11AM

By
Wendy Lee

DRAFT #1
01.04.15

INT. HOUSE/BEDROOM - MORNING

It is Monday morning, and JOHN is asleep on the disheveled
bed, still wearing yesterdays clothes. There are empty beer
bottles and cups littered on the bedside table, and the
floor is lined with rubbish and clothing. It is 7:30am.
JOHNs phone starts to ring. It is an unknown caller. JOHN
groans, snoozes it, then rolls back over and continues
sleeping.
INT. HOUSE/BEDROOM - MORNING
There is an alarm beeping in the background as JOHN stirs to
the sound of an automated voice.
JEEVES
You have a job interview at
11am. You also also have three new
emails, one new voice message JOHNs eyes snap open. He checks the time. It is 10:24am. He
curses, hits the alarm off, and jumps out of bed. Both the
beeping and the notifications stop.
The blinds automatically start to raise, and the radio
begins to play in the background. JOHN quickly strips, and
pulls on a clean shirt and black pants as he hops into the
bathroom.
He yelps as he sees his reflection in the mirror, and starts
scrubbing the Sharpie off his face. He smoothens his hair,
goes back to the bedroom, grabs shoes and a tie, and heads
down to the garage.
INT. HOUSE/GARAGE - MORNING
Tightening his tie, JOHN reaches for the car door. He pulls
on the handle but the door wont open. He tries a few more
times, but with the same result. JOHN looks towards the
ceiling.
JOHN
Jeeves, open the car door, Im in a
rush.
There are a series of small beeping noises.
JEEVES
Your blood alcohol concentration
level is currently at 0.06. By NSW
law, I can not allow you to drive.
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

2.

May I suggest bus times?

On the back seat of the car rests a briefcase and a pile of
neatly ordered documents. JOHN tries to open the back door.
It doesnt open, and JOHN lets out a frustrated groan.
JOHN
Jeeves, I just need you to open the
back door so I can get my work. Im
not going to drive.
There are a few more small beeps.
JEEVES
Your blood alcohol concentration
level is currently at 0.06. By NSW
law, you are currently denied
access to this car.
JOHN curses, and looks at his watch. Its 10:32am. He
circles the car a few times, and tries every door. The car
does not open. He hits the back window in frustration. After
a pause, he looks up alertly, before running to the
bathroom.
INT. HOUSE/BATHROOM - MORNING
JOHN hurriedly sorts through the toiletries in the cabinet.
He finds the mouthwash, pours the remainder of the contents
into his mouth, and gargles. He runs back to the garage.
INT. HOUSE/GARAGE - MORNING
JOHN tries the door handle again. It is locked.
JOHN tries hyperventilating before tugging on the door
handle again. The door doesnt open.
He does a few pushups and runs on the spot until he is red
in the face. He tries once more to open the door. The car is
still locked. He curses and checks the time. Its 10:40am.
JOHN starts pacing back and forth past the back seat window,
eyes glued to the documents. His expression suddenly shifts
and he stops mid walk, and he runs back into the house.

3.

INT. HOUSE/STUDY - MORNING

JOHN runs into the study and looks up to the ceiling.
JOHN
Jeeves, reprint the files under
MCK interview from my desktop.
The printer whirs into action. It prints two pages, and then
stops. A red light starts to flash and PRINTER INK LOW
appears on the display screen. JOHN yells a few obscenities
and kicks the printer.
INT. HOUSE/GARAGE - MORNING
JOHNs shirt is untucked, and his sleeves rolled up. Its
10:44am. His hair is ruffled and his tie hangs loose.
He approaches the car with a wrench in hand, and begins to
try and wedge it between the car and the door. After a few
tentative attempts, JOHN finally jams the wedge behind the
door.
The car alarm immediately goes off, followed shortly by an
alarm in the house. The house lights start flashing. JOHN
sighs, drops the wrench, and abandons the car.
INT. HOUSE/HALL CLOSET - MORNING
JOHN walks into the hall closet and opens the cabinet hiding
the power main. The old switches STOVE, HOT WATER, POWER,
LIGHT have been taped over, and an arrow has been drawn
over them, pointing towards a much more modern looking
switch to the side, labeled AI SYSTEM.
JOHN hesistates, then flicks the switch to OFF. The lights
in the house turn off and the alarms stop ringing. There is
a whirring sound as the system shuts down.
JOHN waits for a second, then flicks the switch back on.
There is a small restarting sound, and a notice appears on
the switchboard - REBOOT EST. TIME 3 MINUTES. A countdown
begins. JOHN crumples against the wall in resignation.
He slides down to the floor, and takes his tie off, and rubs
his face with his hands. He looks back to the countdown. In
the dim electronic light of the screen, he catches sight of
a plastic keychain in the dusty back corner of the cabinet
amongst a variety of screws and bolts.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

4.

He pauses before getting up and tentatively reaching for it.

The car keys jingle when he picks them up. He doesnt move
for a moment as he stares at the keys in disbelief, then he
glances back at the countdown. The countdown has 2 minutes
30 seconds remaining. He scrambles to his feet and runs back
to the garage.
INT. HOUSE/GARAGE - MORNING
JOHN stands in front of the car holding the car keys. He
brushes the dust of the keys, and uncertainly puts the key
in the lock and turns. There is a metallic click, and the
headlights flash twice. JOHN starts laughing with disbelief,
then yanks the door open and starts the engine. It is
10:51am.
The screen in the car continues the system countdown REBOOT EST. TIME 2 MINUTES. JOHN steps down on the
accelerator and continues driving.
EXT. PARKLANDS/ROAD - MORNING
JOHN is speeding down the road. It is 10:53am. The reboot
countdown continues on the screen. When it hits 0, an
electronic chord fills the car, and a light turns on on the
dashboard. There is a pause, then the engine turns off.
Panicking, JOHN shakes his head vigorously, and presses
further down on the accelerator. The car rolls to a stop.
JOHN tries to turn the engine back on. The light on the
dashboard begins to blink, and an automated voice fills the
car.
JEEVES
Your blood alcohol concentration
level is currently at 0.057. By NSW
law, I can not allow you to drive.
(pause)
You have a job interview at
11am. You also also have three new
emails, one new voice message JOHN slams the car door and starts running down the road,
documents and briefcase in hand. He cuts through the
parklands across an oval, hurdling over a metal rail.
He continues running through the town centre, past bustling
shop fronts, and eventually reaches a tall, modern building.
It is 11:01am.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

5.

He runs into the foyer and races towards the lifts. One of
the lift doors close as he arrives, whilst the other lift
has an OUT OF ORDER notice stuck across the front. He
heads for the stairs, and races up them three steps at a
time until he reaches Level Five.
Huffing and puffing, he stops for a moment to smoothen his
hair and adjust his tie. He checks the time - its 11:03am.
He takes a deep breath, and smiling, opens the glass doors
and across to the receptionist, who looks up expectantly.
JOHN
Hi, my name is John. Im here for
the 11 oclock job interview.
The receptionist consults her planner, before typing
something into the computer. As her eyes scan the screen,
her eyebrows furrow with confusion.
RECEPTIONIST
Im sorry John, it appears we dont
have you in the books for today.
She looks up at JOHN, whos smile is now faltering. When he
doesnt respond, she prompts him.
RECEPTIONIST
Well contact you to advise you of
any change of plans, otherwise,
thank you for your interest in MCK.
JOHN nods, still smiling slightly, and stumbles away from
the counter. He continues smiling until he sits down on the
plush seats in the hallway opposite the lifts, at which
point he buries his face in his hands. He looks blankly at
his mud-caked shoes. There are stains of dirt and
perspiration on his shirt. He sits like that for a while,
until he slowly looks up, exhausted. He digs his phone out
of his pocket and clicks a button.
JEEVES
You have a job interview now. You
also have three new emails, one new
voice message JOHN clicks another button.
JEEVES
Message received today at 7:31am.
"Hi John, this is Rachel calling
from MCK. Were just letting you
know that your job interview has
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

6.

JEEVES (contd)
been moved to 10am on Wednesday the
15th. Well hopefully see you
then." *click*
(pause)
Would you like me to update your
schedule?
The phone hits the wall with a thud.