Simone Page #12

The CAST nods seriously.

HAL:

(a thought occurs)

How will you do our love scenes?

VIKTOR:

Body double.

HAL:

(confused)

For her?

VIKTOR:

For you.

(addressing the entire

cast)

I want you to know, Simone

appreciates you all working for

scale. But why am I thanking you?

Simone can thank you herself. She

insisted on speaking with you

before filming begins. She's on

the line now.

Viktor nods to a speaker phone in the center of the table, a

red blinking light on the phone. The cast reacts excitedly.

VIKTOR:

(pushing a button on the

phone)

Simone, are you there?

SIMONE:

(through the speakerphone)

I certainly am, Mr. Taransky.

LOTUS:

(unable to contain her

excitement)

So are we, Simone!

Everyone laughs giddily.

SIMONE (O.S.)

Why don't you leave me alone with

my co-stars, Mr. Taransky, so we

can get to know each other better?

HAL:

Good idea.

VIKTOR:

Of course. I'll be back in a

minute.

Viktor exits.

SIMONE (O.S.)

Hi. Who's there? Don't be shy.

Introduce yourselves.

The CAST stares nervously at the speakerphone. Mac breaks

the silence.

MAC:

I'm Mac. I turned down a

Bertolucci film to be here.

LOTUS:

My name's Lotus. God, I can't

believe I'm talking to you. We're

going to become such great friends.

HAL:

I'm Hal. Wonderful to be working

together... again.

The other cast members introduce themselves.

EXT. VIKTOR'S SOUNDSTAGE - DAY

VIKTOR pulls up sharply in his studio golf cart outside the

nearby soundstage and hurriedly enters.

INT. VIKTOR'S SOUNDSTAGE - DAY

VIKTOR races across the vast, empty space to a digital

player, connected to a phone. Simone's pre-recorded opening

remarks (graphically represented on the screen) are almost

completed.

SIMONE:

Is that everyone...?

(pause)

Well, obviously, as you know...

Viktor jumps into the conversation in the nick of time,

speaking through the synthesizer. As usual, Viktor's voice

is automatically synthesized into the voice of Simone.

SIMONE / VIKTOR

... I'm Simone.

The other CAST MEMBERS laugh nervously.

HAL:

(from Viktor's

speakerphone)

Obviously. Who else?

SIMONE / VIKTOR

(from speaker phone)

I just want to start by apologizing

for my "process" --

INT. SIMONE & VIKTOR'S OFFICE - DAY

The CAST are hunched over the speakerphone.

MAC:

-- No. No. I'm completely

simpatico. On my last film I was

playing a schizophrenic so I made

them give me two dressing rooms.

HAL:

(an aside)

So committed.

SIMONE (O.S.)

Well thank you for your

understanding. I know it's an

unusual way to work but I just find

I relate better to people when

they're not actually there.

LOTUS:

Of course, of course.

SIMONE (O.S.)

I don't have much to say except

that I know it's going to be a

great project, if we all just trust

Mr. Taransky's vision. Always do

what Mr. Taransky says. If in

doubt, do it the Taransky way.

They all nod vigorously in agreement.

SIMONE (O.S.)

I know we're going to make a

wonderful movie together.

LOTUS:

(nodding in agreement)

Wonderful movie.

HAL:

Together, absolutely.

EXT. SOUNDSTAGE - DUSK

VIKTOR removes his own garbage from his soundstage. A young

cleaning woman, VIVIAN, wheeling a janitor's cart,

tentatively approaches.

VIVIAN:

Mr. Taransky...

VIKTOR:

(referring to the stage)

No one goes in there.

VIVIAN:

Oh, I know.

Vivian hesitantly hands Viktor a publicity photo of SIMONE.

VIVIAN:

If it's not too much trouble.

Could you...?

VIKTOR:

Of course...

VIVIAN:

(hesitant about broaching

the subject)

This last year I was... going

through some things.

(shaking her head at the

memory)

Awful, awful... things. But when I

saw Simone in "Sunrise"... what she

did... in the scene in the

fireworks factory...

(face lighting up)

... suddenly everything made sense.

My friends, family, doctors --

nobody could reach me -- but

Simone, she really... spoke to me.

Viktor is touched by the heartfelt testimony.

VIKTOR:

She'll be happy to sign it.

INT. PRODUCTION SOUNDSTAGE - DAY

A green set. Walls, floor, ceiling -- all green. A FULL

CAST shoots HAL, dressed in a futuristic suit, tentatively

crossing the green expanse.

Hal pauses, looks longingly, then impulsively dashes forward.

Hal passionately embraces thin air and wrestles it to the

ground.

VIKTOR (O.S.)

Cut! Cut!... Cut!

Hal freezes. VIKTOR runs from behind the camera and

confronts Hal on the green floor.

VIKTOR:

Hal, what are you doing?

HAL:

Viktor, Clyde simply has to get

close to Simone in this scene! He

has to touch her. He has to!

VIKTOR:

Absolutely not!

HAL:

But she's right there! I must feel

her!

VIKTOR:

You can't.

HAL:

Why not?

VIKTOR:

(struggling to find an

excuse)

There's... a wall between you --

HAL:

-- an emotional wall, I know.

That's why --

VIKTOR:

-- No. No. A real wall.

(describing a wall with

his hands within the

green space)

You ran right through it.

HAL:

(confused)

How did the wall get there?

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