BETTER THIS WAY

Written by

Luis Roberto Herrera

Address
Phone Number
EXT. NEW ORLEANS - NIGHT

FOOTSTEPS

CHARLIE, mid-twenties, dressed in pants, shirt, carrying a

bag, hair up, walks down a street, completely calm, always,
looking at phone.

Sound of people in the distance.

Charlie looks around, continues to walk.

FOOTSTEPS

Charlie looks around again, notices nothing, continues to

walk.

MAN (O.S.)
Hey.

Charlie continues to walk.

MAN (O.S.) (CONT'D)

Hellooo.

MAN, dressed in simlar colored clothing to Charlie, neatly,

put together, a tad down trodden.

He reaches for Charlies shoulder.

CHARLIE
I have a knife.

MAN
Woah woah I was just, sorry, didn’t
mean to scare you I - a knife?

Charlie continues to walk after a moment.

MAN (CONT'D)
I was just, saw you were alone and
thought we could walk alone,
together, don’t feel safe walking
alone so...

Charlie continues to walk.

MAN (CONT'D)
Okay, we can walk in silence then.

They walk for a moment.

Charlie turns to go into a building.

 2.

MAN (CONT'D)
Oh, this you?

Charlie walks up the steps, gets keys out of the bag and then
turns to see Man directly behind her.

MAN (CONT'D)
Have a good night, thanks for the
company.

Man walks down the steps, then disappears around the corner.

Charlie walks down the steps and goes down a few houses and
then unlocks the door of a different building and walks in.

INT. CHARLIES HOME - NIGHT

Charlie locks the door, smiles, then walks deeper into the
house. The space is devoid of anything depicting anything
personal, or familial in any way. It looks like a model home,
empty aside from furniture and necessities.

She puts the purse down on the counter, reaches inside and
pulls out a pocket knife.

Opens it, examines it as she leans against the counter,

smiles, then closes it.

EXT. NEW ORLEANS - NIGHT

Charlie, wearing fitted jeans, a light jacket and casual

button down, walks.

Then as she reaches an intersection Man comes from the left

hand side.

MAN
Woah, this is, this is weird,
right? Two nights in a row?

Charlie continues walking.

MAN (CONT'D)
No, just saying its weird, running
into each other, twice, that’s, I
mean that has to mean something
right?... Right, of course, I’m the
“creep” here, cuz people dont run
into each other or anything.

CHARLIE
Go away.
 3.

MAN
Okay, okay, I dont wanna... sorry,
i’ll leave you alone then, sorry.

Man stops walking with Charlie as she continues to walk, we

see the hint of a smile on her face.

EXT. NEW ORLEANS - NIGHT

Charlie, wears a long sleeve shirt with sleeves rolled up,

boots, formal looking pants, walks down a different route on
her way home, near an apartment building as she looks at it.

Man is coming out of a building, he sees her.

Charlie notices him, stops.

MAN
You gotta be kidding.

Charlie hesitates, then turns around, continues to walk.

MAN (CONT'D)
Wait, hey, hey wait a sec - this
is, I mean shit, three times? And
now you’re outside of my building I
mean, if anything you’re -

CHARLIE
I was trying to avoid you. Walk a
different way.

MAN
And now here you are - and You have
a knife I know I know.

Charlie continues to calmly walk in the opposite diretion as

Man trails behind.

MAN (CONT'D)
I don’t believe you. I don’t think
you actually have a knife, and
honestly, even if you did I don’t
think you’d use it.

Charlie stops walking.

Turns to face him.

Man walks up to her.

Neither of them move, just looking at one another.

 4.

MAN (CONT'D)
What’s your name?

Charlie doesnt respond, just continues to look, Man starts to

fidget just a little, then backs away.

Charlie turns back around then continues to walk.

MAN (CONT'D)
See you later then!

Charlie half smirks to herself.

EXT. CHARLIES HOME - DAY

Charlie, wears form fitting athletic attire, exits her house

and when she turns around Man is standing on the sidewalk
directly in front.

MAN
I knew it... can we talk?

They look at each other for a moment.

Charlie unlockS her front door, opens it, then gestures for
Man to come in.

CHARLIE
Yeah, let’s talk.

Man hesitates, then half smiles as he walks in, the door

closing behind him.

CUT TO:

INT. CHARLIES BATHROOM - DAY

MANS POV

Everything is hazy, Man is in the bathtub half filled with

reddish water, Man looks at his hands, bound, tries to get up
but then falls back down in pain.

Charlie walks in, bloody pocket knife in hand, she places it

on the counter.

MAN
(slurred)
What, what’s happening, what did,
what’d you -
 5.

CHARLIE
Told you to leave me alone...

Charlie rinses her hands a bit, dries them.

CHARLIE (CONT'D)
Told you I had a knife...

She kneels down next to the tub.

MAN
(slurred)
I was trying to, was just being -

CHARLIE
A nice guy, I know.

Charlie starts to push Man into the water with her hands
around his neck.

MAN
(slurring)
What’re you -

CHARLIE
Shh shh, no more talking. It’s
better this way.

She proceeds to drown him.

FADE TO BLACK.
BREAKDOWN SHEET: # 1 DATE: 1/22/2021

Collaborators: Jane Skapek, Luis Herrera, Actors TBD

Project Title: Better This Way

SCENE: 1 NAME: Walking Scene 1 INT/EXT: EXTERIOR D/N: Night

PAGE: 1 LOCATION: Street NOLA

Description: First Encounter Charlie/Man

CAST PROPS SOUND EFFECTS/MUSIC

Charlie Bag (Charlie) Footsteps

Man Phone (Charlie) Ambient neighborhood FX
House Keys (Charlie)

WARDROBE HAIR/MAKEUP SPECIAL EFFECTS

Pants/Shirt (Charlie) Charlie- Hair up N/A

-Service Industry? Makeup worn from work
Pants/Shirt (Man)
-Service Industry?

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT PRODUCTION NOTES

Lights for night Location Ideas: Tulane Ave? Francis Norman?

BREAKDOWN SHEET: # 2 DATE: 1/22/2021

Collaborators: Jane Skapek, Luis Herrera, Actors: TBD

Project Title: Better This Way

SCENE: 2 NAME: Chalie at Home INT/EXT: INTERIOR D/N: Night

PAGE: 2 LOCATION: Charlie's Home

Description: Charlie examines her knife

CAST PROPS SOUND EFFECTS/MUSIC

Charlie Knife Music?

Bag

WARDROBE HAIR/MAKEUP SPECIAL EFFECTS

Pant/shirt (Charlie) Same as Scene 1 N/A

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT PRODUCTION NOTES

N/A Location Notes: Strip down house. Empty/Sterile

BREAKDOWN SHEET: # 3 DATE: 1/22/2021

Collaborators: Jane Skapek, Luis Herrera, Actors TBD

Project Title: Better This Way

SCENE: 3 NAME: Walking Scene 2 INT/EXT: EXTERIOR D/N: Night

PAGE: 2 LOCATION: Street NOLA

Description: Second Encounter (Charlie/Man)

CAST PROPS SOUND EFFECTS/MUSIC

Charlie N/A Ambient Neighborhood FX

Man

WARDROBE HAIR/MAKEUP SPECIAL EFFECTS

Charlie-service uniform Charlie N/A

Man- street clothes -Different from previous

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT PRODUCTION NOTES

Lighting for night -time skip/different night

-Man's street clothes more menacing than uniform
BREAKDOWN SHEET: # 4 DATE: 1/22/2021

Collaborators: Jane Skapek, Luis Herrera, Actors TBD

Project Title: Better This Way

SCENE: 4 NAME: Walking Scene 3 INT/EXT: EXTERIOR D/N: Night

PAGE: 3 LOCATION: Outside Man's House

Description: Third Encounter (Charlie/Man)

CAST PROPS SOUND EFFECTS/MUSIC

Charlie Keys? (Man) Music?

Man

WARDROBE HAIR/MAKEUP SPECIAL EFFECTS

Charlie- uniform Charlie- different hair N/A

Man- Street clothes

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT PRODUCTION NOTES

Lighting for night Each encounter, man's clothes get more menacing?
Charlie keeps her uniform
BREAKDOWN SHEET: # 5 DATE: 1/22/2021

Collaborators: Jane Skapek, Luis Herrera, Actors TBD

Project Title: Better This Way

SCENE: 5 NAME: Porch Scene INT/EXT: EXTERIOR D/N: Day

PAGE: 4 LOCATION: Charlie's Front Porch

Description: Man confronts Charlie

CAST PROPS SOUND EFFECTS/MUSIC

Charlie Keys N/A

Man

WARDROBE HAIR/MAKEUP SPECIAL EFFECTS

Charlie out of uniform Charlie- slick hair, N/A

dangerous/really
different looking

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT PRODUCTION NOTES

N/A
BREAKDOWN SHEET: # 6 DATE: 1/22/2021

Collaborators: Jane Skapek, Luis Herrera, Actors: TBD

Project Title: Better This Way

SCENE: 6 NAME: Murder Scene INT/EXT: INTERIOR

PAGE: 4 LOCATION: Charlie's Home

Description: Charlie murders Man

CAST PROPS SOUND EFFECTS/MUSIC

Charlie Bloody Knife Music?

Man Rope

WARDROBE HAIR/MAKEUP SPECIAL EFFECTS

Charlie in same outift Man all wet, bloodied. Blood effects

as scene 5

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT PRODUCTION NOTES

N/A Location Notes: Is bathtub deep enough for this?

 1/22/2021

D/N: Day

Home

EFFECTS/MUSIC

AL EFFECTS

effects

enough for this?

Location: Mid City, NOLA
Location:
Charlie’s House