SIMPLE BLACK ON WHITE CREDITS ROLL TO BIG STAR’S “I’M IN LOVE
WITH A GIRL.” When all is said and done, up comes a single
number in parenthesis, like so:
(478)
1. EXT. PARK - DAY
For a few seconds we watch A MAN (20s) and a WOMAN (20s) on a
park bench. Their names are TOM and SUMMER. Neither one says a
word.
CLOSE ON her HAND, covering his. Notice the wedding ring. No
words are spoken. Tom looks at her the way every woman wants to
be looked at.
A DISTINGUISHED VOICE begins to speak to us.
NARRATOR
This is a story of boy meets girl.
CUT TO:
2. INT. CONFERENCE ROOM - DAY
The boy is TOM HANSEN. He sits at a very long rectangular
conference table. The walls are lined with framed blow-up sized
greeting cards. Tom, dark hair and blue eyes, wears a t-shirt
under his sports coat and Adidas tennis shoes to balance out the
corporate dress code. He looks pretty bored.
NARRATOR
The boy, Tom Hansen of Margate, New
Jersey, grew up believing that he’d
never truly be happy until the day he
met his-- “soulmate.”
CUT TO:
3. INT. LIVING ROOM - 1989
PRE-TEEN TOM sits alone on his bed engrossed in a movie. His
walls are covered in posters of obscure bands. From the TV, we
hear: “Elaine! Elaine!”
NARRATOR
This belief stemmed from early
exposure to sad British pop music
and a total misreading of the movie,
“The Graduate.”
4. INT. OFFICE CUBICLE - PRESENT DAY
The girl is SUMMER FINN. She files folders and answers phones
in a plain white office. She has cropped blonde hair almost
like a boy’s but her face is feminine and pretty enough to get
away with it.
NARRATOR
The girl, Summer Finn of Shinnecock,
Michigan, did not share this belief.
CUT TO:
5. INT. BATHROOM - 1994
Teenage Summer stares at herself in the mirror. Her hair extends
down to her lower back.
NARRATOR
Since the disintegration of her
parents’ marriage, she’d only loved
two things. The first was her long
blonde hair.
She picks up scissors from the counter and begins to slice.
NARRATOR
The second was how easily she could
cut it off-- And feel nothing.
CUT TO:
6. SPLIT SCREEN. INT. BOARDROOM - INT. CUBICLE - SAME
On the right side of the screen, Tom continues to listen to some
boring presentation. On the left, Summer answers a call, takes a
message, and walks out of her cubicle down a long narrow
hallway.
NARRATOR
Tom meets Summer on January 8th in a
San Francisco office building. In an
instant, he will know she’s the one
he’s been looking for.
CU Summer opening the door to the boardroom, about to come face
to face with Tom for the first time.
CUT TO:
BLACK.
152. INT. OFFICE WAITING AREA - DAY
He starts to go. But halfway through the doorway, he pauses and
looks back at the girl.
NARRATOR
If Tom had learned anything, it was
that you can’t ascribe great cosmic
significance to a simple earthly event.
Coincidence. That’s all anything ever
is. Nothing more than coincidence.
ANIMATION. 1 second clip of the colored sequence. Real fast.
Hardly noticeable. But it’s there.
NARRATOR
It took a long time but Tom had finally
learned. There are no miracles. There’s
no such thing as fate. Nothing is meant
to be. He knew. He was sure of it now.
(beat)
Tom was--
Tom turns back around.
NARRATOR
--pretty sure.
TOM
(to Girl)
Excuse me.
GIRL
Hello stranger.
TOM
When this is over-- uh-- would you like
to grab a cup of coffee or something?
(extends hand to shake)
My name’s Tom.
GIRL
I’m Autumn.
And on his face--
SMASH CUT TO:
(1)
THE END.
CREDITS ROLL TO “GO ASK YER DAD” by THE TYDE.