Script created with Final Draft by B.C. Software, Inc.
Script created with Final Draft by B.C. Software, Inc.
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" grinderplates"
by
Charles R. Fox
Chuck Fox
877.810.8691
website@thinkvision.com
"grinderplates"
FADE IN
INT. SUBURBAN GARAGE - OUTSIDE CHICAGO - NIGHT
Open door allows tremendous GRINDER NOISE to spew around in
heavy sets of MUSICAL CHAOS.
The HIGH SHRILL of an electric sabre saw dominates this
moment.
INTERCUT - SPARKS AND STEEL WORKS
Scant light reveals a MALE TEENAGER working tool sets.
Safety goggles illuminate the spark of this "life."
Fastened to a large vise, and wisely angled for structural
modification, rests an in-line hockey skate.
Gutted and withdrawn, it remains a shell of possibilities.
The partner lays in wait.
SERIES OF SHOTS - INTERCUT SPARKS
-- Cuts two parallel notches in the blade frame.
-- Cacophony of memorably beautiful family interludes.
-- Sizes up the plate to the frame.
-- Mechanically assembles apparatus to frame.
-- Joins the modified skate to his foot.
-- Rocks the nearest course of hazard outside his house.
EXT. OAK STREET BEACH - SAME
Quiet and sturdy. A teen girl rides the rails alone. She is
beautiful. She is street. She is NASTY.
FREEZE ON ACTION
MALE VOICE
She's Nasty.
RUN FRAME
MALE VOICE
This is a love story.
EXT. DIVISION STREET - LATER
Abruptly, NOISE ESCAPES --
IN-LINE SKATERS emerge en masse. Band of ten.
The BAD CREW. Front players seemingly armed.
We FOLLOW their "work" commute.
Each one offering different face cover.
Full of the truly haphazard, they fly into the door --
INT. FIVE FACES
The GYRO CREW stands behind the counter, undisturbed as they
are stormed.
LUCIFER
(to cashier)
Don't anybody be forcin' up a trigger
finger! Ears up like it matters, here!
All green! All green!
(to fry-guy)
You! Yeah. Fry-guy fills up this bag
with toasteds.
OLLIE
Cheese on them.
Fry-guy shrugs.
CHARLIE
Cheese on the side, right?
The cashier begins to stuff the money in the bag. As he turns
to the fry guy--
CASHIER
Two extra-cheese-fries to-go. One on the
toasted side.
Charlie drops a sincere snicker.
OLLIE
Thanks, bro!
FRY GUY - STUFFING FRIES
TO CASHIER
as he puts the money in a bag and hands them the separate
order of fries.
CHARLIE
Fries in the bag...
Cholo Boy!
LUCIFER
Give me money, man.
OLLIE
Change mine to chili-cheese fries?
LUCIFER
(taking cash; to cashier)
No chillin' cheese!
OLLIE
Chili and cheese?
(to server)
You good on chillin on the cheese, ain't
you?
EXT. DIVISION STREET, CHICAGO
The Bad Crew squeaks frenetically against the street.
HOMELESS PEOPLE offer-up DIFFERING WITNESS to the bid.
TWO SKATEBOARDERS cross-cut with the Bad Crew, forcing a more
than casual observation. They are FROG and CHRYSLER. We'll
re-up with them later.
Nasty rolls by, on her way home.
EXT. OLD NAVY PIER - DAY
SUPER OVER:
Old Navy Pier
Chicago
Summertime
Pre-development years. Spent and completely used-up.
INT. NAVY PIER
Ramshackle underbelly of Navy Pier. It's called "The
Landing." A dimly lit space with no intention of divulging
any feature other than structural devastation.
A BAND OF STREET SKATERS
rumble amidst the chaos and catastrophe of the angular
rustic.
ESTABLISHING - SKATE ACTION
Fast. Active. Dynamic.
Jutting against stable ripples of steel and transom that span
seemingly endless workspace.
MALE VOICE
Welcome to "The Landing."
INSERT - INT. OLD CHICAGO STEEL WORKS
MALE VOICE
A "Seven-Twenty McTwist" of cold, hard,
steel.
INSERT - EXT. OLD CHICAGO SKYLINE
MALE VOICE
Mixed with concrete.
DISSOLVE TO:
CURRENT SKYLINE
MALE VOICE
Roll the "Big Shoulders" concept bam
smack against the mid-west rockshow and
you've created a dynamic we labeled-up...
HALF-PIPE MOVE
MALE VOICE
High noon at "HALF-PIPE!"
ACTIVE SKATING
MALE VOICE
Mister Rubber meets Doctor Metal and Joey
the Concrete Butcher Guy!
BLADER IN FREE-FLIGHT
PLATES GUIDED BY STEEL
MALE VOICE
(continuing)
The metal plates. "Grinderplates."
(beat)
These units -- sold in trippy blazin'
sets of four -- hold the most positive
connection on transferring the grind.
VIBE IN MOTION
MALE VOICE
Lifes' purest of moments. Totally up
front on this..
(beat)
To everyone one of us... every single
"Grinderplater!"
TIGHT ANGLES
MALE VOICE
it was THEE MOST GLOBALLY AWESOME SET OF
ROCK-SOLIDS AND HEAVY STRUCTURAL
MATERIALS TO EVER EXIST ON ANY PLANET!
(reflection)
And dudes, when we hugged tight to the
swift angles of these purest of man-made
things...
(beat)
These ideas built on a foundation of
truth...
GRINDERPLATER IN PURE FLIGHT
MALE VOICE
(exuberant)
We were flying...
INSERT - EXT. OLD NAVY PIER - DAY
MALE VOICE
And, we knew we owned the place!
BACK TO SCENE
GARAGE DOOR - VEHICLES ENTER - INTERCUT
SKATERS fade off, like shadow ghosts. Remnants of some day
before. It remains dark.
A stretch limo and short series of SUV/luxury autos stream
about in hazard.
Skaters quickly and mysteriously disappear...
...SOLO SKATER follows behind.
HE DISSOLVES AWAY
Here. There. Everywhere. Gone.
Vehicles disengage.
TEN MEN wearing suits, two carrying design portfolios,
confidently emerge to the smoky, shadow-shrouded center
illumination.
They circle in concrete darkness. Well-suited vultures.
One of the men drops bundled materials onto an angular slab.
Opening up, he displays what appears to be construction plot
and schedule.
Never seem to be aware of the skaters shadowed in the b.g..
INTERCUT - DEVELOPERS AND PLANS
GIG JONES
The Pier holds, fellas, such fiscal
opportunity.
JOEY DOOM
Enormous potential!
GIG JONES
Economically, a sound model for, well,
the progress metaphor.
JOEY DOOM
McD's in the tent. Big-time! Center
ring in fact! Millennium store.
RALPH MEITO
Everyone's got a millennium store.
JOEY DOOM
Not like McD's!
GIG JONES
Good customer-support from all interested
parties.
FRANKIE GAMBLE
(interrupting)
And the level of cancer in facility?
(beat)
Structurally speaking?
GIG JONES
Frankly Frankie, we do not work with
malignant building product. New...
(looking around)
Or all washed up, like this place.
JOEY DOOM
Without a bit of deficit finance.
Nod from #2
FRANKIE GAMBLE
Structure's good.
RALPH MEITO
So you saying, well, structure is not the
afterthought?
JOEY DOOM
After-thought? Not on my stolen life.
FRANKIE GAMBLE
Who's stolen after-thought-life then?
GIG JONES
(subtly agitated)
Business. This remains business, on
this.
(checking)
This here is very much the central issue.
And that includes the structure as well.
RALPH MEITO
Hizzoner? We've his support this one?
JOEY DOOM
(is he serious?)
Heck! More solid than structure, I'll
give you that! Solid as the white marble
that's "hanging on sloopy" over the
Standard Oil building.
RALPH MEITO
Amoco building?
FRANK GAMBLE
Aon Center?
GIG JONES
(to Ralph)
Whatever! Hey! Don't jack me off with
the metaphor, on display like this one
is.
JOEY DOOM
He continually pledges his allegiance to
the business he keeps to heart on his
chest like...
(motion hits to chest)
... like this, boys!
REACTION
GIG JONES
Christ, fellas, his bro's da' Commerce
Secretary. GET ON ME LIKE A SERIOUS CAT
IN HEAT! This commitment struts to you
like cruise controllin' I-Beamin' fast
track action! Besides, I've always
aligned my girder in the positive with
you boys.
RALPH MEITO
I hear ya'. And not just for the
development community.
FRANKIE GAMBLE
What stands in the way of progress?
JOEY DOOM
Small group of homeless. We'll surely be
nippin' them in the butt...
(to Boss Jones)
... er, uh, budd? Whatever? Quite soon,
actually. The guys been here already,
but we playin' them wit' a certain amount
of a subtleness-like-approach. Ya'
know...
FRANKIE GAMBLE
(checking)
... Cicero style?
GIG JONES
(affirmation; continuing)
... Then we've a coupl'a of them small
youths on roller-skates and stuff like
that.
FRANKIE GAMBLE
You mean gangs sellin' stuff, just like
that?
RALPH MEITO
(concern over ancillaries)
Is that what you're saying to us?
FRANKIE GAMBLE
They dealing drugs for roller-skates, or
what kinda stuff we talkin', George?
RALPH MEITO
Those the kids that aced our dog shop the
other day?
FRANKIE GAMBLE
What day? Dope and dogs? Dope and dogs!
Is this the problem?
RALPH MEITO
The boys know we don't do dope AND dogs!
(beat; checking)
I mean we'll sell dope to dogs. We just
won't do dope and dogs.
(on reflect)
Right?
TO RALPHIE
FRANKIE GAMBLE
(interrupting)
Ralphie, help these gentlemen out here.
RALPH MEITO
This is the new project.
INT. NAVY PIER
GRINDERPLATERS RIDING - IN SHADOW
Vaquely making out a hand-held camera being carried by a
confidant skater in darkness.
MALE VOICE
The gaps 'round here been trimmin' out to
the small sizes, again. Can't spin your
wheels worrying about freakin' gaps or
anything else that trips the ride up.
Just wastin' some of that truly precious
time. Don't count this out, whatever you
believe.
(beat)
See, I guess it's not really 'bout the
hard way, you know, how "local T," what
we labeled-up, "localized terrain."
Look, street reality drops real hard
here. A bam-smack-moment. Forging
chosen respect upon those trying to
achieve the elusive "A" strategy.
(beat)
Just like the coveted rock-show pass.
INSERT - FLASH FORWARD - MATT SKATING INTO THE BACKSTAGE AREA
with backstage pass around neck as he slides by security. A
full-level thumbs-up concept.
MALE VOICE
(beat)
The "A" ducat.
BACK TO SCENE
MALE VOICE
And the man holding a phat pocket of the
backstage magic...
ON SOLO SKATER
moving in shadow.
MALE VOICE
... Frankie. It was good for all of us.
INT. NAVY PIER
GRINDERPLATERS RIDING - IN SHADOW
Vaquely making out a hand-held camera being carried by a
confidant skater in darkness.
EXT. OHIO STREET BEACH TUNNEL STAIRS - DAY
Most of the G.P.'s are present.
AD-LIB banter amongst the GRINDERPLATES as they dance the
metal strut.
Feel the faces. Chase styles. Catch dreams.
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Script created with Final Draft by B.C. Software, Inc.