Fast Friends: a road to god knows adventure!

• Page One
  1. Panel One: First panel contains all the credits for this little story. Most likely on a black background. The title should read ”Fast Friends: a road to god knows adventure” by Von Allan.

  2. Panel Two: ‘Lil Marie is sitting on the front steps of her apartment building, idly bouncing a small rubber ball. The establishing shot for all of this will actually happen on the next page, but I just wanted to frame the location right here and now. Almost this entire story will take place on these front steps so it’s important to mention this at the outset.

     With that in mind, this panel is an extreme close-up of Marie’s right foot. We should see a lot of texture of the broken concrete steps around her foot and lower leg, but the reader shouldn’t have a really strong idea of where Marie is. Hell, ideally they won’t have a firm idea of who the foot belongs to right away. So we’re really shooting for texture in this panel and the rest of the ones on this page.

  3. Panel Three: This is basically a copy of the previous panel, but this time a large striped rubber ball is strongly in the FG. It should be in mid-air as it streaks by Marie’s foot.

  4. Panel Four: This panel (ok, ok…and the rest of the ones on this page) is like Panel Two. This time, though, the ball has dropped out of view.

  5. Panel Five: The ball has bounced back into view, dominating the FG once again. Come to think of it, I could shoot for some squash and stretch here.

  6. Panel Six: Final panel on the page and once again the ball has vanished from our view. It’s just Marie’s foot and the concrete steps once again.

• Page Two
  1. Panel One: We pull back to reveal an establishing shot of Marie sitting on the front steps of her apartment. These are the same steps that we’ve come to know pretty well from the road to god knows…

     What’s key here is that she truly doesn’t care about the ball. She’s bouncing it aimlessly with her right hand, not paying any attention to it whatsoever. Her left hand holds her chin and her head is tilted away from the ball. Sure, she’s sitting there, playing, but she’s not the faintest bit interested in what’s going on with the ball.

  2. Panel Two: Cut in closer to reveal her complete disdain of the ball. Her eyes are heavy as she looks up to the heavens. She’s really groaning inwardly – not a happy camper.

  3. Panel Three: This is a tricky panel. In the FG is Marie’s hand (at the top) and the ball (someway down the panel). We’re looking out on the street, though, and in the MG we see ‘lil Kelly coming towards Marie, carrying an armful of VHS cassette tapes.

     This shot is really from the concrete steps POV; that’s where the camera is and why Marie is so strongly in the FG.

  4. Panel Four: Close-up on Kelly’s face. She’s clearly bemused by Marie’s solitary ball bouncing efforts.

     Kelly: Wow, you look like you’re having a world of fun.

  5. Panel Five: Marie is holding the ball firmly in her right hand, palm up. She’s narrowing her eyes as she examines it closely.

     Marie: Ball. Bouncy-bouncy. Boring. Not fun.

  6. Panel Six: Kelly, still holding the stack of three VHS tapes, looks mournfully down at them. We can see the titles on the spines of each tape box: Gidget, the Love Bug, and the Bad News Bears Go To Japan.

     (Note that these tapes should be of the rental variety. Don’t worry about box art or anything like that. Keep it “plasticy” since it’s a tape rental.)

     Kelly: Yeah, I hear that. My Mom thought it would be oh so swell to rent a whack of these girly kiddie flicks. How does The Love Bug grab you?

     Kelly: Ick…I think I just might trade you for that ball.

• Page Three
  1. Panel One: Medium shot of Marie crouching in front of Kelly, head tilted as she looks over the titles. Kelly is looking up at the sky, rolling her eyes.

     Marie: Geez, you weren’t kidding. How old does you’re mom think you are? Five?

     Kelly: No, I think she was shooting for a bonding experience. So she thought these would be great for her, my little sister and me to watch together. Weeeeeeee…

  2. Panel Two: Cut to Marie eyeing the VHS tapes while she holds the ball in her right hand – basically weighing the two options.

     Marie: I dunno. You guys are all moved in and unpacked, right? And I’m sure you’ve got books.

     Marie: I think if my Mom offered me these gems I’d just go lay low and read instead.

  3. Panel Three: Pull back a bit so that we see the two of them. Kelly smiles while she watches Marie.

     Kelly: Hey, I’m a bit surprised you’re not reading right now. I mean, I’m sure a good bouncy ball is a world of fun, but why are you just sitting there…bouncing?

  4. Panel Four: Marie has plunked herself back down on the steps, both elbows on her hips and her hands cupping her chin. Possibly inflating both cheeks and pursing her mouth. The very picture of frustration. The ball lays on the ground in front of her, wobbling (so toss in a few motion lines around it).

     Marie: It’s my Mom’s idea, not mine. ‘Get outside,’ she says. ‘It’s summer. Go run around. Yer becoming part of the furniture just laying about. Go on…Get!’

     Marie: I argued that books make me smart and besides…would she prefer an idiot daughter instead? Reading is working out the brain and all that, blah, blah, blah…but…

     Marie: She wasn’t biting.

  5. Panel Five: Close up on Marie, looking all cagey.

     Marie: So, I figured if I had to go out I’d just take my book with me, right? Well, as I headed for the door she snatched my bookie right out of my hands.

     Marie: ‘Play means play, not reading’ was all she muttered. Oy.

  6. Panel Six: Kelly has put the stack of VHS tapes down and is now sitting beside Marie. The tapes and the ball are in the FG. Marie hasn’t moved (still sitting with the weight of the world on her shoulders) while Kelly is eyeing her sympathetically.

     Kelly: Man, she didn’t give you much choice, huh?

• Page Four
  1. Panel One: Low shot of the two of them with the front porch rising behind them. Marie is scowling with both hands up, emphasizing her point. Kelly, meanwhile, is bent over, laughing hard.

     Marie: It gets better. I sat around for a bit, bored, and then I hammered on the door to come back in.

     Marie: All she did was open the door and throw the ball at me!

  2. Panel Two: Pull back to reveal the two of them: Kelly trying to regain her composure while Marie shoots her a foul look.

     Kelly: I’m sorry, I’m sorry. It’s just that I can imagine what your face must have looked like when you saw that door creak open and the ball come flying out at you.

  3. Panel Three: Marie can’t help smiling at that herself. She’s stretched out, leaning back on the steps and resting her weight on her forearms.

     Marie: Yeah, it was pretty funny.

     Marie: Heh…Judging by the chuckles I heard from behind the door, my Mom certainly thought so.

  4. Panel Four: That motivates Marie to once again rage against the injustice. So we have a medium shot of Marie standing on the front steps, maybe one leg raised, shaking her first in the direction of the door. Her mouth is open in a full yell. Kelly, mouth agape, is staring up at her. Not shocked, exactly, but surprised and amused at the same time.

     Marie: Oh, there’ll be a reckoning! You hear me? A reckoning!

• Page Five
  1. Panel One: Marie kneels on her haunches in front of the tapes while Kelly continues to sit on the front steps. It’s kinda like Marie hasn’t quite come to grips with the choices Kelly’s mom has made and keeps expecting them to change into something else. So she’s lifting the top tape from the pile and examining the title of the one that lies beneath it.

     Marie: So, how many of these did you manage to get through, then?

  2. Panel Two: Close-up on Kelly as she wrinkles her nose and makes a face. Maybe even waving one hand in front of her as if to get rid of a foul odour.

     Kelly: Well, none actually. My mom left them on the table the other night and we all forgot about ‘em.

     Kelly: That touch of forgetfulness is now giving me a bit of a headache since all three of ‘em are late. I get to bring ‘em back and pay the fine on top of it.

  3. Panel Three: Marie holds one of the tapes up with distaste. Maybe an extreme close-up on just a part of her face, the tape and her hand.

     Marie: Ah, that sucks. Nothing like paying twice for stuff you wouldn’t pay to watch in the first place.

  4. Panel Four: Bird’s eye of the two of them. Kelly, still sitting on the steps while Marie is crouched over, looking at the final tape.

     Kelly: Yeah, totally.

     Marie: Well, at least I have my Mom fairly well trained. She’d never bring this type of stuff back for me. It would be Star Wars or bust.

  5. Panel Five: Kelly, leaning back on her elbows, is smirking at that.

     Kelly: Oh, I see that. Crystal clear. You’ve got her under your thumb.

  6. Panel Six: The ball has just bounced off of Kelly’s head. Try to crunch up her face as much as possible. She’s not hurt, though. She knows she had it coming.

  7. Kelly rubbing her head, grinning.

     Kelly: Ack! Ok, ok! I deserved that!

• Page Six
  1. Panel One: Both girls are standing in front of the steps. Kelly has just bounced the ball on the ground towards her new friend. Marie has her right hand palm up, ready to catch it.

     Kelly: Well, I suppose I should go get this over with.

     Kelly: Oh, and thanks a bunch for putting Star Wars into my head. I could go for Return of the Jedi right about now.

  2. Panel Two: Marie is chuckling as she looks down, examining the ball.

     Marie: Sorry. Why don’t you just ask Todd at the store to do you a favour? I’ve begged him a few times in the past and it works every now and then.

     Marie: Besides, you’re the new girl on the block. Just say you’re mom mixed up the return day and he might go for it.

  3. Panel Three: Close-up on Kelly as she chews it over, biting her lip.

     Kelly: Ah, I dunno. We’ve already rented a few times since we’ve moved in so I doubt he’d buy it.

  4. Panel Four: Full body shot of Marie. Her stance is strong - arms folded over her chest and her legs planted firmly. She ain’t tolerating any argument here.

     Marie: Oh, really. Tell you what. If I convince him to wipe the fine, can I come over and watch Jedi with you guys?

  5. Panel Five: Kelly smiles broadly.
     Kelly: If you can do that, then yeah, I’ll rent it. You can come over and watch it tonight.

  6. Panel Six: The two, standing formally, clasp hands and shake on it. Both are smiling broadly. This should be a really cute image so I may have to play with it a bit. Two kids shaking hands is cute right off the bat, but based on what’s to come in the graphic novel I want this image to have some punch.

• Page Seven
  1. Panel One: Splash page of the two of them walking down the street, backs towards the viewer. Tilt the page for more drama. Marie is helping Kelly carry the VHS tapes and two are having an animated discussion as they walk away.

     Kelly: You know, I even heard there were supposed to be wookies in it instead of those teddy bears. Can you imagine? Wookies! How cool would that have been?!

     Marie: Yeah, but that space battle still rocked. Just totally awesome!

     FIN

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