SCRIPT
FADE IN:
EXT. MICHELLE’S HOUSE - MORNING
A series of shots from outside of the house to the inside
Where we see lots of signs
The wind blows the grass and the trees.
Michelle walks up to the window inside the house. She stops and looks
at the sky. Dark, heavy clouds are moving in.
She sips a drink from a mug, places it down and closes the blinds before picking up her mobile to make a call.
RELATIVE
…Hello?
MICHELLE
They’re getting worse.
RELATIVE
Are you safe?
MICHELLE
I’m not so sure anymore.
RELATIVE
Don’t forget what happened to {enter other relative}
MICHELLE
I know, I know, I just have to clean up the place before selling and then I’m out.
RELATIVE
Well good luck and stay safe.
MICHELLE
Yeah thanks, I’ll see you soon hopefully.
Michelle ends the call and sets the phone down on the counter.
At this moment, a montage of INT. paranormal events begin.
Noted in Michelle's Diary as they happen.
INT. MICHELLE’S HOUSE - (CONT’D)
The floor creaks, glass moves, moving shadows.
INT. JACOB’S OFFICE - EVENING
The office is a dark and gloomy place. The desk is old, wooden, and covered with occult and satanic bric-a-brac.
JACOB leans back in his chair.
JACOB
I want to set the record straight.
My associates and I, we don’t do
exorcisms. We don’t penetrate the
veil of the unknown to contact the
spirits of the past. We just.
Eat ghosts.
Across the table MICHELLE nods.
MICHELLE
I think that’s what I need.
Michelle pulls out a manila folder and begins to spread out
the contents on the desk in front of Jacob.
MICHELLE (CONT’D)
I inherited a house.
JACOB reaches into the pile and pulls out a photo of the
house. It is old and creepy-looking.
JACOB
And you think it’s haunted?
MICHELLE
I’ve heard stories about it for
years.
JACOB
Noises in the night? Visions? That sort of thing?
MICHELLE
Yes.
JACOB
Have you checked it for gas leaks?
MICHELLE
Excuse me?
JACOB
Carbon monoxide poisoning. A lot of
these old houses have little leaks,
letting out toxic fumes.
MICHELLE
That sounds dangerous.
JACOB
It is. But at low levels it doesn’t
kill. It just causes
Hallucinations.
MICHELLE
Like voices and images.
JACOB
Exactly.
MICHELLE
But this house has a history.
Michelle pulls out a newspaper clipping from the folder. The
headline proclaims a multiple homicide. The photo in the news
article is the house.
JACOB
Now this... this is interesting.
MICHELLE
I think it was a house on the
Underground Railroad or something.
Michelle shows Jacob more documents. Photos of crime scenes
and old newspaper clippings.
JACOB
Go on.
MICHELLE
There was a raid or something and a
lot of people were massacred. A
guest house full of people was
burned to the ground.
JACOB
Fascinating.
MICHELLE
No one has lived in it for more
than a year. People go insane and
kill their families.
JACOB
Are you sure it isn’t something...
hereditary? I hear depression can
run in some families.
MICHELLE
My family is screwy, but not that
screwy.
JACOB
You are, of course, unbiased.
MICHELLE
I have a realtor who will take it
off my hands, but I need to make a
show of faith first.
JACOB
I’m not sure I understand.
MICHELLE
If I can say I’ve done something to
get rid of them, you know, the
ghosts, it will help me unload the
thing.
JACOB
Ah. So you need to clean the house.
MICHELLE
That’s it.
JACOB
I would like to do a little more
research on the property, but, yes,
I believe my associates and I can
take the case.
MICHELLE
Thank you. This means so much to me.
JACOB
Believe me, this arrangement should
be... mutually beneficial.
JACOB holds up the picture of the house.
JACOB (CONT’D)
Yes, this house looks quite lovely.
The photo of the house stands in the frame. The image slowly
begins to fade.
EXT. HAUNTED HOUSE - AFTERNOON
The same house as in the picture, this time real. The wind
blows the grass and the trees.
MICHELLE walks up the path to the house. She stops and looks
at the sky. Dark, heavy clouds are moving in.
She fumbles with the keys to the door and goes inside.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - CONTINUOUS
MICHELLE stands in the front hall. It is an old and creepy
house; the only sounds are of an old grandfather clock
ticking. She walks through the house, looking at all of the
old, dusty furniture.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE DINING ROOM - CONTINUOUS
The light slants into the room through the antique windows as
dust drifts through the air.
MICHELLE opens an old liquor cabinet. She takes out a tumbler
and holds it up to her face. She wipes it off with her sleeve
and pulls out a half-full bottle of whiskey. She pours
herself a drink, takes a swig, and makes a face as it burns
the back of her throat.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE LIVING ROOM - MOMENTS LATER
MICHELLE lifts the cover off of an old chair. Dust goes
everywhere. She sits down and looks out the window, taking a
sip of the whiskey. A shaft of waning afternoon light cuts
through the clouds and shines on a chair. The light is warm
and inviting. She relaxes into the chair and drifts off to
Sleep.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
BOOM!
MICHELLE wakes up with a start and looks around.
Darkness is everywhere. The wind is blowing more audibly now
and there is a distant sound of thunder.
BOOM!
Another sound comes from the front door. MICHELLEwalks
toward it.
BOOM!
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - CONTINUOUS
The front door of the house swings open on its own. In the doorway is a dark silhouette. It moves toward MICHELLE.
MICHELLE
Hey you can’t just-
As the shadow gets closer to her, she realizes it is JACOB.
JACOB
I’m sorry. The door was stuck.
MICHELLE lets out a nervous laugh.
MICHELLE
It-it’s okay. I fell asleep.
JACOB
Of course you did.
JACOB holds up two bags of fast food.
JACOB (CONT’D)
I brought some dinner in case you
were hungry.
MICHELLE
You know, that sounds great.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE DINING ROOM - NIGHT
MICHELLE and JACOB sit around a table, eating fast food by
candlelight. The sound of the storm outside is getting worse.
JACOB
You were right about this house. It
has quite the history. Really
fascinating.
MICHELLE
Mom would never say anything when I was growing up, but Dad... Dad
would tell me stories about it.
JACOB
Were you scared?
MICHELLE
Terrified. He told this one about
how his great uncle kept hearing
voices in the walls.
JACOB
It was probably just rats.
They hear a faint scratching noise. MICHELLE looks around,
startled. JACOB keeps eating his food, completely unaffected.
JACOB (CONT’D)
If it sounded like that, it was
definitely rats.
MICHELLE
I don’t know if that makes me more
comfortable or not.
A doorbell rings. JACOB looks at his watch.
JACOB
And that should be my associates.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - NIGHT
JACOB opens the door to three tall, gaunt PASTY WHITE MEN in
suits, trench coats, and dark glasses. A flash of lightning
shoots through the sky behind them.
JACOB
Right on time.
The three men glide past the two people and into the house.
MICHELLE
These are your associates?
JACOB
It takes a special person to eat
ghosts.
MICHELLE and JACOB watch the pasty white men walk through the
house. The men sniff the air and make a soft hissing noise.
MICHELLE
I’m not sure what I was expecting,
but this is a notch or two up in
terms of creepy.
JACOB
I prefer to think of my associates
as eccentric, not creepy.
MICHELLE
As long as they get the job done, I
don’t care.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE STAIRWAY - NIGHT
One of the pasty white men walks up the stairs, sniffing the
air.
JACOB (V.O.)
Despite what you might think,
ghosts are actually very rare.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - NIGHT
One of the pasty white men walks slowly down the hall,
dragging his long pasty fingers along the wallpaper.
JACOB (V.O.)
If someone develops a taste for
spirits, that person spends a lot
of time simply looking for food.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE BEDROOM - NIGHT
One of the pasty white men gently caresses a pillow.
Something scuttles for a second. The pasty white man turns
and looks at a little bureau. There is a CREEPY DOLL sitting
on the bureau.
The pasty white man touches the doll. Something moves in the
darkness. The pasty white man throws his head back and makes
a loud shriek.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - NIGHT
MICHELLE looks to JACOB.
MICHELLE
What was that?
JACOB
Pay dirt. There’s a basement in
this house, right?
MICHELLE
Yes.
JACOB
We should probably hide there for a
few minutes. Things are about to
get exciting.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE BEDROOM - NIGHT
All three pasty white men stand with their backs next to each
other, forming a little triad.
They lean back their heads, open their mouths, and let out
long, loud, harmonic screeches.
Screaming white ghosts seep out of the walls as they are
sucked into the mouths of the pasty white men. The wails of
the dead mix with the screeching of the pasty white men.
INT. HAUNTED HOUSE BASEMENT - NIGHT
JACOB and MICHELLE stand in the basement. They look at the
ceiling, listening to the muffled ruckus.
JACOB
You know how ghosts are made?
MICHELLE shakes her head.
JACOB (CONT’D)
There are two factors - the place
and the person. The place needs to
be one of death and fear.
Sacrificial rocks. Battlefields.
And some houses. We’re in a place
like that. But the person... the
person needs to die confused and
frightened, not fully understanding
what is happening to her.
Michelle stares at him, glassy-eyed.
JACOB (CONT’D)
For example, if someone is
poisoned, there is a fairly solid
chance the person will come back as.
A ghost..
MICHELLE starts to wobble. JACOB begins to walk away from
her, up the stairs out of the basement.
JACOB (CONT’D)
Usually when we find a suitable
haunting place, we like to seed it
with new souls. You’re lucky enough
to be the first.
MICHELLE tries to follow JACOB up the stairs, but can barely
stand. She begins to convulse slightly as JACOB reaches the
top of the stairs. MICHELLE lurches towards him, but
collapses on the stairs and slides back down to the ground.
JACOB reaches the top of the stairs and turns to MICHELLE. He
looks down on her and smiles. She can only muster a moan.
JACOB looks down on MICHELLE.
JACOB (CONT’D)
Thank you so much for finding this
house for us.
MICHELLE makes a guttural groan.
JACOB (CONT’D)
Yes, I had a splendid evening, too.
Rest assured, we will meet again.
Probably for dinner. Oh, speaking
of dinner, I have to go or there
won’t be anything left.
JACOB smiles and, for a moment, his face flashes with pasty
white hunger and rage.
JACOB closes the door, leaving MICHELLE alone in the dark.
FADE TO BLACK.
Towneley Hall - old house interior
Towneley Towneley park, Holmes St, Burnley BB11 3RQ
NOT ABLE TO USE INTERIOUR AS WE COULD NOT GET PERMISSION FROM THE DUTY MANAGERS TO ALLOW US IN TO FILM.
Barlows Herbalists - Jacobs office
27 Standish St, Burnley BB11 1AP
USING TO FILM JACOBS OFFICE, SPOKEN WITH THE OWNER WHO IS HAPPY FOR US TO FILM THERE AS LONG AS WE TELL THEM WHEN WE WANT TO USE THE LOCATION.
Farm House - old house interior and exterior
Trough House Farm, BB7 9QN
We decided to cast Mayah Brooks as Michelle as we believe that Mayah portrays the character that we would like. Mayah also fits the physical appearance of Michelle that we created.
We decided to cast Zac Cardwell as Jacob as we believe that Zac is capable of acting in the style which we imagined Jacob to be like. Zac also has the physical appearance which we came up with the idea of at the beginning of the short films.
We decided to cast David Easton as one of the ghost eaters as we believe that he fits the character we are looking for.
We thought that doing a table read was a good idea so that we can see how Mayah and Zac act against each other, this was good as this solidified our decisions for who to cast.