1 Internal, hospital room night 1
McKenzie is dressed in pyjamas, Harvey in light coloured casual pants and shirt. They both look a little rough, having been inside for a day or so. McKenzie is shot over her left shoulder, Harvey over his right shoulder, tight shot looking at the reflection of the character staring into a mirror, with no sign of anyone else in the background. Shots are edited at each line, to the corresponding character.
Harvey
I can’t believe she would be so stupid.
McKenzie
What was I thinking? This is worse than I ever imagined it could be.
Harvey
I’ll have to sort this mess out for her. She’s just incapable.
McKenzie
I’ve got to finish this off myself. I started it, I have to finish it.
Harvey
Even if she wants to do it herself, she won’t be able to.
Cut to black.
2 Internal, hospital room morning 2
Black screen, audio of static, leading into the radio message, as the message continues, fade in to a sparse hospital room, two beds, and associated bedside tables, McKenzie (still dressed in pyjamas, hair tousled for that ‘just-woken-up look’) is sitting on the edge of one bed, listening intently to the radio, and gradually looks more worried and panicked.
Radio Voice Over
A new strain of the influenza virus has been recognised by several local hospitals. Reports indicate that the virus is spreading quickly, and has hospitalised approximately 5,000 people.
Audio cuts to static then gently fades out to nothing. McKenzie starts screaming. Insert 5 second cut-in of running through a hospital ward.
McKenzie
Harvey! HARVEY!! Christ where are you when I need you, Harvey? Harvey, come on stop playing games with me, where the hell are you? Harvey!
3 Internal, hospital room night 3
Costume change – McKenzie is now in casual clothing – a light coloured casual mainstream look, Harvey is wearing darker (black/navy) pants and loose button-front shirt. They both look a little rough, having been inside for approximately 2 days. McKenzie is shot over her left shoulder, Harvey over his right shoulder, tight shot looking at the reflection of the character staring into a mirror, with no sign of anyone else in the background. Shots are edited at each line, to the corresponding character.
McKenzie
He’s just taken control, I should have stood up to him. Why didn’t I? Why do I always let him do this to me? I don’t trust him. I can’t trust him.
Harvey
If she were on her own, she’d be dead within a week. And does she thank me for looking after her like this? No, she’s complaining about it.
McKenzie
What am I? A child? He obviously thinks I don’t deserve any respect – what does he think I am? I’m a scientist for god’s sake!
Harvey
I should be in charge here, she’s not capable of making this work. She can barely look after herself. She may be responsible for getting us into this mess, but I know she can’t get us out of it. I know I’m the one to get us through this, she just has to accept it.
Fade to black.
4 Internal, hospital room night 4
Fade in from black; McKenzie (still in same costume) is sitting on her bed, knees around her chest, still worried. Shots cut between each POV, and low side angle shots of both characters. Enter Harvey, (still in same costume, but showing visible facial hair growth). He is more relaxed and far more controlled than McKenzie, and sarcastic at McKenzie’s paranoia, he is pacing, but rational. Shots cut quickly between the two characters, from each POV, and insert 2 second cut-in of running through a hospital ward.
Harvey
Congratulations. You should be proud of such an achievement.
McKenzie
Stop it! You know this is my fault.
Harvey
You make it sound like the world is ending.
McKenzie
It might as well. Didn’t you hear that message? The virus is spreading!
Harvey
And it will probably keep spreading.
McKenzie
This is ridiculous. How are we supposed to know how long this is going to last?
Harvey
We just have to make the food last as long as possible. We’ll have to ration everything we’ve got.
McKenzie
What’s that supposed to mean?
Harvey
I mean, we eat the bare minimum, so that the food lasts as long as possible.
McKenzie
Basically, what you’re saying is that we’ll die of starvation.
Harvey
Stop thinking like that. Remember that guy that survived on a mountain for 49 days on a chocolate bar? Well, we’ve got several chocolate bars.
McKenzie
So we get one nibble a day for the next few months?
Harvey
Calm down. You’re getting irrational.
McKenzie
Irrational? You can talk? You’re talking about one chocolate bar lasting months! How are we supposed to survive on that?
Harvey
We have more than one chocolate bar, for god’s sake. We have other food as well. I’m just saying that what food we do have, has to be rationed, so that it lasts as long as possible.
McKenzie
Ok, fine. I agree, we need to survive as long as possible, but why are you the one to make the decisions?
Harvey
Well, look at yourself! Are you seriously saying you’re in a fit state to be making decisions like this?
McKenzie
What do you mean by that?
Harvey
Christ McKenzie! Look at yourself! You’re a quivering, blubbering mess! If I left it to you, you’d eat everything we’ve got, and call it ‘comfort food’!
McKenzie
I can’t believe you’re treating me like this.
Harvey
It’s called ‘taking responsibility for your actions,’ McKenzie. Something you obviously need to learn about.
Cut to black screen.
5 Internal, hospital room morning 5
Start music, fade in from black, to close up of McKenzie, dressed in pyjamas, with morning look, sitting by the radio, zoom out to a wide-angle shot of the room, where we see that Harvey (dressed in dark casual, looking rough) is pacing, slightly anxious. Cross fade from music to radio message.
Radio Voice Over
At 3.30 PM today, the World Health Organisation declared a worldwide state of emergency, following the accidental release of a new fatal virus. The WHO spokesperson said that the GYRON Research Facility, which has been working on the latest strand of anthrax, recently developed the virus, known as ‘Aegudesu’. ‘Aegudesu,’ an airborne virus, is considered fatal, and currently has no known cure or vaccine, and is spreading rapidly through the population, and has reportedly already claimed approximately 30,000 lives in the Sydney area alone.
Harvey
This is out of control. Turn it off, I can’t stand hearing it any more.
High angle shot of McKenzie as she turns off the radio, and starts reading over her notes from the Aegudesu project folder. (Shots continue to cut between high angle shots of McKenzie sitting on the bed, and low angle shots of Harvey, pacing.)
McKenzie
I can’t believe it.
Harvey
Believe it. This is happening. Listen to the news, McKenzie.
McKenzie
I WAS listening to the news, until you started ranting again.
She pauses while she reads over her notes, Harvey continues pacing. Cut to close up of McKenzie.
McKenzie
Stop the pacing! I can barely think while you’re running around like that. (pause) I still don’t know what I did wrong.
Cut to close up of Harvey.
Harvey
You created the damn thing in the first place. That’s what.
Cut to low-angle of McKenzie as she turns the radio back on – static, leading into the message.
McKenzie
I know that much. It’s the perfect killing machine, I just haven’t worked out the vaccine for it. It is my greatest achievement. My baby. My ticket to the top. It’s Nobel Prize material.
Radio Voice-Over
The Australian Aegudesu death-toll has risen to approximately eighty thousand people, and has been reported in every major city.
Cut to low-wide-angle shot of room.
Harvey
Right, so you’re taking pride in killing eighty thousand people?
McKenzie stands getting angry, confronting Harvey. Shots cut between POV of each character.
McKenzie
You know that’s not what I meant. I mean that it’s the vaccine that will get me the prize. I just haven’t worked it out yet. I still don’t know how it was released so soon. Someone else must have done it.
Harvey
Suddenly it’s not your fault any more? YOU created this. It IS your fault McKenzie!
McKenzie
But somebody released it. Harvey. And I’m starting to wonder if you…
Harvey
Stop trying to point the finger at me. I’m here to help, McKenzie. I’m the reason why we still have food left.
McKenzie
Forget the food! I don’t care about it. I’m just trying to work out what the hell happened – how the damn thing got out there.
Fade to black.
6 Internal, hospital room day 6
Cut to wide angle of the room, Harvey (same costume as Sc 5) is sitting on the bed, reading over the Aegudesu project notes, while McKenzie (dressed in light coloured casual clothes) is rationally pacing the room. Quiet static is coming from the radio, until the message cuts in, when it does, McKenzie stops pacing, and listens intently, and Harvey starts nervously fiddling with his pen and the project folder. Cut-ins of running through hospital ward, famine, war-torn cities.
Radio Voice-Over
Aegudesu, the fatal disease accidentally released by The GYRON Research Facility over a week ago, has claimed millions of lives worldwide. The World Health Organisation reports that there is no escaping the virus, and that there is no known cure or vaccine. On a personal note, the virus has infected my close family, and most of the staff here at 4TripleT, and the station is ceasing transmission. I’m Jonathon Anderson, signing off.
McKenzie turns to face Harvey. Audio cuts to ‘beep beep beeeeeeep silence’ at the end of the message. Low wide angle shot of both characters.
McKenzie
I can’t stay here.
Harvey
What?
McKenzie
I want to get out of here. This is crazy. I can’t stay here, not while that virus is rampaging through the world.
Cut between close ups of each character at corresponding line.
Harvey
If you go out there, you’ll die, just like everybody else.
McKenzie
I created it, I should take responsibility for it. If I go out there, I can collect some tissue samples to study. I can keep working on the thing, find the cure for it.
Harvey
You are crazy. You really want to die?
McKenzie
What else am I going to do? Hide in here, away from it all, and let god-knows how many people die from it, or keep working on the cure?
Harvey
But you’re the only one who can come up with a cure for it. If you die, there’s no chance at all!
McKenzie
Did you listen to that last radio transmission? It sounds like there’s practically no one left to cure. What’s the use of being alive, if you’re the only one left?
Harvey
If you’re alive, you’re alive. You can procreate, start re-building the population.
McKenzie
Two people can’t re-start an entire world population. Think of the gene pool we’d create.
Harvey
Think of the gene pool that won’t exist if you leave! You can’t go!
McKenzie
Why not? Because you can’t face the thought of death? I have to take responsibility for my actions, Harvey, and if that means dying with the rest of the world, then so be it.
7 Internal, hospital room day 7
(Same costumes as Sc 5 & 6) McKenzie is shot over her left shoulder, Harvey over his right shoulder, tight shot looking at the reflection of the character staring into a mirror, with no sign of anyone else in the background. Shots are edited at each line, to the corresponding character.
McKenzie
(Rational, chanting, like a mantra) I’m not his child. I don’t know why he thinks he has control over my actions, his pleading makes me sick. I’m sick of seeing grown adults refusing to accept reality.
Harvey
I don’t know what’s out there, and I don’t know if I want to know.
McKenzie
I want to know what Aegudesu has done. I created it, but I haven’t even seen the damage it’s done. How can I take responsibility for it, if I don’t even see the results?
Harvey
If that door opens, Aegudesu gets in here, then we’re both gone. If she wants to die, then so be it, I can’t stop her, but she’ll kill me in the process.
McKenzie
I’m going out.
8 Internal, hospital room day 8
Cut to wide angle shot of two scientists/psych nurses, looking through a two-way mirror watching McKenzie and Harvey arguing (though the camera cannot see them), both characters are cold and rational, dressed in lab coats.
Riley
She wants to leave.
Flemming
So let her out.
Riley
She’ll find out the truth if we do. And she might still be contagious.
Flemming
Aegudesu is experimental testing, she was warned of the risks and she signed the waiver release.
Riley
So you’re saying that we have no responsibility for her well-being?
Flemming
I’m saying that she’s responsible for her well-being. If she wants out, we have to let her out.
At end of the last line, Flemming pushes a button to unlock the door to McKenzie & Harvey’s room. Cue credits music at the push of the button. Inside, through the window we see McKenzie moving towards the door, and Harvey still pleading McKenzie to stay. Fade to black, roll credits.
End