Beautiful Suicide Production Blog: 2010

Hery! Here is the video treatment for my film (a basic summary, fyi).

A door opens. As the camera goes out we see Evelyn McHale, her back to the camera, standing at the edge of a rooftop. She stares off to the New York City skyline. She pulls off her jacket and lets it go behind her. As the jacket drops the music begins. Her white scarf flutters away. Still viewing from behind, Evelyn takes a running leap off the edge. Once she hits mid-air, just past the roof, everything becomes slow motion. Before Evelyn falls past the edge she twists around so that we can see her face which is neither upset or emotional, stoic. She disappears below the edge.

We go to a fiery red and orange environment. We see a sapling growing. In a series of close ups the branches and twigs are revealed to be arms and fingers.

Evelyn is still in mid-fall. The world around her is slowly going past. She sings the song, her eyes never looking at the camera but above it to the sky.

The sapling grows more into a tree. As it does, more human features appear.

With extreme close-ups as to not completely reveal, harpies rip and pull apart flesh with their claws and sharp teeth. A harpy raises its head, a mask concealing its face. There are several of them, hunkered around like vultures to a carcass.

Evelyn is still falling and singing. The ground below her is quickly coming closer. In a close up, Evelyn comes to the end of the lyrics and looks directly at the camera. Everything reverts to normal time. She hits the black limousine .

In slow motion we watch as the UN Limo gets crushed and warped around Evelyn's body, which appears to just be gently floating down to rest.

The suicide tree beings to move. It's eyes open. The harpies look up and move away from their meal to the tree. They pick and pry at the form, the tree writhes in pain.

Evelyn lies dead on the car. Flashes of cameras breaks the stillness. In close ups we see certain parts of the scene. Intercut with the photos being taken we see parts of the tree being torn and attacked. A camera moves out of frame and we see the face of the photographer. A harpy removes its mask.

The cameraman backs away, the harpy turns its back. We pull away from the crushed car to show the whole scene. We back up from the tortured tree and the lights dim to all that remains is its silhouette.