New Scenes and New Freedom

With my USC Scenes now in the polishing stages, I am heading for a new era in writing my own fiction. I'll be posting more often, no doubt, especially once the show is over.

Right now, I'm starting to write Super-Stitchin', that scene I wrote about back at the beginning of October. More about that later.

Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before...

Last year, during phys ed, I realized that Flo Rida's "In the Ayer" could be parodied to be about RMHS phys ed teacher Mr. Zaya. I thought up some rough parody lyrics during part of the chorus, and then left the idea to stew.

Today, while I was tutoring students in Pre-Calc, I realized that another recent popular song, Rihanna's "Umbrella" could be parodied to the tune of math department head Mr. Moscariello.

That could be a series of parody clips instead of the music video that I had originally intended to make out of the first one. I could create an imaginary senior whose had a completely musical day. Not High School Musical. Just a day put together with the music.

It's Hip to Be Square

I saw three excellent movies over the weekend: The Departed, American Psycho, and Harvey.

I saw the first on Saturday, and I can see why it won the Oscar for best screenplay. It believably keeps the identity of each mole secret from the other until it absolutely has to give one of them away. Also, the choice of "Shipping Up to Boston" for the car chase towards the end is great. The song is established in the beginning when DiCaprio does his stint in jail for the trumped-up assault charge, so the audience has it in the back of their minds. It fits the movie's basic gist: it is undeniably Irish, and it is a violent piece of music on a basic level. The violence is accented by the rising tension of the film itself, so when you hear the first strains, just before the mobsters start heading over the Zakim Bridge, your pulse revs.

On Sunday night, I saw American Psycho followed by Harvey. That has to be one of the weirdest double features ever. In the first, you see how Christian Bale was selected for Batman, for his uncanny ability to play a person hiding a secondary persona under a solid veneer of semi-respectability. Also amazing in this movie is the scene in which Bateman (ha-ha, sounds like Batman) monologues about Huey Lewis and the News and "Hip to Be Square" while readying to axe his business competitor. He puts on a raincoat, starts playing the song, and takes an axe to the man's head while Huey is about halfway through the first verse. The scene is beautifully written: it shows Bateman's mask rapidly deteriorating, both in his actions and the way he speaks.

With Harvey, there is another dynamic of insanity for much of the first part of the book. Its much more pleasant, and you are trying to figure out if Harvey is imaginary or not. Though it is later hinted that he is real, the dialogue and actions are meant to lead the reader to initially believe that Elwood P. Dowd is merely a happy and likeable loony, and that there is not a six foot three inch white rabbit standing behind him.

College scene and a new idea

I finished the first rough draft of my USC Creative Challenge B scene! Huzzah!

I also have an idea to spice up Creative Challenge A--the elevator scene. Two men get on in a lobby. One has a relatively cushy job (successful banker, something like that) and is dressed as such, coming home to the eighth floor at nearly midnight on New Years Eve to catch heck from his wife while he watches the ball drop. The other is on his way to a costume party on the twelfth floor; he is dressed as a cartoon platypus. Cartoon platypus guy has a lot of energy, and starts dancing to the elevator Muzak. The elevator gets stuck at the seventh floor, and the formal guy is not pleased. He tries pressing the call button (no go), then the emergency call button (goes through), then his cell phone to call home (no reception). Meanwhile, cartoon platypus dude is also worried about missing the party, but this manifests in being more fidgety and tense. Temperatures rise.

One more thing: I was talking TV with my family last night, and we mentioned a show, Max Headroom, that was on about twenty-five years ago. I know the show because my parents recorded several episodes; it's about a future in which the world, or at least the US, is controlled by the TV networks. I think that, if it was reworked, it could compete in today's market for shows, at least on SciFi (or however they spell it now). Instead of being controlled by TV networks, Earth would be owned by Googlesoft, controlled by the Internet. The hero would spend the first season trying to rid the world of Googlesoft's influence, only to find that the company is only creating miserable conditions on Earth to stop an alien invasion. The hero would change sides, trying or unable to explain to his former allies, and would fight the aliens for at least one more season.

One more thing: New House tonight!

College Visits

Colleges that say that they are coming to you, instead of you coming to them, remind me of Soviet Russia jokes.

"In Soviet Russia, you do not visit George Washington University; George Washington University visits you!"

Not quite as classic as "Channel changes you!" or what have you, but it is odd.

Back to blogging

I have been slacking, no doubt about it.

First today, a joke:

Q: What disease do you suffer from if you compulsively embroider to keep away bad luck?

A: Super-stitchin'.

That's a fun ten-minute play right there. A grown man visits (or maybe lives with) his aging mother, and comes home one day to find a pile of embroidered garments (which may be all his clothes). He is frustrated with his mother...he told her not to do that anymore. She apologizes just a little, excusing herself by saying that she needs to do this to keep away the bad luck. He questions her, trying to figure out what has her doing this compulsive thing. She gives a reason, an example of bad luck without embroidery, and he tries to convince her that the bad luck won't be held back like that. She asks him what she'll do about making sure that he gets his promotion, and the roof doesn't cave in, and other things.

"I don't know, Ma, we'll figure out a way. One thing's for sure, though."

"What's that?"

"Super-stitchin' ain't the way."

A capella

After listening to Star Wars Acapella (search it on Youtube) so much, I have that sort of "words set to soundtrack" theme set in my head. Recently, I listened to the Bond theme from Casino Royale again.

You can set the notes to key Bond lines/themes:

Sha-ken-not-stirred on the smoother Bond line in the back

Li-cense-to-kill on the horn accents

On the swooping sting that leads into the main body: The name's Bond (BOND) James Bond (BOND) Double-Oh-Seven!

At the end, four License-to-kills, followed by the fadeout "Bond..."

It would need a lot more work, but it would be sooo much fun.

Random Zombie Scene Lines for Storage

"How much of your brain did they eat anyways?"

Amy on Harold's music: "I prefer my blood inside my ears."

More on Post Apocalyptic Zombie Humor

Amy and Harold are living in a small refugee camp, housed in an abandoned building of an urban center.

Harold (who prefers his given name to Harry) gets through the days by listening to his battery-powered stereo. On trips to forage for safe food and other essentials, Harold will often make detours, sometimes dangerous, to look for batteries.

Amy has had enough. Harold listens to his music non-stop when he has the batteries, and gets sulky when he doesn't. She is tired of both and also of his not noticing her. She has a definite thing for Harold, and the stereo is a woman in her way. Accordingly, said obstacle gets thrown out a window several stories up.

Harold is immediately dismayed; he looks down immediately, trying to ascertain the condition of the stereo, the (KISS?) CD in the stereo, and the batteries. Though the stereo and the CD appear intact, the zombie's post-death twitching knocks the batteries into a nearby sewer grate.

"I spent weeks getting those batteries! Weeks!"

Harold begins to suit up, loading his weapons to reclaim what he can from the wreckage and replace what he can't elsewhere. Amy is dismayed; her plan has backfired, and now she wants Harold to stay in. It's safer, she says. You don't need the music. You'll die.

Harold, angry as he is about the stereo, doesn't see immediately that she likes/loves him. He argues with Amy, saying that the music is the only thing keeping him sane, that he can't kill zombies without it.

Eventually, Harold realizes that Amy likes him; this surprises him, and he likes it, but at the moment it's irritating because it complicates things. One thing it doesn't do is deter him. He is all set to go when Amy starts putting on her own gear. He asks her to stop, tells her to leave, and then realizes how much she's willing to give for him. They sort of make up (and kiss? no, too soon) and wade off into the zombie horde for replacement stuff.

USC Creative Challenge B

A zombie apocalypse of sorts has descended on the world; in one major city, a group of refugees have holed up together. They're hiding out in an easily defendable spot, with plenty of supplies and ammunition. Male X has prized possession A, which he has made his sole comfort in the world that they are living in. Person Y (male or female) is in a really bad mood and is sick to heck of Male X's prized possession, so he/she throws A out the window. Male X is upset beyond words, and prepares to brave a zombie horde to save A; Y, realizing that he/she does not want X to leave, desperately tries to convince X to stay.

This works with two refugees of almost any age and relationship. I think potential lovers, an old married couple, and siblings are the best marks.

A Simple Habit

I tend to go for walks at night. My afternoons are too busy most days to do a quick run, and my folks are a little antsy about me running past 9. Therefore, if I need to get some fresh air, or process tough emotions, I'll head out, either along a few chosen routes or at random, to work out physical and mental kinks.

I wonder who else has this sort of wanderlust. I've heard of sketchy people roaming Reading's streets at night (and wonder if I'm one of the ones spoken of): what are they like, and how would they interact if they ever met?

It's a character-driven piece more than plot if it's to be made. Either that, or there has to be some really good reasoning behind the plot.

Real Life Fiction #1

I really love the way that Nabokov talks about creative writing, how we're creating the world around us, allowing the chaos to flow and then sucking it all back up.

Something happened tonight. I was pushing the pirate ship home, and a man on the other side of the street stopped playing with his son to offer me help. He was very concerned, asking me where my friends were, why I was doing it to myself. He offered to help push, even to tie it to the roof of his car and drive it (one might have helped, but I rationalized against it, and the other wouldn't have worked because of the fragility). I politely refused, and when I did, he said that his name was Ben, and that if I ever needed a favor, I should come to his house.

We live in a world where the most unlikely things can happen. Stories walk out of the air.

That wasn't all with the ship today. I struggled for forty-five minutes getting the ship out of the scene shop and for over an hour pushing it home because I was too proud and too conscience-ridden to accept help. What stories do I write about that?

More on AP Calc BC Series

One of the great things about Mr. Mooney is that he's so material-rich (and I swear on my muse that I will ask him for permission to do this tomorrow). He's loud, funny, occasionally throws things, doesn't have explicit favorites but does have one or two nemeses.

He's also married to another teacher in the school. What about the story of how they met and fell in love? There are, of course, wild rumors, none of which I will repeat in this blog, but if ever there was a basis for a good serial romance, that's it.

OK, now it is even more imperative that I talk to both of them. Oh well. These are the demands of my art, and so be it.

What's also great is that I can play with the relationships of students within the class as I wish, as long as I keep the scenes within, or largely within, the about fifteen people who will populate the class.

One of the BC students needs tutoring; another signs up as a tutor. What is the relationship between them? How do they interact with Mr. House?

Listening to the theme from House ("TearDrop," by Massive Attack) has me thinking about this idea. The first lesson we had on Friday in BC Calc was about limits, which would make a great title for an episode in which one of the students almost immediately drops out due to the already intense pressure from the course.

Interestingly, AP Calc (BC) could just as easily be done as a series of ten minute plays as a series of hourlong episodes. In fact, it might be easier.

The year would start, with everyone fresh and enthusiastic. The review packets would unnerve the focus student, who was already worried about doing four APs, and especially this one. They would have difficulty with the early lessons, and would show signs of dropping out. The Mr. Mooney analog would protest, and use all sorts of nasty tricks to try to boost the students morale to keep them in the class. In the end, the student would leave the class; the note of explanation showing a graph: Time vs. Difficulty of Mathematics Coursework, which would look something like the graph of

1

----

x-5.

I really like this idea. Stylistic parody is so cool.

More on this later.

More Random Ideas

First, a good quote. Someone offers to sing. His friend replies, "No, I prefer my blood inside my ears."

Concept: Mr. Mooney looks a little bit like Hugh Laurie. His teaching style is a little bit like House's bedside manner (not a lot, but just a little bit). Because there are only fifteen or so kids in Calc BC, you could dramatize the experience, exaggerate something here, diminish something there, and create a dramedy (drama/comedy) based on the class. It could be a stylistic parody of House, or it could take on a life all its own.

Random Idea Number 1

"Feta or cheddar, whichever is better."

Sounds like a poem to me, especially if spoken by a character with a Boston accent.

Hi-ho!

My name is Eric Pratt, and this is the official blog for my Dramatic Writing Senior Project. Over the course of the 2009-2010 academic year, I will be posting all of my plays and internet short films to this blog, as well as my brainstorms, rough drafts, journal entries, and feedback from all others involved in my project.

Thanks for stopping by!