Premise Script Version 1

 

Premise Script Version 1

Premise Script  

 

 

Version one 

 

 

By Torran Rodgers 

 Scene One 

Ext town Day Overcast - Establishing shot 

Music goes from traditional high fantasy to a slow low plod as the camera shots go from wide shots of the town to closer shots. As these shots get tighter more elements of the towns abandonment and disrepair come into focus, Along with elements of grief in the form of memorials. 

“The point of the opening is to ground the audience quickly into the reality of what has happened, while also showing them minute details of the world to make it feel more real and have real world problems. Starting with a standard high fantasy that people might expect but then quickly taking that away with gritty events, echo’s what happened to the town and to the king.” 

The last shot if of the large glass window that overlooks a courtyard area. 

Scene Two 

Int Thrown room 

The glass window stays still in frame however on the inside we see it covered with curtains, we see centred in the glass and in frame a throne and a king, alone in the short (low camera angle, long focal length shot). 

“from outside the situation seems bad, but upon seeing inside the castle the weight becomes obvious. The audience sees the facade of the castle in one piece, however inside it's on the verge of collapse, a visual representation of the king as his position, keeping up appearances” 

Camera cuts to a close up off the king’s face, he is looking down and out of frame, towards where and element of light is coming from, He seems motionless but alive. 

Townsfolk one - clears there through to get the kings attention The kings head turns to see who it is. 

The camera sees the townsfolk who stepped forward as well as a few who await their turn. 

We see the king on the left of the screen while the right side is filled with the silhouette of townsfolk one as he turns his head back to look out the window. 

We return to a closer shot of the king looking out the window and we hear a bang, bang, BANG on the 3rd Bang we cut to the next scene. 

Scene Three 

Int Corridor 

The loud bang is someone putting down a ladder into our new shot. Before they climb up into frame showing the prince. He wabbles as the top of the ladder before pulling out a candle and putting it into position in a candelabra. 

“the camera is low showing the prince pulling himself up into frame of a flat camera shot showing the prince lifting himself into a position of authority.” 

Theres a crash that causes the prince to jump and nearly fall of the ladder before we start to hear a grumble. 

We cut to a view of the whole corridor through a wide angle Lense the prince on a ladder top left and townsfolk one bottom right angrily stomping through the corridor grumbling. 

Townsfolk one: “grmmmgrmm” ( Grumbling noises ) 

In this shot we see the portraits of the royal family lit by candles, the order goes The King, The Queen, The elders Son, The Prince, The youngest Girl. The prince just changes one the candles of the king's portrait, but the only candles still lit are on the Prince and the King, the other portraits candles are burnt through and have flowers at the base in different states of decay. The queen with the deadest and least flowers the eldest with the second and you youngest with the most and youngest flowers. 

“There is a lot of information in this shot as such there will be no rush to cut away and it will last as the townsfolk walks across the scene, however timing will be dialled in with the animatic” 

We have a brief shot of the prince looking down at townsfolk one before starting to descend the ladder to go after them. As the door closes behind townsfolk one, we cut back to the king. 

Scene four 

Int throne room 

We see the king in his throne again now looking out the window, rousing slightly we swap to the next shot. 

The shot has the king in the foreground in shadow and out the window we see the prince catch up to townsfolk one to offer help, they do not want the help and squabble slightly before storming off, the prince then sees the king through the window. 

A close camera on the king shows his light hopeful rousing turn to disappointment as he turns to look at the sceptre in his hand. 

A Pov shows him grip it tightly with the tips of his figures as a soft banging gets louder. 

We see the king in a close up close his eyes and furrow his brow as the banging gets louder. When the banging should be the loudest instead, we hear a door open. The king looks up and relaxes slightly. 

A wide shot shows the prince sneak in through the door and make his way over to stand behind the king.  

“This shot flows into a shot of the king with the prince entering from screen right as a way of crossing the 180 rules. This is a mid-shot of the king in his throne with the prince standing off the right of him, showing what the king and prince look like together, what they are wearing and the dynamic between them.” 

Townsfolk two presents the king with a request on a piece of parchment, it shows two brown coloured coins for a vial with a red cross on it, this is an over the shoulder shot of the king from behind, both silhouettes (king and prince) are screen left slightly above the townsfolk 2. 

A unclose on the king shows him return to his initial position in his throne looking out the window un willing to participate in the current events. 

A shot of the townsfolk 2 giving up and start to leave defeated, shows the opinion on the king as town isn’t angry, they just understand they weight and feel defeated as well. 

We return to the king and prince 2 shot, where the prince steps forward and around to look at the king and watch as another person leave the court without getting any help. 

The prince notices his broach an element that appears visual out of place on his character, however is set with a gem at its centre. Before once again looking at the king and following townsfolk 2 out into the hallway he previously entered from. 

Scene Five 

Int corridor 

Screen left we see townsfolk 2 walking towards camera and to the right we see the door to the throne room as the prince walks through. As this happens towns folk 2 turns and we cut to the next shot. 

This is a closer shot on the prince as he quietly closes the door and slyly walks towards the townsfolk clasping the broach in his hands. 

A reverse shot shows the townsfolk turn and walk back to meet the prince. 

A two shot frames both parties either side of the frame. As the prince tries to break the broach, it flings out causing him to lose balance when he trying to catch the broach. this causes him to break one of the vases holding flowers, as it lands and Smashes loudly onto the floor. 

Both parties stop in expectation of anger but nothing happens. 

The prince kneels down where all the debris is and picks shards into his hand. When the townsfolk kneel to help out the prince slap their hand away and instead hands them the Jewl, before shewing them away playfully. 

we see an over the shoulder shot of the townsperson leaving before the return shot where the prince returns to work. Framing the prince to the left and the door to screen right. Once the prince goes back to picking pieces of pottery up, he cuts himself and lets out a small cry in pain. 

Prince: “Aahh” 

As part of the same shot we see the king burst through the door in pure panic. 

A small close up of the king's face in panic is mirrored by a medium shot of the prince is almost in disbelief at how animated he sees the king. And we speed cut back to the original shot of the king as he begins to move. 

These cuts are fast as the king throws himself to the ground to see what is wrong with the prince as he grabs his hand and sees the blood. 

The king looks up to see the princes face before looking up at and seeing there sat at the bottom of the youngest sibling portrait. 

The Banging starts up again as the cameras starts to cut and swing around the king as he gets up in a panic. 

There is a moment at the start of this new shot where there is no sound, looking at the throne room before the king bursts through. 

We then follow the king across the room with a hand-held camera shot as he heads across the throne room; he trips on his sceptre (left near the throne) where he stubbles and finally falls on his side where his crown rolls towards the prince who is following him.  

The prince crouches into frame to pick up the king's crown and the camera follows him up as he stands. 

The king slowly looks up, panting out of breath. From a mid-shot high angle of the king 

The prince helps the king up and hands over the crown. Captured in a close 2 shot of the 2 characters busts, where the prince pulls and pushes the king into his position in scene. 

The prince starts to walk away before stopping when the king says. 

King: “Wait” 

This cut is an over the shoulder shot of the walk away to a reverse shot of the king as he reaches his hand out and jolts over the middle part of the screen. 

As the king steps and drops forward the prince strides to catch him, making him grown in pain as he holds his weight up with his hand. The king holds the princes' hand as to look at it. 

A shot of the hand is accompanied by 2 more soft knocks as the third cuts to a 2 shot of the pair again. Angled differently to show variation. 

The king then wraps the prince's hand with a handkerchief, before remaining visibly more animated, and more colourful. The king then puts his arm around the prince before stumbling back to the throne, with the princes help and the use of the sceptre. After a few steps we cut the an over the shoulder shot of the 2 as the walk towards the throne. 

When the king sits back in the throne, he is more upright and active in how he sits. As the prince goes to step back the king nods his head to get him to step forward.  the shots move from a 2 shot of the throne and the position the prince stands in to a near POV from the prince's perspective as the king leans around the throne to nod the prince forward to his side. 

A small reaction shot of the prince moving forward. Cuts to a re-positioned 2 shot from earlier. 

The King then ushers the next towns person forward, to come and speak to him. 

A One shot of the towns person who is shocked and slowly moves forward to offer the paper to the king. 

 The king takes the paper with the request on it in a side of shot of him and the townsperson, before an over the shoulder shot has the king looking at the paper the looking to the prince and turning the paper toward the prince, as if to ask his opinion. 

Two reaction shots show the princes face goes from a worried expression to a happy one before. we see the king’s face as we see him happy and ready to teach the prince. 

The Last shot is a wide shot of the 3-remaining character as the king leans forward fast we cut to the credits as upbeat music plays.