Pre-history: an Allegory to the Way Things Were

Pre-history: an Allegory to the Way Things Were
(black and white short film with select colorizing. high definition video and high resolution stills)

Black. rumbling sound slowly becomes articulated as a human scream as we zoom out of an open mouth. still image of full screen face. His eyes are wild and hysterical, his mouth gaping open. ragged stubble. dried blood matted to one side of his head, dirt on both. Moving image jerks back as the man's guttural scream ends and he begins to yell in some long forgotten language, brutish and ugly. The fluid, choreographed camera movement continues back showing the man in smeared armored chest plate, gripping a banged up shield and heavy sword. He stands on a castle top, battlements visible behind him, impossibly blue sky overhead. He is shaking his hands as he screams, veins visible in neck, forehead. He screams again, horrible and insane, tongue visible from his snarling mouth as he turns his face to the battlements.

The same fluid shot begins to hook around the man, capturing him look back (to the army?) behind him and swing his arm forward (in the universal "charge" motion). the tracking camera passes him on the side as he begins to run toward the battlements. arrows zip over the wall, past the camera and one strikes him in the chest. He snarls, staggers, keeps his eyes on the horizon. two more arrows fly at him, puncture the metal and spurt into the flesh beneath. He falls to his knees. blood gurgles from his mouth as he continues his guttural diatribe and the camera continues its trajectory over the edge of the rooftop.

the camera slides over the battlement wall revealing a modern day brooklyn street, glimpsing a [bright green] tree-lined sidewalk. cars. the warrior's yell fades as the camera slides across the street and through the wall of a building across from the castle.

the camera slides to a stop inside. high resolution still close up of a different man's profile. motion as he twitches. mutters. sweat drips down his face and a fly buzzes overhead. fluorescent bulb overhead hums and flickers.

a door, visible in the extreme background snaps into focus as it bursts open. The camera zooms (sped up "Romeo and Juliet" shoot-out style) to a grotesque woman standing in the doorway. shopping bags in raised hands, impossibly wide plastic surgery smile fixed onto her face. [Blue] eye-shadow, beehive hairdo, [pink] rouge and fake eyelashes (tammy fay in shopping mall bliss).

cut to twitching man, full frame dropping into runners pose. extreme slow motion as we watch his khakis and dress shirt wrinkle and arms assume their sprinter-at-the-block position. Noise (scream?) as he moves, every muscle rippling. slow motion legs and arms pumping as he leans into each step - perfect runners form.

cut to Point of View as he crashes into the large window in front of him. glass shatters and breaks apart ( CG fractals grow out from the center and explode as slow motion becomes real time).

silence. the camera soars peacefully. [blue] sky, white fluffy clouds. the sound of rippling clothing takes hold as the sidewalk rushes up to meet the falling camera.

bone-crushing, organ splatting blackness.

The camera rises straight up from sidewalk to medium close-up of a male profile and begins to track with his walking. He is young. laid-back hip, cool. He flows accapella as he walks. the camera tracks steadily with him. His words are poetry but they make no sense. He is spitting a long string of profanities, mismatched degrading words and bits of negative phrases. The filth coming from his mouth is in direct contradiction to his elegant style.

cut to a still of a stairwell across the street. the rapping is still audible but faint. There is a beautiful Arab girl speaking in a whisper. devotion in her words too low to make out. She raises her head skyward as the sound of the rapping grows louder (the young man approaches on the sidewalk). their voices mix for a moment beautifully and the sun peaks out from her profile and starbursts the camera. the girl looks down at the object in her hand. click.

an explosion envelopes the entryway in bright light and flames.
the rapping boy's face is torn away by the force of the explosion. a few frames of skin tearing back to reveal skull.

cut to static low shot of the street. crack in the pavement. [green] willow tree on the left. sidewalk. grey buildings and a white car on the right. rubble rains down onto the pavement. silence.

peace.

the camera remains fixed. 20 seconds. 30. wind rustles leaves on the willow tree. clouds move across the sky. a blade of bright green grass slowly begins to inch its way up through the crack in the street. grass begins to grow up under the car and along the building as the car settles forward onto one flat tire. 10 seconds. 20. green ivy begins to take over the buildings walls. climbs over the car's hood and begins to take over the sidewalk. the car is overcome with green life, the grey wall peaks out beneath plants and the crack in the grey street has sprouted bright wild flowers.

A figure slowly approaches down the center of the road. The camera remains fixed as the figure grows closer, color illuminates out from around them so brightly that the core details of the person are obscured in the brilliance of the dancing, living aura surrounding them. They continue toward the camera and the frame becomes alive with the swirling color of now visible energy.

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