Roped In

Written By Emily Clarkson

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EXT. A BAR AND RESTAURANT - AFTERNOON Beginning with a WIDE SHOT of front of a restaurant, 'DANDY doors open and another set of the premises. The doors swing expansive windows it is clear busy. a warm day. ZOOMING INTO the ANDY'S DINER', the double dissatisfied customers leave shut behind them. Through the to see the restaurant is not

INT. OUTSIDE THE MANAGERS OFFICE/KICHENS WIDE SHOT of a dilapidated corridor with two chairs sat outside the Managers door. A clown sits, in Comedy Cowboy attire. The CLATTERING of utensil's is DISTANT. ZOOMING IN to the Clowns face, a high pitch WHISTLE from a coffee machine sounds. EXT. THE RANCH CIRCUS- OVERCAST (FLASHBACK) The clown FADES IN to a new background. A large western Saloon gate is open behind him. A MAGICIAN and a JUGGLER walk out looking dejected. The gate closes, PITCH UPWARD to reveal the title of the land above the gate. BILLY BOB BANDIT'S RODEO CIRCUS', across which is printed 'CLOSED DOWN' Beat There is a SMASH sound and an ANGRY SHOUT INT. OUTSIDE THE MANAGERS OFFICE/KICHENS- AFTERNOON Clown jerks back to the present. View remains on Clown reaction. All is QUIET. Beat The Manager appears and approaches the clown. The clown stands opposite, the pair in profile, SILENT. The Manager thrusts an apron out to the clown who takes it. The manager turns and continues back into his office. SLAMMING the door behind him. Beat the clown jumps for joy. INT. BAR- AFTERNOON LONG SHOT of the clown in a Waiters uniform shows him admiring himself. INT KICHENS

LONG SHOT from the kitchen sideboard, the clown turns, balancing seven filled plates on his arms, shoulders and head. He confidently walks up to camera filling the screen. INT BAR The clown and a set of glasses at opposite ends of the bar in a WIDE SHOT. Note: He has replaced the regulation black tie for a garish yellow one.He holds a Syphon and proceeds to fill the glasses with some accuracy. INT RESTAUARANT LONG SHOT of clown beside a table, across the room from the bar. He lasso's a drink from the edge of the bar to the table using spaghetti. Note: the Clown now has enormous black trousers replacing the regulation fit ones. INT MANAGERS OFFICE MEDIUM SHOT of manager looking at a chart of profit on his desk. He looks up displeased. A WIDE SHOT, OVER THE HEAD of the manager through the open door, frames the kitchen. The clown can be seen bumbling past. The manager stands and walks over SLAMMMING the door. A poster of a critic and news articles is pinned to the back of the door. ZOOM IN to focus on this 'shrine' INT KITCHENS/RESAURANT A CLOSE UP of an identical poster wall reveals the Critic is named CAROLINE COLOSSUS and her ability at closing down food chains. The clown walks past the poster. Beat. CAMERA TRACKS the clown through the restaurant aisle as he delivers food and drink. A hand calls him over to take an order. A LONG SHOT of the clown from the end of the aisle sees him produce a glass from behind his back and pinching the gag flower on his braces, squirts water into the glass. INT RESTAURANT- FAMILY TABLE LOW ANGLE LONG WIDE SHOT, cutlery is knocked off a table. The Clown whips out a string of sausages to lasso the cutlery. He catches it and flicks it upward. There is an audible TWANG of impact Beat

PAN UPWARD but PITCH DOWN showing the cutlery wedged in the ceiling. The clown looks a little surprised. INT RESTAURANT DOOR MEDIUM SHOT as manager pushes into restaurant area from the kitchen and looks around. INT RESTAURANT AISLE A MEDIUM SHOT of the clown ad the critic from the poster can be seen, she is laughing and the clown is messing with his sausage lasso. INT RESTAURANT DOOR CONTRA-ZOOM into a CLOSE UP of the managers sheer fury INT CRITICS TABLE The Clown flicks his lasso off screen , gives it a tug. Flying back with it comes an entire cheesecake which the clown catches and presents to the critic who smiles wholly, clearly enjoying the show. IN RESTAURANT AISLE OVER THE SHOULDER of the Manager the clown can be seen at the critics table handing over a slice of the cheesecake. MANAGER CRIES OUT FURIOUSLY CLOWN SQUEAKS AND JUMPS The clown throws his hands and the cheesecake into the air. PAN UP the length of the Manager to a CLOSE UP of his enraged expression. Beat The cheesecake lands, cheese side down on his head with a SPLAT Beat The cutlery from the ceiling follow shortly, embedding into the cheesecake with a TWANG INT CRITICS TABLE A WIDE SHOT encompasses the table and the aisle with the furious manager. The critic has finished her cheesecake. She stands and walks past the clown and the manager. There is a long frozen pause.

EXT A BAR AND RESTAURANT-EVENING LOW ANGLE SHOT of the doors as the clown and manager are silhouetted. The clown is shoved, falling face down. The manager stands above the clown holding the apron Beat The door shuts. The clown cries a single tear utterly dejected. FADE TO BLACK. INT. MANAGERS OFFICE- DAY OVER THE SHOULDER as the manager opens a newspaper, revealing the column of the critic. CLOSE UPS of her praising words on the clown and the restaurant. CLOSE UP of the manager reveals his softening expression. A MEDIUM SHOT OVER THE SHOULDER sees the Manager standing and hurrying for the door, throwing it open and closing it behind him. There is a pause the camera focused on his closed door.TIME LAPSE, FADE TO BLACK INT. RESTAURANT

CAMERA PANS through the main Restaurant thoroughly busy and the waiters/waitresses are recognsed to be the entertainers who lost their jobs like the clown. MEDIUM SHOT of a magician lifting his top hat form a plate, revealing a pile of meatballs and spaghetti that could not have fit beneath it. A MEDIUM SHOT of the juggler throwing around bottles of drink without smashing anything. LONG SHOT of the clown down an aisle of customers as he lasso's something with spaghetti of screen. He tugs. A profile MEDIUM SHOT of the clown shows him covering his mouth in shock. Then he relaxes and laughs as the Manager appears laughing, holding the coffee jug, and completely tangled in the spaghetti lasso. Note: The Manager is now wearing a garish red and yellow large bow tie. EXT. BAR AND RESTAURANT-EVENING A WIDE SHOT of the restaurant shows it has a queue of people stretching out of the door and down the street. FADES TO BLACK