Professional Documentation

Script

                      The Pole
                    Screenplay by

                   Andrew Espley

 An idea developed by Isabel Wells, Amy Silk, Tyreece
Thomas, Andrew Espley, Callum Petit and Leanne Perry

INT. BUS. EARLY EVENING

A girl, LUCY (19), is sitting on a bus, looking a bit
miserable. She looks out of the rain-streaked window. The
sounds of the bus and the city fade a little, and we hear,
like it’s being said in a documentary interview:

                    LUCY (V.O)
          Erm, I don’t really know what to

say really. It’s been my life for... wow, I don’t know. A long time now. I don’t know how to describe it.

We see flashes over her voice:
INT. STUDIO. EVENING.
A HAND TOUCHING A POLE, CLOSE UP.
INT. LIVING ROOM. EVENING.
LUCY ARGUING WITH SOMEONE, SILENT.
EXT. CITY STREET. EARLY EVENING

Lucy gets off the bus, lights up a cigaretter and starts
walking. She knows where she’s going, and she still looks
down.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          I guess it started for me at

school. I’d never get any interest from guys, or anything like that. Being constantly overlooked was horrible - and I know it may seem shallow to say it, but all I wanted was for some guys to look at me. In that way, you know.

We see more flashes throughout:
MORE ARGUING, WITH BOYFRIEND?
CLOSE UPS OF LEGS/ARMS MOVING ABOUT A POLE

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          I’d sit in class watching them

          all stare at all the plastic
          girls with their fake tans and
          shit. Made me hate ’em. Still do
          hate girls like that.

Lucy approaches a building, walks through the doors and
into it.

We see more flashes of the above.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

2.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          But it was jealousy more than

          anything else. If I could look
          like them - look like them and
          get guys looking at me... Well
          you get me. My life hasn’t been
          some dead hard sad case though. I
          haven’t got a sob story I can
          tell you. We weren’t exactly well
          off but we were alright - my
          family, I mean. I had friends.
          They were alright.

INT. STUDIO. EVENING.

Lucy walks into a room and we see a pole - the studio. She
approaches the pole and we see the same shot from the
first flash - the HAND TOUCHING A POLE.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          I can’t remember exactly when it
          was that I started wanting to do

          this - get on stage, and
          everything. I think I was 17 when
          I started having classes. I saw
          classes, and then I saw some
          girls on Facebook that did it, so
          I went along. It was alright. I
          felt good. The better I got, the
          more, you know, confident I felt.
          I felt comfortable looking the
          way I did.

Lucy prepares - getting dressed/ready to practice.
We see more flashes of the argument.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          Then I went some club with some

          lads- a strip club, you know.
          Some dirty scrotty little club
          where if you payed ’em £40 they’d
          take you to some room backstage.
          It was horrible, the way the guys
          were acting, you know. But I
          loved it. It reminded me of
          school - the girls who all the
          guys would stare at all day, but
          they were doing something I could
          do. I could get like that, I
          thought. So I asked some girl
          when she came off stage, and she
          got the manager who gave me his
          card.

          I started at that shitty club the
          next week.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: 3.

We see Lucy on the pole - elegant, skilled - moving about
it with ease. In flashes over this, we see the argument
again, but this time it seems to have escalated to a full
on shouting match.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          My friends didn’t like it - the

ones who knew. My boyfriend didn’t like it either. Well... (her voice falters slightly) my ex.

We see the argument ending - the boyfriend slapping Lucy.
He storms out, Lucy screaming angrily after him, and Lucy
sitting on the sofa, sobbing. Then we see a flashback to
Lucy on the bus, upset. (Has she come straight from the
argument?)

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          They thought like you do,

probably. That I’m a slag. That I don’t have any respect for myself. You’re wrong though. I’d be there, and... I can’t put it into words, how I felt- on the pole, with the guys all staring and cheering and- and... wanting me. I felt better than I ever have.

Lucy is off the pole now, looking like she did on the bus.
Deep in thought.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          It’s alright this. I know

          there’ll be people looking at me
          thinking, "Look at that mess" or
          "Look what she’s done to her
          life", you know. But I don’t give
          a shit.

               (laughs again)

Lucy is getting ready - evidently for a night on the pole
- she puts on her shiny high heels.

                    LUCY (V.O CONT)
          I really don’t. I love what I

          do. I’m happy.
INT. BUS. EARLY EVENING

We see Lucy on the bus again - the same shot as earlier.
But this time, she smiles. A reluctant, but genuine,
smile.

Character backstory

CHARACTER NAME: Vicky







AGE 19







APPEARANCE: (to be confirmed by Actor)





What do you know
     about this character now that s/he doesn’t yet know? 
What
     is this character’s greatest flaw? 
What do you know
     about this character that s/he would never admit? 
What is this
     character’s greatest asset? Her personality,
     very caring. 
If this
     character could choose a different identity, who would s/he be? This
     drama is based upon this question; looking at being yourself and wanting
     to be yourself, Vicky is a young pole dancer that learnt the ways of pole
     dancing and how it can earn you money, the idea of pole dancing and
     working in clubs disgraces her and her family however we learn that she
     cant escape from this as the pole gives her escapism of the trouble that
     her career causes through her family life, with the way Vicky see’s
     herself and her job if purely based upon the dancing side and how she
     wants to pursue her dancing career. 
What music does
     this character sing to when no one else is around? Her
     favourite music is often small bands that are often not what you expect
     from this character, giving herself an escapism through the music she
     listens to. (Lana Del Rey)
In what or whom
     does this character have the greatest faith? She
     has her greatest faith in herself, she feels that most people have let her
     down so she has always provided everything for herself, an example being
     of her career. 
What is this character’s
     favourite movie? The Notebook, because she hopes to find the love that
     the two main characters create. 
Does this
     character have a favourite article of clothing? Favourite shoes? Heels
     (Dancing)
Does this
     character have a vice? Name it. 
Name this
     character’s favourite person (living or dead). Her
     grandma (Dead), because she always supported her. 
What is this
     character’s secret wish? To become a professional dancer.
What is this
     character’s proudest achievement? Earning her own
     money. 
Describe this
     character’s most embarrassing moment. Her parents
     finding out that she works as a pole dancer.
What is this
     character’s deepest regret? Working in a
     strip bar because they way people view strip bars.
What is this
     character’s greatest fear? 
Describe this
     character’s most devastating moment.
What is this
     character’s greatest achievement?
What is this
     character’s greatest hope?
Does this
     character have an obsession? Name it.
What is this
     character’s greatest disappointment?
What is this
     character’s worst nightmare?
Whom does this
     character most wish to please? Why?
Describe this
     character’s mother.
Describe this
     character’s father.
If s/he had to
     choose, with whom would this character prefer to live?
Where does this
     character fall in birth order? What effect does this have?
Describe this
     character’s siblings or other close relatives.
Describe this
     character’s bedroom. Include three cherished items.
What is this
     character’s birth date? How does this character manifest traits of his/her
     astrological sign?
If this
     character had to live in seclusion for six months, what six items would
     s/he bring?
Why is this
     character angry?
What calms this
     character?
Describe a
     recurring dream or nightmare this character might have.
List the choices
     (not circumstances) that led this character to his/her current
     predicament.
List the
     circumstances over which this character has no control.
What wakes this
     character in the middle of the night?
How would a
     stranger describe this character?
What does this
     character resolve to do differently every morning?
Who depends on
     this character? Why?
If this
     character knew s/he had exactly one month to live, what would s/he do?
How would a dear
     friend or relative describe this character?
What is this
     character’s most noticeable physical attribute?
What is this
     character hiding from him/herself?
Write one
     additional thing about your character.

Treatment Sheet

Synopsis:

Our idea is to create a drama to showcase a pole dancer’s
life. A monologue will be used to document her life, however we will create an
inciting incident that will provide a more dramatic tone to the film.

The girl is a pole dancer and her back story is how she ends
up as a pole dancing, we found inspiration and influence from Sign Language (2010). We will shoot it
using a DSLR camera because we feel that it gives it more of an artist approach
rather a static feel – we want the imagery to feel poetic and beautiful, rather
than a more traditional documentary style like Sign Language. We will use no diegetic dialogue, with the story
coming from a narrative monologue, looking at her journey of what she does for
a living, how her life has led to this and if an why she enjoys it. We intend
on creating a respectful (we don’t want to criticise the art of pole dancing),
interesting but hard hitting story. 




Inspiration

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py_-3di1yx0




Equipment

Canon DSLR

Shotgun Mic

Marrantz




Technical
Requirements:

The
cinematography will be a big part of this project making sure the shots aren’t
shown in a documentary style, using close ups and interesting angles to show
the subject matter also looking at inspiration from ‘Sign Language’. We plan on
filming with a DSLR to create a more artistic, softer feel rather than a static
feel which we feel the canon fx 100 would create. 




Cast:

We plan on
having one main character here are some basic information we will be looking
for within our character persona. 

Gender –
female

Age – 18-22

Personality
– little rough round the edges, hard working, 

Backstory –
grown up living in a rough area with scrapping by with her mother, often being
bullied, struggling through her teenage life, finds happiness in pole dancing
as a hobby but soon learns the money involved in working in a strip club which
develops the story showing more deeper subject, we follow her journey and how
she deals with life. 

We will
have extras within the studio filming and the public transport filming however
these extras will not add to the story. 




Crew:

Isabel Wells – Director

Callum Petitt – Producer

Andrew Espley – Camera

Tyrese Thomas – Sound Recordist

Amy Silk – Editor

Leanne Perry – Sound Editor