RANCOUR
Written by
LEON WOOLLEN
20/11/23
Contact details
Coffin House Productions
0114 308 4500
Scene opens:
INT. QUINNS BEDROOM -- NIGHT
QUINN wakes in the middle of night, TV still on from when she fell asleep. The TV is just out of frame, but we see the light from the TV sprawl across the room. We switch to an extreme close up of her eye, a different light from the hallway appearing from a slowly opening door hits her face.
NEWS PRESENTER
-with over 6 missing persons reports in the Sheffield area in the last month, victims all young adults disappearing at the dead of night without a trace. Residents have been warned to keep doors locked at night and to-
QUINN is a young woman, aged 13-15 in appearance and wearing white/pastel clothing. Her long hair is slightly messy and pushed behind her shoulders
QUINN rubs her eyes and slowly starts to wake properly as the light slowly blinks off before she notices. Quinn turns off the bright light from the TV, a pair of white dots can now be seen in the darkness. They linger high up in the door frame, suggesting the scale of the thing just out of sight in the darkness.
QUINN notices and gasps, she reaches for her phone and shines a light at the dark figure, the shadow disappearing as the light hits it. The dots now being gone causes the panic to reappear. She hurriedly makes a call on her phone.
THE MOTHER
(tired) Quinn why are you-
THE MOTHERS voice is the first, and last, we hear.
QUINN
Mum I think I saw something in my room but i don't know if it was real or not (trailing off) and-and I'm really scared-
THE MOTHER
(Worried) Wait... what do you mean 'saw something'?
QUINN
Like a shadow in the door-
THE MOTHER
(Cynical) A shadow... at night? c'mon sweetie, go back to sleep it was probably nothing.
QUINN
Mum I'm being serious, I'm really scared and I think there's someone in the house with us.
THE MOTHER
(sighs) Quinn I already told you me and Katy aren't home tonight we're out of-
QUINN
WAIT- (starts hyperventilating) you mean I'm alone? I'm calling the police.
THE MOTHER
(changes to a more serious tone as she realises the severity of the situation) Quinn calm down. Arm yourself with something and look for the front door keys. I will call the police.
QUINN
Wait-
THE MOTHER
The police will take the shadow story more seriously if they hear it from an adult, ok?
QUINN
(building up courage) Okay-okay
THE MOTHER
I'm gonna make the call okay? I'll call back in just a second to make sure you're okay.
THE MOTHER hangs up as only a deafening silence is left in the house as QUINN slowly approaches her desk next to her door with her phone torch. QUINN frantically searches her desk draws.
QUINN
(frustratingly) Come on, where are you?
As QUINN is searching for the keys, we see a door in the background of the hallway creek shut. The noise startles QUINN.
QUINN
(Approaching the door) Deep breaths- In... Out... (she grabs hold of the door handle) In...
She hurriedly forces the door open, a sigh of relief washing over her as we see an open window whooshing in air. She takes a step back and it's revealed the shadow is in her room now. The scene is broken up by her phone ringing and piercing the silence. QUINN jumps back in front of her door frame, covering of the white dots, we don't see them again in the shot when she moves.
THE MOTHER
Sweetie, the police are on their way but are you sure you even saw something? -
QUINN
(Still hurried/hyperventilating) Mum the keys are gone.
THE MOTHER
(small pause) They must be in the lock box in the kitchen.
QUINN
Shouldn't I check your room first?
THE MOTHER
(Authoritative) No. They aren't there.
QUINN
But shouldn't I at least che-
THE MOTHER
(Insistent) We don't have time to waste. You need to grab a knife from the kitchen, get the keys and leave.
QUINN
O-okay.
She glances at the door to her mum's room and starts to walk down the stairs. The shot lingers on the door.
CUT TO: INT. DOWNSTAIRS CORRIDOR
A long shot stalks Quinn as she reaches the downstairs corridor and flicks a light switch.
THE MOTHER
Don't turn on the lights. You know your way around our house in the dark better than an intruder does.
QUINN SILENTLY OBEYS.
ENT KITCHEN.
THE MOTHER
Remember to stay calm sweetie, the keys should be in the change box on the counter.
QUINN
Yeah okay.
QUINN hurries over to the kitchen counter, sliding her phone in her pocket. Whilst rummaging around for the keys, we see something moving toward the fridge behind her in the reflection of the glass in front of her. The shot changes to one of her back.
A blue light slowly spreads across the room. QUINN suddenly stops rummaging for the keys when the light hits her, she is frozen in fear. Quinn takes the phone out her pocket as she agonisingly slowly turns.
QUINN
Mum...?
The shot changes again and shows us that the light is coming from the now opened fridge.
QUINN
(raising the phone to her ear) M-mum...?
Shes met with the isolating sound of noise glitches/static echoing out her phone.
The shot changes: She hurriedly grabs a knife out of the kitchen droor. The camera pans up to a tracking shot as we follow her hesitantly past the garage door to the fridge. The shot rotates to her side as she grabs the fridge door, blocking the view of the rest of the kitchen. The music rises. She closes the door and the audience sees there's nothing there. The shot continues as she turns around with the camera: we see the garage door now open, a hand that was reaching out instantly retracting into the darkness. The shot changes to a low angle as she reaches for the door handle, the door opening more before she even touches it.
The static from her phone rises, SEEMINGLY TAKING OVER/POSSESSING THE PHONE ITSELF.
We see something in the dark... the hand now reaching out to her again? Her fingers flex out as cracking of bones can be heard. The hand would be the mother's, made apparent with jewelry. The hand is grey in appearance with deep red nail polish.
The static is now unbearable. A man's voice (young) can be heard embedded in the white noise:
THE VOICES
(Lifelessly, obviously trying to draw her in) Help me. I can't see in Here. Help.
QUINN stumbles back as the arm slowly backs into the void yet again, before the door suddenly slams open by itself, she turns and dashes through the corridor and up the stairs. The white eyes can be seen in the darkness as she begins to run away.
THE MOTHERS voice can be heard panicked and calling out for her daughter, sobbing and asking if she's okay. Her voice begins to break through the static as it lowers.
We return to the shot of the landing again as QUINN quickly approaches the door, flicking on the landing light as she runs past. She barges through in a rush, not even paying attention to her mother now back on the phone. As we see her enter the room she pauses dead in her tracks, staring at something off screen. We realise she is frozen in fear and panic as she stares at something horrific. We see the same hand once seen in the darkness switching off the landing light, just out of the shot.
THE MOTHER
Sweetie?
...
Are you alright?
Static from QUINNS phone begins again, THE MOTHERS voice takes a more sinister tone as a close-up shot reveals the same hand laying limp on the bed, covered in blood and black ink, clutching the keys. QUINN falls to the floor, overcome with grief and despair. Her mother has been dead the whole time. The shot changes to a high angle of her phone on the floor and QUINN defeated on the floor.
THE MOTHER
(Her voice flicking between a deeper, masculine voice and the mothers) Sweeeeeetie?
The static rises again (still from her phone) as the moonlight gets sucked out of the room, in the static we hear many stolen voices speaking in unison.
THE VOICES
Behind you. (taunting)
The shot pans up to QUINN as she notices something off screen. The shot hard cuts to a low angle of her doorway. The silhouette of her mother, eyes glowing with the same white dots is there waiting. QUINN notices this and begins to sob, pleading for her life. THE MOTHER is mimicking her from her phone cutting her off as if she's stealing the words from her mouth. We follow a high angle tracking shot inching towards QUINN as she backs up.
QUINN
(gasps)NO-
THE MOTHER
No.
QUINN
P-please
QUINN helplessly points her knife out in front of her, clutching it while shaking in fear.
THE MOTHER
-Please.
QUINN
Just leave me alone-
THE MOTHER
Just leave me alone.
QUINN
STOP IT!
THE MOTHER
Stop it.
QUINN
HEEEELP!
THE MOTHER
Help.
The screen goes black as credits begin to roll; we hear QUINNS pleading sobs turn to horror as she inhumanely gasps in. THE MOTHER still lifelessly mimicking her pleading sounds, as her voice and QUINNS, which becomes calm and dead, begin to speak in unison. QUINNS' voice is no longer her own.
THE MOTHER
Don't hurt me. I don't wanna die. Stop it. Someone help.
QUINN
Someone help.
QUINN AND THE MOTHER
(In unison) I can't breathe.
The outside lamp now blinks back in, the title flashing in the light as the diegetic sounds return and all is back to normal.
END OF SHORT
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