ANIMAL

Synopsis: A man finds himself trapped in a room. He does not know why he is there or how he got there. But his physical need to escape slowly slips into a psychological desire to stay.

---

INT. ISOLATED BRICK ROOM - UNKNOWN

CLOSE UP: A crooked HAND sticking OUT INto MID AIR

Awake.

We see a hand twitching; making minimal movement, until it progresses into one great gesture to reveal a man spread out across a pallid floor.

STEVE JACOB opens his eyes.

He seems perplexed darting around until he sees a door. JACOB dressed in a faded navy blue shirt, with patches of mud and dirt scattered around, walks towards the door. A grey iron door. With only a keyhole and a metallic slide located at the bottom. He pushes it but it does not move. As he repeats the same action, he increases in frustration. Spreading his hands over the sides of the door, he looks for gaps. Suddenly rage dominates his senses and he begins belting the door.

BANG! BANG!

No response.

He ran to the opposite side of the room bloating the walls.

Nothing

Under the bed he looked for a gap.

Nothing.

He scanned the edges of the ceiling for weak spots.

Nothing.

STEVE was standing in the center of a brick room. Against one wall was a wooden desk. The other there was a flat bed. Opposite that was a steel toilet. And on the right side was the door. No windows. No entertainment. No way out.

He sat on the bed trembling with trepidation. Sweat ran down his feeble face in between his wide, dilated eyes.  

That was when he let out a bloodcurdling scream.

No response.

He was alone.

He browsed the room until he saw something peculiar. Attached to the desk was a note. He walked towards it and held up the note. It said; "Record a journal of yourself everyday." On the desk was a microphone connected to a socket on the wall.

DAY 1:

STEVE (V.O) WHO THE FUCK IS THERE? HUH? WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU KEEPING ME HERE? YOU THINK YOU CAN WRITE SOME SHIT ON A FUCKING PIECE OF PAPER AND EXPECT ME TO FOLLOW IT? YOU THINK YOU CAN LOCK ME IN THIS ROOM? YOU CAN'T KEEP ME HERE - you won't.

DAY 3:

He continued to look for a way out, but there was none to be found.

He began striking the wall with his foot with rage. He knew he was trapped. Furious. Hopeless.

Attached to the desk is another piece of paper with the writing in the format of a list.

STEVE (contd) 3 days and still no response. Alright then, have it your way. My name is Steve - was born into the shitty side of Manchester before moving to London when I was five. Siblings? None. Parents? Only my mother - Dad left us after thrashing my Mum with his belt into a coma when I was three years old - earliest memory I remember. Married? Yeah; at 19 may seem like I've fucked up my life but there's no way I did - my son reminds me of that.

DAY 7:

JACOB ran his hands through the water that came out of the sink. This was the only source of life he had left.

STEVE (contd)

My wife, most beautiful person in the world - sounds cliche I know, but it's true. Still remember the day I met her: on that train, that day two years ago. Used to work as a janitor in some high school back then. I was heading back home late at night on that train - was the only in there. And then she walked in and......I saw her. I looked into her eyes, she looked back into mine and we just...clicked you know? She came up to me and asked......

Steve's Wife (V.O) Is this seat taken?

STEVE

And sat besides me. Can you believe that? The entire train empty and she sat right next to me. Spent the rest of the ride just talking you know - her dead-end job as a cashier, her two brothers, the shitty city we grew up and about her drunken Dad in jail after battering her Mum into an abortion  - even missed my stop to walk her home. From then on I knew this was special. Sounds like some shit you'd get out a movie but (beat) it was true.

DAY 18:

JACOB was running in front of his bed - jumping and skipping too. This was the only exercise he could possibly do.

STEVE (contd) And my son; 9 months old - best thing in my life. still remember the first moment he laid his hands on mine, that was the moment I realized holy shit, I am a father.  IS ANYONE EVEN LISTENING? IS ANYONE OUT THERE? The least you can tell me is why the fuck I'm doing this. I mean there has to be someone there: how else am I still alive?)

DAY 37:

JACOB dived into his food as quickly as a lion catches his prey. He threw continuous pieces of stale bread into his mouth, along with some porridge. After he finished he had dissipated his tongue on to the surface of his plate, collecting every little drop there was to offer.

STEVE (CONTD)

Coming to this fucking city you think life would be better - it's the complete opposite of that. You can't get a decent job here - can't even whip burgers in a fucking McDonald's. No job. Rent to pay. A family to support. I was heading down a dark tunnel with no light at the end. And then I came across an opportunity. Something that would save our lives but destroy others. I came across some dope - heroine, crack, glass, the soft green shit, you name it. The shit was in a bag; just lying there. So what did I do? I did what any old son of a bitch would do in that situation and took 'em. I took 'em and sold 'em. That's how I made my money. My black money. So if it's a confession you're after, there it is. If you're the guy that owned that deck I ain't got your drugs no more. I had to do it, you see? A man's gotta make a living.

DAY 51:

MEDIUM CLOSE UP: JACOB diffused across his bed

He wakes up to find another full plate in front of the slide of the door.

STEVE (CONTD)

IS THERE REALLY A GOD? Sometimes I think that people believe more in God than people believe in themselves. Would such a being allow me to suffer like this? How must my wife be feeling? My son, knowing that he hasn't seen his father in weeks? Do they even care? No, no, no; of course they do. Or do they?

JACOB faces one of the walls, which has a figure drawn on there. He begins to continuously strike the wall.

One blow after the other, he squeals with every blow.

Blood begins to form on his fists.

He stops looking at the stains of blood on the walls. The blood was stuck on the inside of the figure.

STEVE looks away and we see the blood is actually outside the figure - he didn't strike it once.

DAY 66:

STEVE (CONTD) I'm tired of being fucked around! You cannot keep me here any longer than you already have! If you're not gonna come to me, I'm gonna come to you. Because, I will leave this place.

MEDIUM CLOSE UP: JACOB HUNCHED ON HIS BED

STEVE, positioned on the edge of his bed, sat clustered in a ball gazing at the wall perpendicular to his bed that separated him from the world. From his family. From his soul.  A sound. A vision. A chance. Anything. And suddenly there was...... nothing.

He thought he had it. He really did.

He knew that it was-

All of a sudden, he heard a sound. Quickly, he jumped out of his bed. He stood in front of his bed ready to pounce. The noise escalated. Then he heard the sound of a key making impact with the metallic door. This is it. He only has one chance at this.

The door is unlocked.

It begun to open. A ray of natural light escaped through the side. A hand grasped the inside of the hatch. This is it.

He raced towards the opening door. With immense force, he threw his shoulder against it.

The sound of bones crackling scratched JACOB's ears.

INT. A DARK HALLWAY

He pulled the door open to reveal a dark hallway, with a light in the distance. He saw the man on the floor. Crying. Holding his hand in agony. He jumped over him, but felt a hand grasp the tip of his foot. JACOB collided with floor causing his sight to wobble around him.

The man tightened his grip. STEVE screeched in misery, piercing the ears of his competitor. He shook his leg trying to escape. All of a sudden, he felt his foot pound the man's face in causing him to howl. The hand let go of his foot.

Leaping off his heals, he ran towards the light. Freedom is in reach. The light got closer. The torture will be over. And closer. This is it. He ran into light. He made it.

He arrived in a room. A square, compact room. There was a bed in front of him...... and a sink on the left..... and a desk on the right. No. No. NO! He turned around and there was.....a door. He fell down. His eyes started bleeding with pain.

He thought he had it. He really did.

He knew that it was impossible.

DAY 82:

MEDIUM: STEVE CUDDLED INTO A BALL ON THE EDGE OF THE ROOM

STEVE (CONTD)

I kinda-a like it here-e. It gives me time to think-k. Away from my family-y. I mean-n I might as-s well get used to me-my life here-e. I ain't ever-r gettin' out-t.

DAY 96:

MEDIUM: STEVE CURLED AGAINST THE WALL

STEVE (CONTD)

I was feel-lin' k-k-kinda lonely-y. So I made a friend-d. Jack-k - he's on the wall-l. He's nice. But he wears-s a bit-t too much red-d for my liking. I've told him-m, but he always gives me the same face-e.

Above STEVE is a circle drawn with blood. In the circle are two eyes - one is winking above a smile.

DAY 101:

STEVE (CONTD) We like it here-e. Isn't that-t right-t Jack? Oh....he's just shy. He doesn't like talking to p-people much. Psss, can I tell you a secret? I think he's going crazy. He keeps talking to me about murder, blood and I hear him talking to someone, like all the time - I mean common were the only-y two in the room. He's going totally FUCKING CRAZY!!

DAY 108:

MEDIUM CLOSE UP: STEVE CUDDLED INTO A BALL ON THE EDGE OF THE ROOM

STEVE (CONTD) All I can hear is crying. Him crying.

BANG! From the distance JACOB hears a blow in the wall. This startles him, causing him to look from left to right. BANG! BANG! Suddenly, the blows in the wall increase appearing from all directions. BANG! BANG! He holds his head, blocking the noise from his the outside. It is no use.

STEVE (CONTD)

No. No! No! NO! Why won't you stop-just stop!! Get out of-of my head!! NO!

Suddenly, he begins to hear whispers. From his wife. His child. His friends. Cries of despair emerged from his eyes.

STEVE (CONTD) Voices!! The voices!! Get out of my HEAD!!

The voices magnify. The end is nigh.

STEVE (CONTD) GET OUT! GET OUT! GET OUT! GET OUT! GET OUT!!!!!!!!!!!

Silence.

The voices stopped. The blows stopped. Everything stopped. All of a sudden, he started falling. His mind collapsed. His wife. His heart stopped. His child. This is it. His body made full impact with the solid floor. And he....stopped moving.

Everything is silent.

Everything is gone.

Everything is dead.

Muffling from the distance.

Closer.

Closer.

Then the door opened.

Unknown #1 Get him out of here. Take him to the chamber.

Unknown #2

OK! OK!

Two people dressed in black walked in. One of them grabbed STEVE by the arms. He pulled him out of the room into a hallway.

INT. A BRIGHT HALLWAY

UNKNOWN #1 Help me fill out this report, will ya? How many days?

UNKNOWN #2 Around 107...108.

UNKNOWN #1 You don't know huh?

UNKNOWN #2 Of course I know - 108.

UNKNOWN #1

Nah. You're just saying that.

UNKNOWN #2

No really, 108 days before this guy turned.

UNKNOWN #1

Shit. 5 out of 5, huh.

UNKNOWN #2 Yeah, fifth guy.

UNKNOWN #1

We have a couple more in progress.

UNKNOWN #2

Yeah? Man, we're gonna be minted when all this is over!

UNKNOWN #1

Minted?

He continued to drag JACOB through the middle of the hallway towards another room.

UNKNOWN #2 Yeah, you know rich?

UNKNOWN #1

Just say that then. We're scientists, we don't talk like that.

UNKNOWN #2

Some do.

UNKNOWN #1 No they don't.

UNKNOWN #2 Who gives a shit. What are we gonna do with this guy?

UNKNOWN #1 Same as the others; take him to the psychiatric facility. Tell 'em we found him on the streets.

INT. A BARE ROOM WITH NO LIGHT

He threw the body in a room like a sack of potatoes.

UNKNOWN #1 (contd) Where's the key?

UNKNOWN #2

Up in my room. On the desk.

The door closed.

We see nothing but, darkness. The light shined through the window of the door onto JACOB's dead bod-

Suddenly, there was a twitch. His hand moved. His eyes opened.

Awake.

THE END.