Sunday 4 February 2018

Script draft

Step
Scene Heading
Shot
Subject
Description                                
1
EXT – Planet’s surface
Low angle extreme wide shot
Establishing shot of planet.
The animation starts with a rocket landing on an unfamiliar planet. It falls through the clouds and touches down on the dusty ground.
Pan
Pan up to show rocket.
High angle over the shoulder
Rocket approaching the surface.
Very wide shot
Rocket standing on planet.
2
EXT – Landing site
Mid shot
Robot being lowered from rocket.
We then see the boot up sequence for the robot, starting as a first person shot and transitioning out to show it detaching from the lander.
Point of view
Boot up sequence of robot followed by its visual sensors turning on.
Wide shot
Robot adjusting to its body.
Cut away
Robot looks to rocket as equipment panel opens up.
3
EXT – Landing site
Point of view
HUD of robot showing building instructions for greenhouse.
The next scene is the robot building a hydroponics dome, cut into 3 parts. There’s a few seconds where it’s accessing the instructions, a shot of it about 1/3 build and a final bit with it closing the door as it is fully built.
Low angle
Robot figuring out how to slot together 2 poles.
Over the shoulder
Fitting a transparent panel to the greenhouse frame
Mid shot
Robot closing the doors on the constructed greenhouse.
4
INT – Rocket compartment
Point of view
View through the telescope looking up into space.
It’s now night-time and we see the robot looking through some form of telescope attached to the lander.
Medium close up
Robot sighs as it detaches from the telescope.
Close up
Robot looks forlornly up at the stars.
5
INT - Greenhouse
Mid shot
Robot examining packet of seeds
In the next scene we see the robot planting a mixture of seeds inside the dome.
Wide shot
Robot planting seeds in a line across the frame.
Full shot
Shot of the greenhouse with plants starting to sprout inside.
6
EXT - Landing site
INT – Greenhouse
INT – Rocket compartment
To be decided
To be decided
There is then a time-lapse showing the plants growing inside and then outside of the dome. This is interspersed with shorter scenes with the telescope. This scene will show that over a long period of time it grows a variety of plants to make the planet/area habitable. Due to a love/fascination with mankind coded into it, the robot watches the skies each night, eagerly waiting the day humans come to settle the home it has built for them.
7
EXT – Landing site
Point of view
Boot up sequence with some error flags.
 As time passes the robot visibly ages, worn down by the environment it is creating. Decades after it first touched down the robot goes out to tend the plants when it sees a light descending into the forest.
Low angle extreme wide shot
Mirrors the first shot but with the robot limping in the foreground. Panning up a speck of light descends as the robot watches.
8
EXT - Forest
Close up
Robot realises what is going on and immediately rushes towards it.
On rusted joints it hobbles towards the light. In a clearing, sits a gleaming spaceship.
Cut in
Shot of the robots legs struggling to keep pace. After a few seconds the robot trips on a root.
Mid shot
Robot pulls itself up creaking and continues.
Over the shoulder
Robot parts branches to a clearing.
9
EXT - Forest
Low angle wide shot
Side on view of the robot approaching the ship before falling down.
 As the robot approaches its battered systems start to fail. It falls down in the grass, its last sight being a group of humans coming down the ship’s ramp.
Point of view shot
View of the robot looking up at the ship with static filling up the screen. It then black with an error message before that too stops.

This is the current outline of the script. I have thought of almost all of the visuals and camera angles apart from scene 6. This has to show a large amount of time passing however I am not sure whether to us montage editing or show it as a time lapse, or how to present it. I am reformatting this into a proper script and starting to story board this but I will come back to that section when I can.

Wednesday 17 January 2018

Scrip to screen project ideas


Character: Robot
Setting: Greenhouse
Prop: Telescope



1) A robot is working in a greenhouse but wishes to see more of the world. At some point they either find or assemble a telescope and use it to look out of the greenhouse windows. It might be looking at other planets/stars, or it might be able to see trees or mountains in the distance. Enamored by what it sees it forms a plan to escape (maybe even using the telescope to start a fire?).
I don’t quite know how I would end this story. It depends whether or not the robot escaping is a good payoff but this idea seems a bit simple at the moment.

2) As part of an interplanetary colonization program a robot is sent of to a distant world to set up a suitable environment for humans. The animation would start as the robot lands on the surface and starts setting up the equipment. Over a long period of time it grows a variety of plants to make the planet/area habitable. Due to a love/fascination with mankind coded into it the robot watches the skies each night, eagerly waiting the day humans come to settle the home it has built for them
As time passes the robot visibly ages, worn down by the environment it is creating. Decades after it first touched down the robot goes out to tend the plants when it sees a light descending into the forest. On rusted joints it hobbles to where the light landed where, in a clearing, sits a gleaming spaceship. As the robot approaches it’s battered systems start to fail. It falls down in the grass, it’s last sight being a group of humans coming down the ship’s ramp.

3) An old inventor has built a robot to tend to his large greenhouse but doesn’t provide it the means to leave. One day the inventor’s grandson visits and catches a glimpse of the robot out of his window. He brings out his telescope and leans out of the window to get a proper look. Noticing the light glinting off of the telescope the robot looks towards the house, adjusting its lenses to get a better view. They both see each other and the child waves. After a pause the robot awkwardly waves back.
They go on for a little while exchanging messages (possibly holding up signs). Then, the child disappears from the window. He checks to see if his grandfather is busy and sneaks out the house. He runs down to the greenhouse and opens the heavy door. The robot is beside itself with excitement, sliding back and forth on it’s tracks. They play together for a while, the robot giving him a rid around the greenhouse. Soon however it’s the afternoon and the child has to go home. They say goodbye and the robot watches the car leave.