First They Killed My Father Page #8

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Loung and some other children are tucked away off to the side

of the meeting. She watches as Ma and Pa join the others for

the town meeting. Pa looks tired.

There are a couple men and women the KR have put aside.

Loung wonders why and what they have done.

RO LEAP KHMER ROUGE

Every work site is a fiery

battlefield. Let us be master of

the water, master of nature. Work

in the rice field without

considering the skies, to grow

three tons a hectare. If you have a

revolutionary position, you can do

anything Comrade. Cheyo

revolutionary Angkar!

Fists in the air. “Cheyo! Cheyp!” The Base Girl is standing

next to the KR. She points at a man and says he should

confess.

The man VICTIM/INFORMANT (birthmark on his face)confesses for

taking something small for his child who is sick.

He is punished and tied to a tree near the children.

OMITTED:

33A.

EXT. RO LEAP

Loung and Chou on their way to work. They pass the man still

tied to the tree. Loung looks at the KR near him. Wondering

how one man could do that to another.

EXT. RO LEAP GARDEN - EARLY MORNING

Weeks have passed. (Transition possibly by coming down from

the sun) The seeds have begun to sprout and the vines have

grown. She smiles and tends to them. She puts her head down

and continues to work.

34.

Loung notices the change of rice fields.

EXT. RO LEAP DINING HALL - EVENING

Social contact among the new people is almost nonexistent.

Everyone keeps to themselves, fearing that if they share

personal thoughts or feelings someone will report them to the

Angkar.

Loung and Chou sits in silence. She looks at her food. The

rations are less.

Loung notices the man who had been tied to the tree

VICTIM/INFORMANT. His body language catches her eye. He is

humble but close to the KR. Giving information.

They seem to be talking about Pa. This makes Loung very

uncomfortable.

EXT. RO LEAP STREAM - DAY

Loung’s POV of cows moving though the river. We reveal she is

in the river. Loung, Chou and the other girls wash their

clothes in a nearby stream. Without detergent they are never

very clean.

Loung looks at another group of older women down the stream.

She sees Ma who gives her a secret smile. DAVI catches her

eye. Despite the war and the famine, Davi's body is that of

a young woman. Her hair is cut short, but is thick and curly

and frames her small, oval face nicely. Loung stares at her

large, round brown eyes with their long lashes.

Davi sees her and shyly looks away.

Loung smiles at Keav who playfully splashes her with water.

Loung splashes back.

OMITTED - NOW SCENE 132A

EXT. RO LEAP - DUSK

MONSOON #1

35.

Months have passed. Loung is out looking at the clouds. Loung

and Chou are washing their hair and scrubbing their bodies by

the side of their hut.

Loung notices three KR walk to Davi’s family's hut and tell

her parents they needed Davi to be the wife of a handicapped

soldier. Davi's mother cries and wraps her arms around her

daughter.

DAVI’S MOTHER

Take me. Davi is a lazy girl. Take

me.

Davi cries harder at their words and clung desperately to her

mother. Loung is too frightened to move.

DAVI’S FATHER

(on his knees)

Please. Not my daughter. Please.

The KR grab Davi by her arms and pull her from her mother's

shaking hug. Davi sobs loudly, begging them to let her stay

but the KR drag her on. Her mother falls to her knees, palms

together, and pleads with them not to take her only daughter.

The father, still on his knees, lowers his head to the

ground, banging his forehead on the dirt, and also pleading

with the KR.

As they take her away, Davi turns around many times to see

both her parents still on the ground, palms together, praying

for her. She looks back until she can see them no more. Loung

focus on Davi’s father and the pain in his eyes.

INT. RO LEAP HUT - NIGHT

Loung sits still as Keav combs her hair. She watches as Meng

and Kim play with Geak.

EXT. RO LEAP GARDEN - MORNING

Loung and the others arrive to see all vegetables have been

taken from the ground. She watches as the chlops carry them

away in crates. She and Chou begin again to prepare the land

for the next crop. She looks over at Davi’s sister.

36.

INT. RO LEAP HUT -MORNING

Everyone is up early. Loung notices Khouy who seems upset.

She notices Pa and Meng having a serious private talk. Ma

packs Keav’s black pyjama pants and shirt in a scarf. Keav

sits next to Ma with their hands touching. Loung is trying

to understand what is happening.

EXT. RO LEAP -DAY

Quietly Loung walks with her family to the town square where

other teenagers and families have already gathered. Other

teenagers have tears in their eyes as do their distraught

parents. Loung now understands.

Meng musses Loung’s hair and gives her a smile. Loung watches

as the Village Chief calls them out and the base people hand

out tools and give them a plot number.

RO LEAP KHMER ROUGE LEADER

The revolution is not taking place

in this village alone; it is taking

place throughout all of Kampuchea.

Angkar needs strong young men and

women. The Angkar knows what is

best. We must trust in Angkar.

She watches as Khouy and Meng steal glances at Pa as they get

in line and begin to move off.

Keav and Ma wish they could embrace. They look into each

others eyes. Both full of tears. In a matter of minutes, the

chlops lead the children away while the families watch in

quiet despair.

Keav looks to Loung who tries to muster a smile, then she

hugs Pa and walks away in her black shirt and pants that are

frayed at the hem.

Loung watches Keav as she follows the soldiers, with twenty

other boys and girls, never looking back. Chou and Loung

watch with tears in their eyes and watch until Keav’s figure

is no longer in sight.

OMITTED:

37.

INT. RO LEAP HUT - NIGHT

Loung watches Chou sleeping. She looks over at the empty

place where Meng, Khouy and Keav used to sleep. Tears fall

from her big brown eyes.

PA:

Angkar is right. Soon the country

will be prosperous. Angkar will

take care of them.

Loung is confused, then hears footsteps. She looks through

the slats to see two Chlops walking away. She looks to Pa.

Silently they express the understanding.

EXT. RO LEAP - RIVER - DAY

END OF MONSOON #1

Loung, Chou and other girls walk in line to get water. Each

balancing two water pails on a long flat piece of wood over

their shoulders. They approach the water when, a stench

attacks Loung's nose and she begins to cough. Coming around

the path into a clearing, she knows what the smell is before

she even spots the body. The corpse lies decomposing in the

sun. She holds her breath and walk toward it.

CHOU:

Let’s go

Loung waves her hand at Chou and proceeds forward while she

stays back. Pinching her nose, she approaches it. (Possibly

face down but gun shots to make clear executed)

Black hair sinks into the grass, becoming one with the dirt.

The chest cavity is caved in beneath the black clothes, home

to hundreds of the black-green flies feasting on the body.

Loung covers her mouth to push down vomit, not daring to look

anymore. Quickly, she turns and walks away, but the smell of

death still clings to her clothes.

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