timeline
Looking For Alaska
Matt Burt, Alaska’s Escape, Pg. 133•Alaska bursts into Miles’ and Colonel’s room, screaming and crying. She convinces them to help her leave Culver Creek for an unknown reason.
Q:You have a friend who had been drinking, was distraught, and clearly in no condition to drive; How would you deal with that situation? A:I would attempt to reason with him/her. Miles and the Colonel were available to keep her under control. Miles was sober, if a little tired, and the Colonel wasn’t nearly as drunk as Alaska. With Alaska being that drunk, it should not have been too hard to convince her to be rational. Pudge and the Colonel knew what they should’ve done, but didn’t, and Alaska died because of it. |
Miles Gets Dumped in a Lake Screenplay
A Matt Burt Production
In collaboration with Ara Sitting in That Chair Right There… Yeah, That Chair. Background: It is Miles' first night on campus. Tonight, he learns all about the society and traditions of Culver Creek. Scene 1: Open to a dark room, with Miles sleeping on top of his covers on the bottom bunk wearing boxers, and The Colonel on the top bunk, with the slight hum of a fan in the background. Crickets are chirping and the door slowly creeks open. Three silhouettes (Kevin and his gang) creep up beside Miles wearing hoodies and jeans. One silhouette grabs Miles by the shoulders and violently shakes him awake. Miles is confused, worried, and unsure of how to react. Silhouette 1: C’mon kid, getup! Miles: (confused) W-what’s going on? Silhouette 2: Don’t make us kick your ass. The Colonel: (from top bunk) Pudge, just get up! Miles stands unsteadily and is lifted by his forearms by two of the silhouettes. He gets drag/walked out the door. The Colonel: Go easy on him, Kevin. Scene 2: Outside, sneaking through the campus. Miles is panicked and imagining the many possibilities of what could happen to him. The sound of their footsteps gets muffled by the wet grass. Miles is barefoot, being led to the lake through many detours. Once through the door, a shot of the Silhouette’s and Kevin’s faces in the moon light. Through the gravel ridden grass: Miles: You guys could’ve at least told me to put on shoes. Silhouette 2: Shut up, you’re lucky we’re letting you keep your shorts. In the forest Miles starts struggling: Kevin: Stop resisting, we’re almost at the lake. We’re letting you off easy. Miles lets out a relived breath as it becomes clear to him that he is only being dumped in the lake. But unbeknownst to Miles, he is not only getting dumped in the lake. Miles starts to calm down, and continues his walk, tripping over branches and roots. Scene 3: The lake is calm, and the sand is cold. There are a few rolls of duct tape sitting on a towel in the sand. Swarms of gnats and other bugs fly around. Miles begins to panic again as he sees the rolls of duct tape. Silhouette 1: stand up straight, arms at your sides. Miles: No! You guys don’t have to do this! Silhouette 2 grabs a roll of duct tape and starts wrapping Miles from his shoulders down to his wrists. Kevin and the other Silhouette follow suite. Miles struggles as they get on to their 2nd and 3rd layers. Miles: No guys! Come on! Kevin: You should stay away from The Colonel. Silhouette 2 pushes him to the ground. Kevin grabs Miles by the feet and Silhouette 1 grabs him by the shoulders. Miles: Please guys, don’t… Kevin and Both Silhouettes: 1… 2… 3! They heave him into the lake. Cue sound effects -Splash Miles: Oh, Man… What terrible last words! “Please guys, don’t…” Kevin: See you tomorrow, Pudge. Exit Weekday Warriors. Miles begins his struggle back to shore in a mermaid-like fashion. Miles: (Yelling) Okay guys, I get it. I’m not going to hang out with Chip anymore. He’s just my room mate, not my friend! Miles reaches shore. Miles: (looking at towel) (Sarcastic) Thanks guys, a towel. Miles awkwardly wiggles free of his duct tape wrap. Scene 4: Miles trudges back to his dorm, dripping wet and covered in sand. He hesitates at his door, and decides to stop at Alaska’s room before going back to bed. He knocks softly on Alaska’s door, covered in sand and wet grass. Alaska lets him in, wearing PJs and wrapped in blanket. *Knock* Alaska: Yeah? Come in. Miles enters looking as previously described Miles: umm… What just happened? Alaska: Well, it looks like you went for a swim. Miles: Yeah… Why? Alaska: Give me a break. Other people have real problems. Suck it up. Miles looks confused, and then furrows his brow. He angrily slams the door and stops back to his room. The Colonel: What took you so long? Miles: Shut up loser. The Colonel: Did you get lost on your way home? Miles: They said it was because of you and that I shouldn’t hang out with you. The Colonel: No. Everybody gets thrown in the lake. I did. It’s not a big deal, you just swim out. Miles: I couldn’t just swim out, though! The Colonel: Can’t you swim? Miles: They duct taped me. The Colonel: What? They taped you? Miles: yeah… Like this (Demonstrate) The Colonel: You could have drowned! They’re just supposed to throw you in the lake and run! Miles: Well, obviously they didn’t know that! The Colonel: Do you remember their faces? Miles: Yeah, sort of. The Colonel: Well now we have to retaliate. Miles: Well, maybe we could just go to The Eagle tomorrow and… The Colonel: No way! Miles: why not? The Colonel: That’s not how we deal with it here. Miles: I don’t want to get involved in this sort of thing. The Colonel: Ratting will make it a lot worse. Scene 5 (Closing Scene): Miles gets into bed, fully dressed and The Colonel climbs back up to the top bunk. Miles, uncomfortable in the intense heat, tosses and turns trying to get comfortable. The lights click off, and the scene cuts out to the sound of crickets and the fan humming, much like the opening scene. |
Screenplay explanationThis screenplay is based on the Culver Creek society. At Culver Creek, as Miles’ quickly learns, problems are not dealt with by talking or negotiating. This closely mirrors how the real world society deals with conflict. Although negotiations are often tried on the world stage, disagreements tend to be resolved violently.
Scene 1: Miles is new to life on his own, and a little unsure of himself. Miles does not want to cause trouble, which is why he gets abducted by Kevin with so little resistance. Scene 2: Originally, Miles was not supposed to talk with his captors, but given that there is less time available in a movie Miles’ character must develop slightly quicker. He talks back to Kevin and his gang, rather than just being dragged through the campus; Notwithstanding Miles is still to be perceived as awkward, unconfident, and slightly uncoordinated, thus the tripping on roots and snares in the forest and through the fields. Scene 3: At the lake Miles’ trust of and loyalty to the Colonel is corrupted. He believes that it was the Colonel’s fault that he was tossed in the lake. This demonstrates how Miles’ unexposed personality is having trouble adjusting to the real world. Scene 4: This scene allows Miles to come out of his shell. Miles is exposed to a less welcoming side of Alaska. Upon returning to his room Miles lashes out at the Colonel. During this screenplay Miles develops into a slightly more independent character. He is not completely independent though; he is willing to forgive the Colonel after being called the Colonels friend. Scene 5 (Closing Scene): Miles is frustrated that he cannot deal with his problems diplomatically. He feels like an immigrant in a new country, and it becomes clear it will take him some time to become completely comfortable with life, society, and their unconventional methods of dealing with problems at Culver Creek. |