screenplay proposal

Crystal Willis
ART 441
Professor DeLappe
Screenplay Proposal

The Distance Between You and I
“From Afar, You Appear Within Reach, But Looks Can Be Deceiving”

    I am fascinated by the idea of space. Not the physiological location that engulfs the Earth and continues on into a noir abyss, but the notion of space as a mathematical entity—the third dimension. I am intrigued by form and its ability to manipulate the manner in which the naked eye perceives the world. The Distance Between You and I was an idea that flourished last semester, while considering one's physical placement in the world. Although something may appear adjacent to another individual, the third dimension can cause a disposition between the two forms. To illustrate this concept, one could hold a pebble up towards the sun, and although the pebble has the ability to be placed parallel and perpendicular to the form and trick the eye into believing the two are side by side, the third dimension prevents the two entities from crossing paths with one another. This prevention is astonishing.

     Although a pebble illustrates the bare bones of this concept, it is not the intent of the work. The work itself is propelled by two individuals. Their forms are both generalized, as unique characteristics are not of significance. This includes gender, for the actions that the two characters are allocated do not rely on a particular physique or sex. Both characters are composed of sand—sleek, reflective, and fluid. The two characters are placed within an environment made of glass, dictated by the x, y, and z-axis. As the only two coexisting in the space, the characters are inclined to search for one another and unite. Due to the nature of the characters’ material composition, neither character has the ability to speak, hear, or see; they are only capable of feeling and moving. The only evidence they are able to leave behind as a guide to their displacement are pieces of themselves; the fluidity of sand forces remnants of their presence every step they take throughout the environment, which can be perceived as a trail for each character. Though a trail could be considered ingenious for the two characters to find one another by, it should be noted that both characters are of the same material composition and there is an inability to distinguish one character’s own trail from another. Secondly, both characters have a primary fixed axis. This indicates that a majority of their maneuvers throughout the environment must be along the axis they are bound to. One character is primarily fixed to the x-axis (left and right), whereas the latter is to the y-axis (forwards and backwards). The only exception to this rule is if a character reaches the end of the environment, they are able to offset themselves one step into their opposed axis. The z-axis is fixed as the characters are currently at the base surface of the environment.

     As each character progresses through the space, they continue to decompose—until the moment that the two collide. As this event presents itself, the two characters step forward and reach out towards one another. Their hands are the first to touch, and the characters continue forward into a full embrace. As a pair, they are able to travel throughout both the x and y-axis of the composition. The moment is savored for just a few seconds until all their progress flashes before them and the space rotates 180 degrees. The two characters attempt to hold on to one another with one arm, meanwhile frantically extending their free arms towards the surface of the environment in hopes of grasping on to it. “X” is able to take hold of the environment with one hand and just barely catches “Y” by the hand, but their fate is inevitable. The gravitational pull is too much for their material compositions to remain, and both characters continue to deteriorate. “Y,” the character suspended in space, disassembles at a more rapid rate than “X,” the character who has secured the two, as the weight of the sand that once composed their trails has come pelting down upon them. The suspended character “Y” eventually succumbs to their fate and their fingers dissolve from the grasp of the other character. Alone and slowly deteriorating, the remaining character “X” is placed in a state of agony by not only the loss of their companion, but also a physical suffering as both the force of gravity and the restricted axis are acting upon them. With an inability to handle the torment, “X” decides to let go of the environment and upon impact, falls apart over the remains of their companion. After the demise of both characters, the scene is panned out, and the viewer is able to observe that the glass space was actually an hourglass that had been flipped over, set on a cluttered desk of a professional whose office is in a state of absolute pandemonium.

     The end result was selected as a paradox to the illustrated scene. The plot of the story carries a viewer through a narrative of two lost individuals in isolation who try to find one another in complete silence on a fixed axis, and although they are successful, everything is taken from them due to a single turn of their environment. Meanwhile, none of this is observed by the perpetrator because they are consumed by the rowdiness and the activities amongst them, as opposed to the minute actions they have performed. Additionally, the two sets are contradictory as one is absolutely cleansed with nothing in sight; whereas the latter is overwhelming and crucial details are easily looked past.

     By no means is this work intended to be a full feature film, but rather a short film. The work could adequately be illustrated in eight to twelve minutes and remain truthful to the proposed storyline.  Additionally, the work is not intended to be acted out. Although there are methods such as computer generated imagery that could be added to recorded footage, I am more interested in treating the storyline as an animation. This medium would allow for a better understanding of how influential each axis is in both the composition and the real world. Additionally, animation would produce continuity in the overall aesthetics of the work, as well as provide the author an opportunity into the world of rigging and treating 3D models for animation.