Day Off (2023) - Screenplay
Screenplay for an unproduced short film.
Day Off
George, a London barista, decides to take the day off to pursue his dream of becoming a Teletubby.
George is an awkward though socially amenable young man working in a London coffee shop. He gets on well with his colleagues and is generally good at the job, but there is one thing about him that he can’t quite get across to them, out of fear of social embarrassment: his love of the children’s television programme Teletubbies. George spends much of his alone time watching the show, even taking notes on the presentation, but no one at work seems to understand or care about his interest. George decides to use one of his days off to set out alone into the English countryside, where he sets up a tent, and gets into a Teletubby costume. He turns on the tummy-television as he gazes out across the fields, anxiously at rest.
—
EXT. LONDON STREET – MORNING
Loud. Sirens, drilling, shouting, begging. Pan from a busy road to a busy pavement, crowds of tourists, commuters, beggars, etc.
In the crowd we find GEORGE, headphones on quickly getting through the crowd, tired and desperate to get to work on time. We follow him down the street, weaving through pedestrians like a motorbike through cars.
George finds his destination, opens the door, steps inside, noise stops.
INT. COFFEE SHOP (CONT.)
Same shot, CARRIE behind counter:
CARRIE: Hey George, you’re late.
GEORGE: Sorry.
GEORGE’s face: ‘I don’t care’.
After the interruption, George continues on his mission, going into a backroom offscreen to drop his things off.
‘DAY OFF’ over the empty shot of the coffee shop.
INT. COFFEE SHOP – Work has begun
George and J behind counter, J making a coffee (noisy steam), George speaking to customer (pastel scarf, glasses, woollen coat, English teacher)
GEORGE: Great, that’ll be £4.99 please.
CUSTOMER: Do you take card?
GEORGE: That we do.
Pulls out card machine swiftly, genuine enthusiasm. Customer pays, J gives coffee, customer sits down. Brief respite.
J: Yo George, can you grab some milk from downstairs?
GEORGE: Yeah sure.
J: Safe.
GEORGE: No problem.
George trundles downstairs, white, into corridor, white, past Carrie’s office, white, out of view. George centre-focus in corridor.
CARRIE (O.S): George? Is that you?
GEORGE: (face as though he’s been caught with his hand in the cookie jar) Yeah, I’ve just gotta get some more milk.
CARRIE (O.S): Okay, could you come here for a second?
George backs away from us, turns left into office.
INT. CARRIE’S OFFICE – White
Carrie sits on desk at computer, and we see a YouTube video paused on her computer, some kind of story-time video from a female vlogger. Trinkets of a dull, dissatisfied and desperate ageing millennial decorate the desk and walls – cat memes, pastel-coloured calligraphy giving meaningless affirmations, sassy inoffensive buzzwords, polaroids.
CARRIE: Do you have your national insurance?
GEORGE: I’m pretty sure I gave it to you when I started.
CARRIE: Well it’s not here. Do you have it on you?
GEORGE: No…
CARRIE: Fine, bring it in tomorrow when we have our Team Catchup.
GEORGE: Okay.
CARRIE: You can go now.
GEORGE: Bye.
Back on track, George returns to the corridor, grabs the milk from the fridge in the room on the right (Dark), back to the corridor, back up the stairs.
INT. COFFEE SHOP – Hour later
George is attempting to clean up table, (male) customer in a modern suit and terrible (pretentious) facial hair won’t stop talking at him about trading. We look over the back of the customer’s head at George’s unimpressed reactions.
CUSTOMER: So, you see, it’s really important to get a portfolio together.
GEORGE: Yeah, I get it, I just don’t really have the money for it at the moment.
CUSTOMER: That’s what I used to think, but if you put aside as little as £50 a week it can really make a difference! I was doing that at this internship, pay wasn’t great, but the savings really helped me along later down the road when I needed capital.
GEORGE: Right. I mean I am saving up for stuff–
CUSTOMER (not listening): Here, take my card, check out my website, my prices are really affordable, see what you think.
GEORGE (taking card): Uh-huh.
George takes the dishes from the customer’s table (finally) and leaves customer to his self-contemplation. Swing round to the counter, J and Darla work.
J: That guy’s got it sorted bro. Look at his watch. Rolex. Bare ps.
DARLA: So?
J: He’s grinding, bro. That’s what I’m tryna do, get enough ps I can chat to anyone I want bout anything and they just gotta listen, hahaha, innit George?
DARLA: You’re so wet, J.
J: What?
DARLA: Why you tryna be a big man for? You think your hard, innit?
J: [Kisses teeth] Ay, shut up Darla, you’re so jarring sometimes I swear to God.
George seems only to get in the way, absent-minded, of this conversation. He knows what he wants, and we focus on it being realised in his eyes.
EXT. SIDE STREET – Afternoon
George sits on the curb, eating a sandwich, headphones on, staring at phone. Sun beams down on him, cars roll by, people block him from view, but he is absorbed.
Cut to over his shoulder: Teletubbies on the phone. Tinny sound of the audio from the episode.
INT. COFFEE SHOP – Evening
Carrie tidies things away behind the counter. Dark outside, shop is empty. George emerges, ready to go. We are in the corner by the door. George walks towards us, Carrie behind him.
CARRIE: Thank you for today, George.
GEORGE: Bye Carrie.
George comes to the peak of camera, Carrie out of focus.
CARRIE: Oh, George, wait, come back.
George is caught.
GEORGE (without turning away from us): Yeah?
CARRIE: I’ve got something I need you to sign.
George walks back, out of focus, picks up sheet.
CARRIE: It’s for the pension scheme.
GEORGE: Cool, thanks.
CARRIE: Okay.
GEORGE: Yep.
George walks back to us, back into focus.
CARRIE: Oh, George?
George is caught again.
GEORGE: Yeah?
CARRIE: Don’t forget to bring in your national insurance number tomorrow!
GEORGE: Yep.
CARRIE: That’s all.
GEORGE: Bye.
INT. GEORGE’S BEDROOM – End of day
From behind, we watch George sat at his desk. Dark room, undecorated, lamplit, computer on desk. George, headphones on, takes notes. Only the noise of a scraping pencil is heard.
From beyond the room we hear his mum shouting from downstairs.
MUM: George? George! Dinner’s ready! George!
Headphones off, George looks round, we see his face, dimly lit.
GEORGE, shouting down: Huh?
MUM: Dinner’s ready!
GEORGE: I’ll be down in a bit!
George takes a few more notes before hurriedly putting them to the side, and getting up to eat, leaving us only with a clear view of what he’s watching: Teletubbies (on YouTube).
INT. COFFEE SHOP – Workday
George, Darla and J stand behind the counter, the cafe empty. A slow day.
Darla: Omygod, last night I was watchin’ Tik-Tok, yeah? and there was this one, it was like, bare kids shows innit, with kinda creepy music over the top, hahaha, I dunno why I remember that, it’s weird tho, innit? You ever think about the shows u watched as a kid?
George is visibly anxious at this news.
J: That’s jokes. I was mad about Micky Mouse when I was a kid, not gonna lie.
DARLA, delighted: Haha! Micky Mouse Club House, innit?
J: Yeahh, that was the shit – ‘Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Digity Dog’ [J dances along to the song]
DARLA, more delighted: Ohmygod! Hahaha!
George laughs a little
DARLA: What about you, George? You ever think about, like, kid shows and that?
GEORGE: Uhh…
J: I know George was watchin them proper English kids shows, like [in a posh accent] Postman Pat and Thomas the Tank Engine
DARLA: Hey I used to watch Thomas – you ever heard that Biggie Smalls remix with the Thomas the Tank Engine theme tune, ohmygod it’s so funny! It actually kinda bangs too, hahahaha!
J: Nah, I know what George used to watch, you used to watch those freaky ones, innit? Where they wore the big costumes and shit.
DARLA: Ohmygod Telletubbies!
J, amused: Yeahhh, innit George?
GEORGE: Yeah, I guess… I used to watch all sorts as a kid…
J: [mocking George’s accent] I used to watch all sorts…
Darla is very amused by this, until Carrie comes upstairs.
CARRIE: Guys, what’s going on?
DARLA: We’re just talking about kid shows, you remember any kid shows you used to watch Carrie?
CARRIE: Yeah, some. [Feigned smile] Have you guys done the daily tasks?
J: Nah.
CARRIE: Well let’s get them done while it’s quiet, yeah?
J: Alright.
CARRIE: [Feigned appreciation] Thank you, guys.
As Carrie leaves the displeasure on the crew’s face becomes evident.
DARLA: I swear sometimes I just wanna quit this job. She’s so annoying!
J: Yeah man, I need a break.
GEORGE: Got the day off tomorrow.
J: Nice bro, what you doin’?
GEORGE: Gonna take a trip out to the country, I think.
DARLA: [Bad impersonation of J’s impersonation] Gonna take a trip out to the country
No one laughs.
EXT. GEORGE’S FRONT DOOR – End of day
George walks into his house in a rush, excited that the workday is over.
INT. GEORGE’S ROOM
His door bursts open as he speeds in, shuts the door behind him, throws his things into a corner, and sits excitedly at his desk, switching on his computer.
Close up on his reflection in the black computer screen, then booting up, then: Teletubbies.
Black. Then, an alarm goes off.
INT. GEORGE’S ROOM – Morning
George is hurriedly packing a bag, muttering to himself about being late for his train.
EXT. GEORGE’S FRONT DOOR
George runs out of his house and down the street.
EXT. TRAIN STATION
George runs toward the station.
INT. TRAIN STATION
The train is waiting at the station. We see George running in the distance, reaching the door, and just about making it onto the train. Inside the train, on the other side of the door, George expresses relief.
INT. TRAIN – Hour later
George sits at his table, staring out of the window, headphones on. Muffled sound of rock music.
EXT. TRAIN STATION – Hour later
In a country station, the train pulls up, and George gets off. He wastes no time, heading straight for the turnstile, desperate to get on his way. We see him walk up a country road.
EXT. COUNTRY – Minutes later
An open field, clear blue sky. Scenic. George comes into view and gets to work setting up a tent. We see in intricate detail every action he makes in close-up, focusing on his hands. Pulling it out, planting the pegs, doing the zips, getting frustrated with the ties.
Eventually he gets the tent up, sitting next to it, accomplished.
A bit of staring at the scenery later, George gets into the tent. We return to a landscape shot of his tent and the scenery, behind George. George gets out of the tent, except now he is in a full-body ‘Ipsy-Dipsy’ costume.
Ipsy-Dipsy sits next to his tent, and stares out at the scenery. Ipsy-Dipsy takes a breath. We hear him switch on a television – it rings for a bit, there is a little static, and then an audio clip from the ‘We’re Just Ordinary Men’ meme plays.
Cut to black, with the audio still playing.
END