WITHHELD

A TREATMENT FOR A FEATURE LENGTH FILM

BY CAM RAW PRODUCTIONS

MATTHEW WALLIS
JOSHUA CLARKE
HOLLY SANDFORD
SAM BECKETT
A Black Curtain
A Single Spotlight on a girl
Indiscriminate time of day

A GIRL stands against a black curtain, staring blankly, lifelessly into a camera as a single
spotlight glares down on her. The camera slowly pans in on her face as she can be heard
saying ‘Everyday… I watch…’, when a flashback suddenly strikes.

A Bedroom
Early evening
Polaroid’s spread across a desk

The camera pans across a large variety of Polaroid photographs on a desk showing people at
parties and events, including the girl from the opening scene. Written underneath each
Polaroid are names and events, when the camera stops on one with a title underneath;
‘Written by Josh Clarke’.

A Black Curtain
A Single Spotlight on a girl
Indiscriminate time of day

Back to the girl on the black curtain, we can now see that her face is covered in light bruising
and scratches that have obviously been healing for a while. Her eyes begin to swell with tears
and as she blinks furiously to stem them as she can be heard saying ‘Everyday… I cry…’,
then another flashback strikes.

A bathroom
Early evening
A girl is in the shower

The bathroom is steamy and the shower can be heard splashing water. The girl is showering,
getting ready to go out. As the camera pans slowly past the steamed-up shower screen, a
credit can be seen written in it; ‘Directed by Matthew Wallis’. The water droplets that run
down the screen are meant to be representative of tears.

A Black Curtain
A Single Spotlight on a girl
Indiscriminate time of day

The camera, now even closer than before, shows the girls bloodshot eyes as her hand reaches
up and wipes away the remnants of a tear as it slowly pans in. She is obviously distressed, but
there is still little life in her eyes. She can be heard saying ‘Everyday… I bleed.’

A kitchen
Early evening
A knife block on a counter

A knife block rests on a kitchen counter as someone reaches over and wraps their hand
around the handle of a large knife. Slowly it is drawn from the block as the camera pans
along the counter. On the knife block are some Post-It notes, some are shopping lists, others
just notes, however one is a credit; ‘Camera Work by Holly Sandford’.

A Black Curtain
A Single Spotlight on a girl
Indiscriminate time of day

Now, only the girls head is visible on screen and her eyes are looking more lifeless than ever.
They are bloodshot and red, showing a massive juxtaposition to the now pale and snow white
colour of her skin, as if all the life has been drained out of her. She can be heard saying
‘Everyday… I die…’

A bedroom
Early evening
A notebook on a desk

There is an A4 notebook strewn carelessly onto a desk amidst a plethora of pens and pencils.
On the open page of the notebook is a giant heart sketched in biro, but all that can be read is
‘LOVES RYAN’. There are other random scribbles, but nothing particularly legible, aside
from the credit ‘On Set Production by Sam Beckett’.
A Black Curtain
A Single Spotlight on a girl
Indiscriminate time of day

Only the girl’s eyes are visible now. She exclaims ‘Everyday… I scream’, however instead of
the word ‘scream’, it cuts to a shot of her screaming.

A dark stretch of desolate road

A girl standing, screaming
Late evening/Early morning

The girl is screaming as hard as she possibly can. The camera begins to pan backwards whilst
she is still screaming then suddenly she stops and starts to run. It cuts to show her running in
a car’s rear-view mirror. A MAN is driving the car. He glances at the girl in the mirror, but
continues to drive, uninterested as she takes her high-heeled shoes off and carries on after
him. The camera goes back to the girl, showing her panting and chasing the car, screaming
and begging for him to stop. A shot from across the road shows a lonely lamppost as the car
comes to a stop under it. The girl catches up and clambers into the car as fast as she can
before it drives out of shot again. A second car drives across the shot shortly after, as if it is
following the first.

A bedroom
Morning, 9:30am
A girl is asleep in bed

The girl lies asleep in bed. Her phone is vibrating on a table across the room. She stirs, rolls
over and then sits up before grabbing her head as a sharp pain takes hold of her. The camera
is behind the girl the whole time, blocking any view of her face. She walks to the desk and
picks up the phone, noticing a missed call from an unknown number. Ignoring it initially, she
leaves the bedroom and enters the bathroom. On the landing, her head is down and her hair is
obscuring her face. In the bathroom she looks up into the mirror, releasing her phone and
sending it clattering to the floor. An over-the-shoulder shot allows the viewer to see her
battered, bruised and damaged face. Panic sets in, her expression changes to one of shock and
horror. She grabs her phone that she finds on the bathroom floor and dials her boyfriend’s
number frantically, but it goes straight to voicemail. She then tries her best friend, but the
same happens. Finally, she tries to phone her mom, but again it goes straight to voicemail.
The screen goes black.