Untitled Screenplay, by Martha Uberg
Scene 1- Day- A particularly bright morning in may
The house is orderly chaos. The house is very small but very full. A wooden table sits in the middle of the room- open plan- the kitchen, sofa and TV can be seen. The wooden table is splattered with paint and strewn with fabrics, threads, safety pins, notebook and pens and a sketchbook.
The kitchen is very small, pans pile up on the old gas stove, and the sink is full of bubbles and cutlery. The surfaces are very clean and white- but not clear of clutter. Sofa cushion lie on the rug.
A huge disco ball hangs above the table, still lit and spinning from the night before. Burnt out candles sit on the shelf beside the table along with, a full ashtray and a huge green lamp, its bulb fallen and smashed on the floor.
The curtains are shut, but the sun peeps through the gaps.
A women, KJERSTI enters- she stumbles over a sofa cushion and sighs. She goes to the kitchen (of screen) and you can the loud, warming sound of the old red kettle. She directs her attention to two cats.
KJERSTI: Morning
A girl with short, messy red hair enters, pulling on a shoe and putting in an earring simultaneously and with difficulty.
MARTHA: Morning mum
KJERSTI: (continues to look at her cats) Well, I was talking to my cats
MARTHA: Of course
(She slumps into a chair silently, she is talkative, but not in the morning.)
(Two boys enter, one runs around through the room grabbing shoes, toast and holding a toothbrush still ready to spit. The second falls straight onto the sofa.)
BOY 2: (shouts hoarsely) Tea!
(Martha clears a place on the table and starts spinning a penny.)
MARTHA: Damn, I’m sorry about the mess, pretty bad I can’t lie.
KJERSTI: (rolls her eyes) You eating breakfast?
MARTHA: (sighs) Mum, you know I never eat breakfast.
BOY 1: (mouth full of toothpaste) that’s because you’re dumb.
(She flicks the penny at him)
KJERSTI: Ah I can’t handle you lot in the morning, sort out your mess please, I’ll see you later.
(she exits)
KJERSTI: (off stage) And someone open the bloody curtains!
MARTHA: (to BOY 1) You heard her.
BOY 1: (spits into the sink) nah, fuck off.
BOY 2: (face down on the sofa gurgling into a pillow) Tea!
MARTHA: Tell you one thing you’re a TravisTea!
(She waits for them to laugh. They don’t)
(Silence while they judge her)
BOY 1: Really?
(He flicks toothpaste at her)
BOY 2: (still gurgling into a pillow) Tea..
(Martha stands, walks to the kitchen, garbs the cookie jar, takes two wanders over to the sofa, flicks boy 2 in the face and sticks her middle finger up at boy 1)
MARTHA: Byeeeee (sarcastically) have a nice day.
(She exits slamming the door)