Brad’s Status Page #10

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90 EXT. CAMBRIDGE STREET - DUSK 90

Troy, looking like a white-trash thug, and a few DIRTBAG

FRIENDS smoke a joint and drink beers on the corner.

NARRATOR:

Or worse, end up like Brad - bitter

and restless and full of regrets.

Maybe even blaming Brad for all of

life’s disappointments.

(CONTINUED)

BRAD'S STATUS - WHITE VERSION - Sept 13, 2016 -Page 59

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TROY:

(to another GUY)

My dad’s a f***ing loser, too...

Troy takes a swig, then tosses his beer can into the street.

91 EXT. CAMBRIDGE STREET - DAY 91

Brad and Troy listen to the Busker finish his song.

The song ends. Brad and Troy and a few others CLAP.

Troy drops a FIVE into the Busker’s hat.

92 INT. HOTEL ROOM - DUSK 92

Brad and Troy change clothes for dinner.

BRAD:

If you’re just gonna be a musician,

do you even need to go to college?

TROY:

Hunh?

BRAD:

It’s a fair question.

TROY:

Just a musician?

BRAD:

I’m just saying - do you need a

Harvard diploma to play music in a

band? Isn’t that what you want to

do?

TROY:

I don’t know what I want to do,

Dad.

BRAD:

Well, you need to start thinking

about it - ‘cause this isn’t cheap,

Troy. You’re assuming a lot if you

think I can pay for all this

without taking out loans - and you

taking out loans - and trying to

get scholarships - and financial

aid...

(CONTINUED)

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TROY:

What the f*** just happened?

BRAD:

(softens)

I’m just thinking out loud, okay?

TROY:

I don’t expect you to pay for

everything.

(beat)

Are you not gonna be able to pay

for everything?

BRAD:

We’ll see. Look, I don’t want you

to worry about that - yet.

TROY:

Clearly.

BRAD:

Hey, it might not be a big issue.

Maybe one of your grandparents will

die.

Troy reacts, disturbed.

93 INT. HOTEL LOBBY - NIGHT 93

As Brad and Troy step off the elevator, they see...

...a beautiful young Indian-American woman, ANANYA, (21)

standing in the lobby.

TROY:

Hey!

ANANYA:

Hey, Troy.

She approaches and they hug.

TROY:

This is my dad, Brad.

ANANYA:

Hey, dad Brad. I’m Ananya.

Ananya and Brad shake hands.

(CONTINUED)

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BRAD:

So you guys were friends at Country

Day?

TROY:

Not really. Well, Ananya was a

Senior and I was a Freshman...

ANANYA:

(protesting)

We were friends.

TROY:

You were nice to me.

ANANYA:

We were in orchestra together.

TROY:

Ananya’s an amazing musician.

BRAD:

And now you go to Harvard?

ANANYA:

(nods)

I’m a Junior.

BRAD:

Are you liking it?

ANANYA:

I am. It gets cold, but yeah, I

love my classes. Great people.

Yeah, no complaints!

TROY:

Is it a lot of work?

(off her emphatic nod)

Listen, if you have a lot of work

to do, you don’t have to go to

dinner with us. Please...

ANANYA:

No, no, no. I turned in a paper

this afternoon. I’m done for the

night. And I’m glad to see faces

from home! I got a reservation at

a place around the corner. Should

we go?

Ananya leads them toward the door.

BRAD'S STATUS - WHITE VERSION - Sept 13, 2016 -Page 62

94 INT. HIPSTER RESTAURANT - NIGHT 94

Brad and Troy sit across from Ananya.

ANANYA:

That’s cool you got a meeting with

Jerome Backaly. How’d you manage

that?

TROY:

My dad’s friends with a professor

here.

ANANYA:

Oh, yeah? Who?

BRAD:

His name’s Craig Fisher.

Ananya grimaces, then recovers.

BRAD:

What?

ANANYA:

What?

BRAD:

You made a face.

ANANYA:

I did?

BRAD:

You definitely made a face. You

can say whatever you want. We’re

not close or anything. We were

friends a long time ago.

ANANYA:

Well, I just took his class last

year - he’s kind of the worst.

(smiles; self-conscious)

Should I have not said that?

BRAD:

No. Say it. Why?

ANANYA:

He’s just condescending. And I

don’t know - he’s pretty sexist.

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)

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ANANYA (cont'd)

He’s just got this air of someone

who thinks they know everything

because they’re on TV and... they

have contacts at the White House.

BRAD:

So how do you really feel?

ANANYA:

The way he sees politics - it’s all

a game. Who’s up. Who’s down.

It’s doesn’t inspire me. Honestly -

by the end of his class, I wanted

to quit my major.

BRAD:

Aren’t you a music major?

ANANYA:

(shakes her head)

Government. I love music, but I

want to get into public policy.

TROY:

My dad majored in Government.

BRAD:

Communications and Government.

This was at Tufts. Actually, Craig

and I were in all the same classes.

ANANYA:

Really? Was he like... a cocky

prick then, too?

BRAD:

(smiles)

Not as bad, I don’t think.

ANANYA:

So what do you do now?

BRAD:

I have a non-profit I started a few

years ago.

ANANYA:

Really? Awesome.

(CONTINUED)

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BRAD:

We help other non-profits use

social media to get the word out

about what they do - help them find

members and donors and...

ANANYA:

Like crowd sourcing or...?

BRAD:

Some of that. We’re consultants,

basically. It sounds boring...

ANANYA:

It doesn’t sound boring. It sounds

amazing.

BRAD:

(pleased)

Well, thanks.

ANANYA:

I’m actually writing my thesis on

NGO’s - maybe I could talk to you

at some point...

BRAD:

Of course. Whatever you need.

ANANYA:

Thanks. I once told my dad my

dream job was to work at Amnesty

International - he was like

devastated. He wanted to disown

me.

(to TROY)

You’re lucky your dad’s so cool.

TROY:

(nods)

I am lucky.

BRAD:

Tell us about your thesis...

ANANYA:

Really? It’s not fully formed but

I want to write about the history

of white missionary women - you

know, the wives? - and how they

came to India and Sri Lanka to

“convert the heathens” but laid the

ground work for social reform...

(CONTINUED)

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As Ananya talks, Brad soaks her up. Ananya’s voice fades as

we HEAR:

NARRATOR:

As she spoke, Brad became

increasingly smitten. Ananya

seemed to embody all the qualities

he still loved about humanity.

Here was someone who was young, but

wise. Engaged, aware - but still

idealistic. She almost gave Brad

hope for the future of the species.

MOMENTS LATER:

Their food has come. Ananya talks and eats.

ANANYA:

It’s basically about cultural

identity as it relates to women’s

rights and how one of the sad

legacies of colonialism...

Brad continues to listen, mesmerized.

NARRATOR:

He felt a long-dormant stirring.

He wanted to possess her - her

energy, her passion, her beauty.

At moments, this longing to absorb

her became almost unbearable.

Brad looks pained by his train of thought.

Suddenly, another student, an Asian-American, MAYA, appears

at the table.

NARRATOR:

Then her friend, Maya, showed up.

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