MAIN » ARTICLESFade In From Black
Fade in from black – and we have a close-up of an old woman’s legs. They are covered in veins, and show a life of work. The camera pans upwards, zooming out, and we see two old women sitting in the front seats (right hand side of the screen) of a coach talking about varicose veins. The coach driver is on the left hand side, and the coach is driving along. The talking gets slightly louder – and all we hear the sounds of the coach load of people, together with the radio. Some classic 80’s music is playing, and one or two people are singing along.
We hear a hubbub coming from the back of the coach, and the two old women look displeased, and turn to look to the back. The camera is outside the front of the coach, and flies through the windscreen down the aisle. As it moves, we can see more and more people looking back towards the rear of the coach. The music has cut off and the news has come on the radio. There is a female announcer who describes a virus. [During this time, the sounds of people in the coach have been reduced to sound like they are underwater – very bassy and hard to understand. The screen has a gloss on it, which makes everything very colourful and light.]
“More and more reports of the highly contagious ‘Etroshion’ virus are coming from all corners of the country. The virus is characterised by the infected feeling more and more distended over a period of up to 8 hours after contamination and peaks in excruciating pain and foaming at the mouth. If the infected are not taken to a hospital within 10 to 20 minutes, the mortality rate is especially high. The virus, which is reported as having come from the Middle East has already claimed the lives of 27 people, and is especially virulent in elderly people and young children.”
The radio is faded down in the last sentences and the sounds in the rear of the coach are raised again. We see a young man screaming in agony, convulsing and releasing foamy substances from his mouth, whilst onlookers do little other than undo his shirt buttons, and ask him if he is all right. The camera spins to the right, to see a man from the front of the coach walking back – luckily he’s a doctor. “For gods sake someone call 999” he shouts, and his wife jumping out of her chair at the front of the coach (behind the old ladies, on the left – window seat) is the first to dial.
The camera flies forwards in the coach, to where the lady is standing. The operator picks up “Hello, which service do you require please”.
“I need an ambulance, there’s a man – I think he’s got that virus”
“Where are you please?”
“We are on a coach, on the M25 going clockwise – what should we do?”
”The chances are, that he’s not going to be the only person on that coach with this, get to a hospital ASAP – we cant spare any more ambulances at the moment, so just do whatever you have to - to get in.”
“Where’s the nearest? We are at Junction 16”
“Get off now – there’s a pile-up ahead, just get off”
The wife shouts at the driver “get off at this junction”
“It’s too late” he shouts back- “we’ll take the next one”
“No – now!” shouts the wife, she jumps forwards and grabs the wheel and pushes the coach to the left in an almighty effort – almost falling over sideways, and cutting other traffic up, the coach cuts through 4 lanes and just clips a sign as it drives up the embankment toward a roundabout.
“What the fuck are you doing lady!” shouts the driver.
We have to get to the hospital, she shouts back, and to the operator “is there any way that you can help – we have a massive traffic jam ahead”
“I’ll get you a police escort” says the operator “just turn your hazard lights on, and use the horn”
The camera shows the coach with flashing lights and the horn sounding like an alarm driving dangerously through the traffic – veering between lanes, and coming towards a major junction – crossroads. The traffic is moving from the left to right – and yet it all seems to stop as the coach approaches. A police car slides around the corner from the left, and moves straight in front of the coach. Its siren is on and lights are flashing.
The two move as one through the traffic, the coach clipping a few other cars as it moves through into the city centre at high speed.
The camera stops suddenly, and the coach police car pair disappear into the distance. The camera slows down, and we see a couple in a car that has hit a bus stop. The two are both convulsing, bleeding profusely – a teenage boy is laying in the glass, he has been hit in the accident, where he has been sitting at the bus stop. Blood is pouring from him, staining the glass – and draining down onto the road. A man and woman are running from a house at the bus stop, the man shouts at her to keep the kids inside, and call an ambulance – as he approaches the car, the entire thing explodes, knocking him backwards. He is knocked out by the fall, and his wife emerges on a wireless house phone, and drops it as she sees him. We hear the sound of the operator once again saying “I’m sorry – we just don’t have any ambulances free at the moment. We will try to get there as soon as possible.” The camera follows her as she runs and kneels by her husband – cuts on his face and arms from blast shrapnel are visible. She is crying, and we see a trickle of blood coming from the back of his head.
The camera flies upwards as we see accidents all over the city – flashing blue lights moving around – fires from where major disasters have happened.
And then the image clicks to that of a hospital – flying through the corridors, staff wearing face masks – all around people screaming in pain.
Phones ringing off the hook. Staff shouting at each other, a secretary trying to call other doctors in, but getting nothing but dial tones.
And then into a waiting room, where some of those injured in other ways are all watching a TV – we see their faces, as the camera does a spin and zooms into the television.
Images of death and destruction: The presenter is even wearing a mask, and is slightly muffled. “…not thought to be a terrorist incident. The virus’s effects increased exponentially today as the mid day heat made the spores more active. Whilst there is no long term cure at the moment – it seems that a mixture of conventional medicines including aspirin and diazepam can keep the symptoms as bay.”
The camera looks up, over the TV, and we hear the sound of the long tone of a heart machine indicating someone’s death. A group of doctors run past from right to left, and the screen fades to black.
Written by Rawson
We hear a hubbub coming from the back of the coach, and the two old women look displeased, and turn to look to the back. The camera is outside the front of the coach, and flies through the windscreen down the aisle. As it moves, we can see more and more people looking back towards the rear of the coach. The music has cut off and the news has come on the radio. There is a female announcer who describes a virus. [During this time, the sounds of people in the coach have been reduced to sound like they are underwater – very bassy and hard to understand. The screen has a gloss on it, which makes everything very colourful and light.]
“More and more reports of the highly contagious ‘Etroshion’ virus are coming from all corners of the country. The virus is characterised by the infected feeling more and more distended over a period of up to 8 hours after contamination and peaks in excruciating pain and foaming at the mouth. If the infected are not taken to a hospital within 10 to 20 minutes, the mortality rate is especially high. The virus, which is reported as having come from the Middle East has already claimed the lives of 27 people, and is especially virulent in elderly people and young children.”
The radio is faded down in the last sentences and the sounds in the rear of the coach are raised again. We see a young man screaming in agony, convulsing and releasing foamy substances from his mouth, whilst onlookers do little other than undo his shirt buttons, and ask him if he is all right. The camera spins to the right, to see a man from the front of the coach walking back – luckily he’s a doctor. “For gods sake someone call 999” he shouts, and his wife jumping out of her chair at the front of the coach (behind the old ladies, on the left – window seat) is the first to dial.
The camera flies forwards in the coach, to where the lady is standing. The operator picks up “Hello, which service do you require please”.
“I need an ambulance, there’s a man – I think he’s got that virus”
“Where are you please?”
“We are on a coach, on the M25 going clockwise – what should we do?”
”The chances are, that he’s not going to be the only person on that coach with this, get to a hospital ASAP – we cant spare any more ambulances at the moment, so just do whatever you have to - to get in.”
“Where’s the nearest? We are at Junction 16”
“Get off now – there’s a pile-up ahead, just get off”
The wife shouts at the driver “get off at this junction”
“It’s too late” he shouts back- “we’ll take the next one”
“No – now!” shouts the wife, she jumps forwards and grabs the wheel and pushes the coach to the left in an almighty effort – almost falling over sideways, and cutting other traffic up, the coach cuts through 4 lanes and just clips a sign as it drives up the embankment toward a roundabout.
“What the fuck are you doing lady!” shouts the driver.
We have to get to the hospital, she shouts back, and to the operator “is there any way that you can help – we have a massive traffic jam ahead”
“I’ll get you a police escort” says the operator “just turn your hazard lights on, and use the horn”
The camera shows the coach with flashing lights and the horn sounding like an alarm driving dangerously through the traffic – veering between lanes, and coming towards a major junction – crossroads. The traffic is moving from the left to right – and yet it all seems to stop as the coach approaches. A police car slides around the corner from the left, and moves straight in front of the coach. Its siren is on and lights are flashing.
The two move as one through the traffic, the coach clipping a few other cars as it moves through into the city centre at high speed.
The camera stops suddenly, and the coach police car pair disappear into the distance. The camera slows down, and we see a couple in a car that has hit a bus stop. The two are both convulsing, bleeding profusely – a teenage boy is laying in the glass, he has been hit in the accident, where he has been sitting at the bus stop. Blood is pouring from him, staining the glass – and draining down onto the road. A man and woman are running from a house at the bus stop, the man shouts at her to keep the kids inside, and call an ambulance – as he approaches the car, the entire thing explodes, knocking him backwards. He is knocked out by the fall, and his wife emerges on a wireless house phone, and drops it as she sees him. We hear the sound of the operator once again saying “I’m sorry – we just don’t have any ambulances free at the moment. We will try to get there as soon as possible.” The camera follows her as she runs and kneels by her husband – cuts on his face and arms from blast shrapnel are visible. She is crying, and we see a trickle of blood coming from the back of his head.
The camera flies upwards as we see accidents all over the city – flashing blue lights moving around – fires from where major disasters have happened.
And then the image clicks to that of a hospital – flying through the corridors, staff wearing face masks – all around people screaming in pain.
Phones ringing off the hook. Staff shouting at each other, a secretary trying to call other doctors in, but getting nothing but dial tones.
And then into a waiting room, where some of those injured in other ways are all watching a TV – we see their faces, as the camera does a spin and zooms into the television.
Images of death and destruction: The presenter is even wearing a mask, and is slightly muffled. “…not thought to be a terrorist incident. The virus’s effects increased exponentially today as the mid day heat made the spores more active. Whilst there is no long term cure at the moment – it seems that a mixture of conventional medicines including aspirin and diazepam can keep the symptoms as bay.”
The camera looks up, over the TV, and we hear the sound of the long tone of a heart machine indicating someone’s death. A group of doctors run past from right to left, and the screen fades to black.
Written by Rawson