Movies
The Idea Gurus
Two men in their late 20s, eager to get rich quick, mistakenly believe that each new idea they have will be a sure-fire success.
__
Package Deal
A 35-year-old department store manager receives a scholarship to play Division I men’s college basketball when the highly-recruited high school senior he’s been training insists to an interested school that the two of them are a package deal.
Synopsis:
A six-inch growth spurt prompts senior Marcus Leonard to try out for his high school basketball team. To teach him the game, he enlists the help of a family friend: 34-year-old department store manager and former high school standout Kirk Flanagan. In six months of intense training, Kirk helps Marcus become a fundamentally-sound, highly-competitive basketball player. So much so that midway through the season, Marcus starts receiving scholarship offers from numerous Division I schools.
When Marcus learns that Kirk still has college eligibility (on account of dropping out of school just prior to his freshman year to care for his ailing mother), Marcus hatches a plan for the two of them to play college basketball together. He informs his hometown university, Portland State, that he will only accept their offer if they include an offer for Kirk.
Portland State--initially miffed at the idea--eventually calls Kirk in for a workout and, surprised by his abilities, offers him a scholarship.
Having just bought a house, and with a baby on the way, the timing couldn’t be worse for Kirk--but with his wife’s encouragement and some surprise live-in nanny support from his sixteen-years-cancer-free mom, Kirk accepts Portland State’s offer and enrolls in the fall.
Early on, Kirk has trouble fitting in with the team, especially with some of the more intense and vocal players. When one of these players, the team’s star shooting guard, makes an inappropriate remark about Kirk’s wife during practice one day, Kirk responds by blindsiding him with a crushing pick, greatly angering the head coach and earning Kirk a lengthy stay in “the doghouse.” Five games into the season, when the backup point guard goes down with an injury, Kirk finally gets some playing time--which he makes the most of. Over the next handful of games, his clutch play and encouraging spirit endear him to his teammates, his coach, and the Portland State fans.
Finally gelling both on and off the court, the team puts together an impressive winning streak (beating two ranked teams) before losing their final game of the season at the buzzer--narrowly costing them a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Badly injured in the last game, and with money tight, Kirk decides it’s time to hang up his sneakers and look for work. He doesn’t have to look far: One week later, when Portland State’s assistant coach accepts a head coaching position elsewhere, Kirk is offered and accepts the vacant position--just in time to help prepare the team for the National Invitation Tournament, which they are the odds-on favorite to win.
__
Becoming a Father
(the first fifteen pages)
SETTING:
Columbia River Gorge (daytime)
A glorious spring day.
Two men in their 30s, Ben Sutton and Jeremy Lansing, are hiking up Hamilton Mountain, a 2,500-foot bluff in the Cascade Range.
As they gain elevation, the views of the Columbia River become more breathtaking.
Halfway up, they stop on a rocky cliff to sit and rest.
JEREMY: “When does Elizabeth get back into town?”
BEN: “Her flight gets in late tonight.”
JEREMY: “Where was she again? New York?”
BEN: “Yeah, she gave a talk at a conference out there.”
JEREMY: “About what?”
BEN: “Uh… I’m not sure exactly. Something to do with birth.”
JEREMY: “You’re supposed to know these things.”
BEN: “I know. I gotta work on that.”
Jeremy reaches into his backpack and takes out two packets of trek mix. He offers one to Ben.
BEN (taking the packet): “Thanks.”
They eat their trek mix in silence, taking in the view and enjoying the warm sunshine.
Nearby on the trail, a man and a woman hike past. In a carrier on the man’s back is a small child. Ben notices them then looks at Jeremy.
BEN: “Word on the street is you and Dana are trying to have a baby.”
Jeremy takes a drink from his water bottle. A wry smile sneaks across his face.
JEREMY: “I’m routinely amazed at how reliable the street is.”
A pause.
JEREMY: “What about you guys?”
BEN: “We’ve been trying for about six months. I guess that depends on how you define trying, though.”
Jeremy looks confused.
BEN: “We pulled the goalie six months ago, but it took five months for Elizabeth to start ovulating, so—”
JEREMY: “Whoa! Dude! I don’t need to know all that. That’s some serious oversharing. Waaaaay too much information.”
BEN: “Women talk about this stuff all the time.”
JEREMY: “I want you to listen to what you just said.”
Ben opens his mouth to reply, then hesitates and closes his mouth.
***CUT TO:
SETTING:
Ben & Elizabeth’s House (night)
The house is a total mess.
Ben is feverishly cleaning: picking clothes up off the bedroom floor and throwing them into the hamper, taking empty pizza boxes and a handful of beer cans out to the recycling bin, wiping toothpaste splatter off the bathroom mirror, rinsing tiny facial hairs down the bathroom sink.
He is hurriedly leaving the bathroom when he stops in his tracks to return and put the toilet seat down.
More feverish cleaning: loading up the dishwasher and staring it, wiping down the countertops, sweeping and swiffering the floor.
***CUT TO:
SETTING:
Ben & Elizabeth’s House (one hour later)
Sultry jazz, coming from the record player in the living room, softly fills the house—which is now in tip-top shape.
A relaxed Ben is putting the finishing touches on the living room—draping a blanket over a chair and fluffing the couch cushions—when a car pulls into the driveway. He looks out the front window and sees a blue sedan. He quickly walks over to the fireplace mantel, lights two candles, and dims the overhead light.
***CUT TO:
SETTING:
Ben & Elizabeth’s Driveway (same time)
Elizabeth Sutton, in her 30s, gets out of the passenger seat and walks back to the trunk to grab her carry-on.
She closes the trunk then pokes her head back into the car.
ELIZABETH: “Thanks, Shari. See you tomorrow.”
SHARI ADAMS: “Good night.”
Elizabeth shuts the car door.
***CUT TO:
SETTING:
Ben & Elizabeth’s House (same time)
Ben is still in the living room, setting out some cheese and crackers and pouring two glasses of chardonnay.
He hears the side door open, then Elizabeth’s voice, laced with a lilt of anticipation:
ELIZABETH (off screen): “Hello…”
BEN: “Hi, Sweetie! I’m in the living room!”
Elizabeth sets down her luggage, slips off her shoes, and walks into the kitchen. She notices the corkscrew and the foil wrapper from a wine bottle on the countertop.
ELIZABETH: “Is there a special occasion I should know about?”
She walks into the living room, where Ben stands ready to greet her with a wine glass in each hand. He smiles…
BEN: “Welcome home.”
…and offers her one of the glasses.