Sing Street Page #8

(CONTINUED)

41.

CONOR:

(reading)

“Well she’s standing on the corner.

Like an angel in disguise. And I

want to try and warn her, but She’s

got dangerous eyes.”

EAMON:

Dangerous eyes. I like that. What

does that mean?

CONOR:

I don’t know.

EAMON:

What’s this song about Conor?

CONOR:

It’s like, when you don’t know

someone, they’re more interesting.

They can be anything you want them

to be. It’s like you know them

better, when you don’t know them.

You know?

EAMON:

No that doesn’t make any sense.

What’s it called?

CONOR:

“The Riddle of the model”

EAMON:

Epic. What about a rhythm like

this.

Eamon plays a chord. A funky rhythm.

CONOR:

Nice. Slow it down a little.

Conor tries this lyric over it. Eamon drops to an F, and it

starts to sound like something. They smile at the change.

Conor takes out a pen from his school bag, adding a lyric, as

Eamon continues to play.

We start to see how this might work- Conor the

director/lyricist/visionary, Eamon the pragmatic musical

prodigy.

The sound of their first song coming together plays over the

following scenes. Just guitar and voice for now.

INT. IRISH CLASS - DAY

Song over.

(CONTINUED)

42.

Conor sits at the back of Irish class. The TEACHER reads PEIG

SAYERS while sitting behind his desk. Conor writes feverishly

in his notebook, looking out the window for inspiration. The

teacher calls a BOY up to his desk, and slaps him, really

hard across the face.

( SCENE 41 INTENTIONALLY DELETED )

INT. CONOR’S BEDROOM - DAY

Conor writes in his bed. His parents rowing on the corridor,

off.

ROBERT:

(off, muffled)

That’s funny, coming from you!

PENNY:

Keep your bloody voice down!

Two doors slam, separately. He listens out, then continues

writing.

INT. EAMON’S LIVING ROOM - DAY

Song over.

The song is really coming together, as Conor and Eamon jam

it. Though complete opposites, this combination of

songwriters is coming together. Through the window behind

them, the rest of the band are playing football in the

garden. Conor taps on the window, waving at them to come in

and give it a spin. They run in.

INT. EAMON’S LIVING ROOM - LATER

Now the FULL band play the song. And it sounds pretty good.

Conor is still a little shy of his own voice, and is frozen

at the microphone.

Eamon gestures for him to enjoy it. But he just smiles and

stays static.

Again, the tape recorder records it on the chair in the

middle of them.

EXT. SYNGE STREET - MORNING

Song over.

The song plays over as Conor walks across the street. From

his satchel he produces a casette tape as he meets the GIRL,

standing on her stoop smoking. He hands her the tape.

(CONTINUED)

43.

GIRL:

What’s this now?

CONOR:

That’s the song. I mentioned it to

you.

GIRL:

Oh yeah. The song. You’re the kid

in the band! That’s cool.

CONOR:

You should probably learn the

lyrics. So you can lip sync. We’re

shooting down the lane at the back

of Quinnsworth. This Saturday. At

12 o’clock. See you there.

He nods, not waiting for a response. She blows smoke,

watching him go. Then she looks at the tape in her hand.

EXT. SYNGE STREET SCHOOL - NIGHT

By moonlight, Conor, Darren and Eamon peel back a sheet of

corrugated metal at the back of school. This allows them a

gap to slip through into the yard.

EXT. SYNGE STREET SCHOOL - NIGHT

Darren opens a little back door with a key. They are in.

INT. SYNGE STREET SCHOOL - CORRIDOR - NIGHT

The three of them sneak down a basement corridor. Conor

guides them with a clunky bicycle lamp. They arrive at a

door. A handwritten sign says “Audio Visual Room”.

Darren tries numerous keys until he gets the right one. They

open it.

DARREN:

(with the flair of a

master criminal)

Gentlemen, I give you the Audio

Visual Department....

INT. SYNGE STREET SCHOOL - THE AUDIO VISUAL ROOM - NIGHT

This is hardly a room at all. More like a broom closet.

Conor’s torch reveals a steel shelving unit, bare, except for

the camera and VCR machine on the top shelf. And three or

four VHS tapes.

They start taking it down.

44.

EXT. SYNGE STREET SCHOOL - NIGHT

The three of them run back across the road by moonlight

laughing. Music plays over.

EXT. A LANE-WAY - MORNING

The band are setting up their instruments on a rainy morning.

They are down a little laneway at the back of a row of shops.

Piles of rubbish, old bins, and an abandoned car. It’s

overcast and depressing. And cold.

Their guitar amps and drum kit look pretty small out in the

open.

EAMON:

It looks like loads of gear back

home, doesn’t it? And yet it looks

sh*t here.

Conor is setting up the video camera across from them on a

tripod. He looks through the viewfinder. It does look sh*t.

He checks his watch.

DARREN:

Where is this chick?

CONOR:

(worried)

I don’t know.

DARREN:

Did everyone bring some clothes?

They start rooting through plastic bags stuffed with clothes

from home.

Larry holds up a pair of flares. Garry, a child’s cowboy

outfit.

DARREN:

Who the hell brought a cowboy

outfit?

GARRY:

Me. It’s all I could find.

DARREN:

No one dresses as a cowboy in a

band!

LARRY:

There’s a cowboy in The Village

People.

(CONTINUED)

45.

GARRY:

Yeah. And Adam Ant.

EAMON:

Adam Ant is a highway man.

LARRY:

So we can have a highway man, but

not a cowboy? Are you mentally ill?

GARRY:

So what did you bring then?

Hard cut.

EXT. LANEWAY - MORNING

Conor is dressed as a low-budget New Romantic. A mash-up of

ideas from a cross section of TV. Nothing quite works. He’s

wearing sunglasses, bangles, his father’s long overcoat with

the sleeves rolled up, and a blouse that definitely belongs

to his mum.

Eamon is dressed in his Dad’s show-band uniform. A purple,

velvet suit that is way too big for him. He’s a little Austin

Powers.

EAMON:

It’s me Da’s showband outfit.

Garry, Larry and Ngig are unimpressed. Darren isn’t sure.

GARRY:

Is this a gay band?

CONOR:

Coming from the one who wants to

look like The Village People.

GARRY:

What’s gay about The Village

People??

As the others squabble, Conor’s attention is drawn to the end

of the lane, where Raphina has just appeared.

He smiles. She approaches carrying a large bag. She looks

great, in a huge Angora sweater, pencil skirt and high heels.

RAPHINA:

Hello all. Sorry I’m late. I was

out last night. At a night club.

Still recovering.

She takes off her sunglasses, dramatically, looking them up

and down.

(CONTINUED)

46.

RAPHINA:

Jesus Christ. What in God’s name

are ye all wearing?

CONOR:

Yeah, we’re just working that out.

Maybe you can help.

RAPHINA:

Who’s your wardrobe person? Stevie

Wonder?

CONOR:

We don’t have a wardrobe person.

RAPHINA:

Right. Who’s the camera man. Maybe

he can make some of this work.

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