? What’d you say?”

ADAM TURNS AROUND AND LEAVES, AVOIDING FURTHER CONFRONTATION. HE WALKS AWAY WITH HIS HEAD DOWN AND FACE BRIGHT RED – CLOSE UP

DENIAL 5. EXT. WALKING AWAY FROM HIS OFFICE BUILDING, FACE DOWN, ADAM LOOKS UP TO SEE THE ENVIRONMENT HE IS AROUND EVERY DAY. A CATALOGUE OF ETHNICITIES AND RACES SURROUND HIM, ALL OF DIFFERENT AGE, SEX, HEIGHT AND BUILD. ALL WITHIN AN ATMOSPHERE OF CONTRAST, SMALL SAMPLES OF NATURE AGAINST A CITY CONTINOUSLY TRANSFORMING, STRUCTURES OF DIFFERENT SIZES, STYLES AND COLOURS. ADAM WALKS, PICKING HIS FACE UP AND CATCHING SIGHT OF HIMSELF IN A REFLECTIVE FAÇADE OF A BUILDING. HE STARES AT THIS REFLECTION FOR A MOMENT, AND IN THAT MOMENT HE WONDERS WHO HE REALLY IS. HE THINKS ABOUT THE EARLIER GUILT THAT LEFT HIS MIND AS SOON AS SOMEONE APPROACHED HIM WHO WAS “DIFFERENT” FROM HIMSELF. HE THEN WONDERS, IS THIS WHO HE WANTS TO BE? HE LOOKS BACK AND SHAKES IT OFF.

6. INT. ADAM WALKS BACK INTO HIS OFFICE BUILDING AFTER SOME TIME OF WALKING AROUND IN DENIAL. REMEMBERING THAT HIS AIR CONDITIONING IN HIS OFFICE HAD NOT BEEN WORKING, ADAM WENT DOWN TO THE CONTROL ROOM. ADAM LET HIMSELF INTO THE CONTROL ROOM. WIDE SHOT ADAM “Hello, is there anyone down here?”

THE CONTROL ROOM WAS EMPTY, BUT ADAM WAS GROWING TIRED OF NO AIR CONDITIONING. HE WALKED AROUND, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT, OF ALL THESE CONTROLS COULD POSSIBLY CONTROL HIS OFFICE. HE SEARCHED, REACHING OVER TO WHAT HE THOUGHT WAS LABELLED AS HIS OFFICE JUST TO BE DISSAPOINTED AND DROPPED HIS SUITCASE. THE SUITCASE SPRUNG OPEN ALONG WITH THE CONTENTS SPREADING ACROSS THE GROUND. ADAM, RUSHED TO PICK UP HIS THINGS BUT THE GROUND WAS A STEEL PERFORATED FLOOR SO MANY OF HIS SMALL BELONGINGS WENT STRAIGHT DOWN UNDER THE FLOORING. IT WAS HERE, THAT ADAM REALISED HIS LIFE WAS SLIPPING THROUGH THE CRACKS.

7. INT. SEATED IN HIS OFFICE AGAIN, ADAM FOUND HIMSELF ONCE AGAIN STARING OUTSIDE OF HIS WINDOWS, THIS TIME NOT AT PEOPLE ARGUING, BUT AT THE CONTRAST OF BUILDINGS HES LOOKING AT. HE STARES AT THE OLD POST OFFICE BUILDING OF BRITOMART TRAIN STATION FEELING WARM WHILST HE LOOKS OVER AT WHAT SEEMS TO BE STACKS OF TUNA CANS FEELING COLD AND GLOOMY. HE WONDERS WHY THERE MUST BE SUCH CONTRAST EVERYWHERE, SO MANY DIFFERENCES. BOSS “Adam, I’ve got more contacts for you to get hold of today.”

ADAM “I will do that now.”

8.INT. RAWINIA WALKS INTO THE BANK TO DISCUSS HER FINANCIAL ISSUES. AFTER WAITING IN LINE FOR SEVERAL MINUTES SHE APPROACHES THE FRONT DESK – MID SHOT SECRETARY “Good afternoon, how may we help you today?”

RAWINIA “Oh hi there, I spoke to someone a few days ago about some money owing and was just wondering if I could come down and sort that out now.”

SECRETARY “Okay that’s fine, I will just put you with someone in our team that will suit your needs.”

ADAM IS SEATED IN HIS OFFICE ON THE PHONE AS HIS BOSS WALKS IN - CLOSEUP BOSS “Adam, we’ve got one of your client downstairs requesting to sort out her payments, can you go and sort her out” WITH AN EASY DAY ON THE PHONE WITH COOPERATIVE CUSTOMERS, ADAM IS NOT ENTIRELY EAGER TO DEAL WITH THIS ISSUE.

9. INT. ADAM GOES DOWN TO SPEAK TO THE CUSTOMER HE IS ASSIGNED TO. ON HIS WAY HE LOOKS OVER HER PAPERS AND RECOGNISES HER NAME AND PAPERWORK FROM A PHONECALL HE HAD WITH A CUSTOMER EARLIER IN THE WEEK - CLOSEUP ADAM “Oh not this one again, wonder what excuse she’s gonna have this time.”

ADAM WALKS INTO THE ROOM AND PUTTING THE ONLY FACE HE CAN SEE TO THE NAME RAWINIA, HIS STOMACH DROPS. THIS IS FOLLOWED BY HIS FACE DROPPING ONCE AGAIN. HE RECOGNISES THE WOMAN FROM THE MEMORIAL EVENT. AWKWARDLY, TRYING TO AVOID EYE CONTACT, ADAM APPROACHES HER. ADAM “Hi Rawinia, I’m Adam and I’ll be dealing with your case today, how may we help you?”

RAWINIA “Ahh hi, were you the fulla I spoke to over the phone…”

ADAM “Umm no sorry Rawinia, I don’t recall speaking to you.”

RAWINIA “Na, I’m pretty sure it was you aye, can someone else help me?”

ADAM “Sorry, I will go see if anyone else is available.”

10. EXT. ADAM LEAVES HIS OFFICE, FINISHING UP WORK FOR THE DAY – WIDE SHOT. HE FEELS TERRIBLE AND CAN’T HOLD HIS HEAD HIGH. HE WALKS OUT OF THE BUILDING AND ONTO THE STREET, TOWARDS BRITOMART. HE HAS A LIGHT GRIP OF HIS THINGS AS HE WALKS FEELING GUILTY. HE CAN’T BEAR TO LOOK UP, HE IS IN SO MUCH SHAME AND GUILT. WITHOUT SIGHT OF WHERE HE IS REALLY GOING, HE COLLIDES AGAIN WITH A WOMAN WALKING THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. SHE DROPS ALL OF HER BAGS AND BELONGINGS ONTO THE ROAD. MEIYING “Oh my God. Don’t you look where you’re walking” ADAM LOOKS UP, RECOGNISES MEIYING FROM EARLIER IN THE WEEK MEIYING “Oh my God, it’s you again!”

ADAM, ALREADY FEELING GUILTY ENOUGH AS IT IS, KNEELS DOWN AND PICKS UP ALL OF HER BELONGINGS, THEN HANDS THEM TO HER. ADAM “Sorry, here you go. Enjoy the rest of your night.”

MEIYING “Thank you… You too” MEIYING STAYS STANDING THERE SLIGHTLY CONFUSED FOR A MOMENT. ADAM WALKS AWAY WITH HIS HEAD HELD HIGH ADAM WHISPERS “You don’t have to be a dick.”