Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Acts

Act 1:
1. Zeus and Hades speaking over tea. Rhea is present.
2. Establishing shot of fields, leading to Persephone beneath a dead tree. She's mentioning how Demeter's anger deadens the earth, with the tree being an example for some small mishap.
3. Establishing shot following Persephone to her home.
4. Persephone opening the door, lingering in the doorway, Demeter appears out of the darkness of the house.
5. Demeter scolds Persephone for being out so late, there's a small spat, Persephone heads to her room in a huff.
6. Time passes, Demeter comes by to hammer her point home through Persephone's door. Persephone becomes fed up and leaves through the window.
7. Persephone takes a lantern from the back of the house out into the fields. It is the evening. She returns to the dead tree and sits down, still upset.
8. A magnificent train comes roaring through the field, surprising Persephone, and Hades offers a hand to her once it stops.
9. Persephone grabs hold after a moment of hesitation.
10. The train starts up again and disappears into the underworld.
11. Now morning, Demeter opens Persephone's door to attempt to make up for the fight before, finding she's not there. She begins searching the house for her daughter.
Act 2:
1. Persephone's glued to the windows of the train, gazing at the underworld. Hades explains who he is.
2. The train comes to a halt before a bright and lively hotel, Hades exits the train with Persephone. They enter the hotel and find a glorious party with jazz and merriment about.
3. On the earth, Demeter is shown to have razed the house in search of Persephone. Her appearance begins to change as she leaves towards the fields, every step she takes deadens the earth and it begins to freeze. She stops by the tree where Persephone met Hades, and unleashes a storm of ice and snow upon recognizing her lantern.
4. Back underground, Persephone is curious and ecstatic at her new situation, dragging Hades around and asking him questions. He leads her out of the party and onto a vehicle.
5. Hades leads Persephone off the vehicle and into a grand mansion. They are greeted by Orthrus and Cerberus. Hades assumes the throne, showing off to Persephone, who is enamored with her surroundings. He offers her a room in the mansion, which she agrees to.
6. Persephone is enamored with the decadence of her room and is exceedingly happy. Hades brings her tea, and she drifts off to sleep in the bed.
7. Hades moves away with a sincere smile into the mansion, rounds a corner and lifts the façade.
8. He’s exhausted as he enters his study, spreads out a series of papers on his desk, all wills and death warrants to sign. Fade to black.
9. When she wakes, she begins exploring the mansion again, without Hades. She stumbles upon his study, where he’s on the phone with Zeus, having an argument.
10. Persephone opens the door sheepishly.
11. Hades takes note of her, changes his tone, carefully gathering up papers with one hand. He hangs up the phone and smiles in apology.
12. Taking up a more energetic air, he swiftly takes her hand and spirits her out of the mansion and into the city for more sightseeing.
13. On the train, Persephone asks if there is a park or atrium somewhere, and Hades confirms it, with slight hesitation. Persephone asks to go there.
14. The train switches tracks and heads from the city into the darkness of the caves.
15. They arrive at an eerie grotto, full of bioluminescent plants, nightshade and the like.
16. Persephone jumps off the train and explores in awe, Hades apprehensively follows.
17. Persephone approaches a beautiful tree and reaches out to take a ripe fruit from it, Hades yells out for her not to touch it.
18. Persephone asks why, Hades mentions only that the Pomegranate tree is dangerous, like all the plants of the underworld.  Persephone asks if she can just take the fruit, not eat it, and Hades agrees after great hesitation.
19. He hurries her back onto the train, where she’s satisfied she moved his will.
20. Zoom in on the pomegranate Persephone is now cradling.
21. In the heavens, Zeus is lifting weights with little difficulty.
22. Rhea enters with news of the earth and Demeter. Zeus continues lifting, is very unfettered.
23. Rhea mentions that if all the mortals perish, no one will be alive to make sacrifices, to which Zeus drops his weights.
24. Establishing shot of the weights falling through the clouds to the earth below.
25. Zeus declares this an emergency and begins calling Hades frantically.
26. The phone rings in the underworld mansion with no one to answer it. Pan to the front door where Hades and Persephone enter. Hades takes note of the phone but ignores it briefly to attend to Persephone.
27. Persephone, excited by her new gift from the grotto, waives Hades off and hurries to her chambers.
28. Hades, slightly disappointed, heads to his study to answer the phone.
29. Persephone, now in her chambers, is setting a space for the pomegranate so she can admire it. She is startled by mad screaming from Hades’ office, drops the pomegranate and runs to him.
30. Hades is standing, rigid, screaming and teary-eyed at the phone, and Zeus’ argument is barely audible. Persephone lingers behind the door.
31. She accidentally moves the door and Hades jumps, asking who’s there. He drops the phone and rushes out the door without noticing Persephone.
32. Persephone enters the room, sees his paperwork and is apprehensive, then hears Zeus’ last cry to bring Persephone back to the surface to quell Demeter’s anger.
33. Persephone is horrified, just as Hades enters the room again. He tries to console her.
34. Persephone offers a counterargument, insists that she has to go back. Hades counters saying Persephone is not Demeter’s property, that she doesn’t have to suffer the abuse.
35. Persephone rushes out the door, donning her hood. Hades initially runs after her.
36. Hades turns sharply, runs to her room and scoops up the seeds of the pomegranate that burst open when it hit the floor.
37. On the train as it’s about the leave, Persephone sits upright and purposeful. Hades enters, panting, asking Persephone to eat something before she leaves. He says he won’t stop her.
38. She nods, eats six seeds, and he steps off the train. Shot of Hades wracked with grief at what he has done as the train leaves.


Act 3:
Persephone exits the train in a frozen wasteland, which was once home. Establishing shot.
She passes the tree where she’d left her lantern. Figures are crowded around each other in ragged clothing beneath it.
Reaching the house, she notices and a typhoon of ice and snow is bursting from it. She enters, apprehensive.
Demeter crouched and sobbing, notices her and hurries to her.
A moment of happiness, Demeter stroking Persephone’s face until she exclaims that Persephone is half-dead and has been claimed by the underworld.
Her anger causes a cloud of frozen ice to repel Persephone, who remembers the pomegranate as she hits the wall. Demeter screams that Persephone cannot remain on the surface.
Persephone counters and says that she will stay as long as she can. She struggles through the storm created by her mother and embraces her.
Demeter’s rage slowly drifts away, and the embrace continues. The storm subsides and sun shines.
Six months pass, Persephone has bags packed and waits for the train in the fields, now thawed and gorgeous. Zeus, Rhea and Demeter wait with her. Demeter is noticeably upset by Persephone’s departure and the ground is frozen beneath her.
The train roars out of the underworld, and Hades offers a hand, with more hesitation than before. Persephone grabs it warmly, and the train disappears again.
Demeter, alone, wanders back to the house, leaving mild frost in her wake. End.