Glassfire
Independent/Student/Studio: Student
Union/Non-Union: Non-Union
Production Type: Short Film
Production Format: HD
Production Location: Arlington
Production Start Date: 12/05/2014
Production Wrap Date: 12/07/2014
Production Schedule: 5th is rehearsal, 6th and 7th are shooting
Writer(s): Jeremy Rovny
Director(s): Jeremy Rovny
Additional Attached Crew: Everett Hoffman, AD; Michael Olson, DP
Synopsis: “Glassfire”
Treatment
A well-off father (40s) and son (17-23) are working together in their glassblowing studio. The lighting is dim and shadowy, but the furnaces and glowing melted glass are bright and warm.
From the shadows, a hidden attacker (40s) grabs a glowing hot metal rod, jumps out from the darkness, and swings the rod at the son’s head, sending him barreling backwards to the floor. He then instantly turns on the father, knocks him back down onto a table, and forces him into submission by holding the glowing hot rod just inches from his face.
The scraggly attacker screams vague accusations at the father. His half crazed and bipolar personality cause him to alternate between screaming and whispering. The father suddenly realizes this was his best friend from many years ago, when they were both young and ambitious.
The attacker fumes that he could have had anything had the father not stripped all opportunity from him. The father takes on an apologetic, repentant tone. The attacker calms somewhat in response, only to reignite in fury moments later.
The dialogue continues in this way, all-in-all revealing that, back when the two were best friends, the attacker had come up with a genius business scheme. However, the father stole the idea and ran with it. The father went on to live a happy, settled life, while the attacker wandered the streets.
From the beginning of the dialogue, we frequently cut to the son lying on the ground in the shadows, back facing the other two. At first ready to jump up and help his father, the son hesitates when he hears what his father had done in the past. He sympathizes with the attacker, but, having no idea what to do, lies still throughout the duration of the scene.
The father eyes the heavy metal blowpipe he had been glass-working with just seconds ago. His right arm hangs down from the table, fingers only inches away from the pipe. The glass on the end of the blowpipe slowly hardens near the attacker’s feet.
The dialogue reaches it’s climax when, after the father calms the other by claiming he will pay his dues and get him back on his feet, the attacker suddenly mentions his dead wife who recently passed from sickness. The attacker places this heavy blame on the father; he claims the woman he had loved from back when they were friends would have lived had he had money to provide treatment. His whispering voice is raspy from his screaming in between.
The father’s eyes catch on a blowtorch hanging from a stand nearby him. He sees its lighter hanging even closer.
The father goes on about how much the attacker’s girl loved the “man with the big idea,” back in the day. How she was really never interested in himself. She had always loved that man that could grow a beard. The father almost manages a smile when he talks about how a girl like that wouldn’t be interested in a man that couldn’t manage to grow anything more than peach fuzz.
The father’s quivering hand reveals his true emotional state kept hidden under controlled facial expressions. The attacker doesn’t catch on; he slows down, almost calm.
The father tries to get out the words, “It will all be okay” but is interrupted midway through by the sound of glass shattering. The glass on the end of his blowpipe cooled too quickly on the hard floor. The attacker jumps back from the sound near his feet.
The father, familiar with this phenomenon, doesn’t miss a beat. Snatching the lighter, he lights the blow torch, yanks it from it’s hook, and torches the attacker’s face for several excruciating seconds.
The father is shaking, full of fear and adrenaline. The attacker screams in agony as he drops to the floor, writhing in pain.
His body moving on instinct, the father punches the man, hard.
The son is immobile, aside from quivering all over.
The father’s expression goes blank. He is suddenly distanced from the other two, his
environment, the whole world. He grabs sharp glass-cutting shears from a work bench and plunges them into the attacker’s still squirming body. The father pulls back and hesitates, shears held high over his head. He drops the shears into the attacker’s body again.
As he withdraws, blood drips from the small blades. He drops the tool as life comes back to him. He breathes again. His facial muscles contract again. His eyes still stare blankly. He very slowly moves away from the body and slumps against a wall.
After a very long moment, his makes his way over to his son, who by this point is in shock, eyes tear-glazed. The father wrings a water-soaked cloth over the son’s face, thinking the son has been unconscious the whole time.
The son pretends he’s waking up, body making the motions, consciousness distanced. The father, having composed himself, briefly monologues about how one day the young man will have a family of his own to look out for. The father confirms that the nearby body is lifeless. He explains that learning to be a man is learning to put family first. A father must do all he can to protect his family.
He might as well have been talking to a wall. The son knows the man needn’t have been killed. His eyes stare into space and never once move.
The father stands to leave. As he walks away, the son remains frozen. The father pauses to look over his shoulder.
“C’mon, boy.”
The son sits motionless, unsure of what choice to make. His eyes move.
END
Character Breakdowns:
ATTACKER (40s): Caucasian. Furious, intimidating, and explosive. A complex between dark anger and longing hope. Whether it’s his bipolar tendencies or emotional turmoil, this character comes across as being marginally insane. Constantly alternates between enraged screaming and sad whispering.
Looks homeless. Scraggly facial hair and long hair is a plus!
FATHER (40s): Caucasian. Straight forward and direct. Gives off the look of a nice gentleman, if a little high class and formal. Though terrified and threatened feeling on the inside, this man clearly knows how to manipulate a conversation to get what he wants. He legitimately cares about his son, but little else other than that.
Looks neat and tidy.
SON (17-23): Caucasian. Quiet and obedient. Slow moving and contemplative. Fit with a runner’s build. The inner conflict in this character’s head makes him a relatable source for the viewer to connect to. Must be very believably shaken up by everything happening. Tears are a plus.
Looks can vary.
Audition Date: 11/30/2014
Paid / Non-Paid: Non-Paid, Deferred
Other / Additional Compensation: Film Credit, DVD Copy
Meals / Lodging / Transportation: Meals, Snacks and Beverages
Email Address for Cast Submissions: jdrov@yahoo.com
Special Notes for Potential Cast/Crew: Further details like audition address and sides will only be sent (via email) once you are being considered for a role based on your headshot and resume.
