1946-2026

FADE IN

Act 1

INT. BEDROOM - 07:30

Sunlight, thin and pale cuts through the curtains. PETER sits up in bed, phone in hand. He scrolls lazily through Facebook. His thumb stops.

PETER (V.O.): Hmm...a photo of Dolly Parton?

His face tenses. A flicker of alarm. Then he sees: 1946-2026.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): No...

A wave of genuine sadness washes over him.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The only time the media truly remember someone is when s/he is dead.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): We spent our lives scrolling past the living, only to pause and remember when the algorithm tells us they're gone.

Recalling.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When did I first hear her name?

Act 2

FLASHBACK

INT. CAFE, CASTLE PEAK HOTEL - DAY (1969)

Peter (15) in a waiter outfit stands beside a full-time WAITER (20s) watching the few Sunday high tea CROWD.

WAITER: Did you know the film crew and actress Tina Leung came here mid week? For a romantic movie.

PETER: Yeah I heard. I believe they wouldn't come on Sundays.

WAITER: Everyone was trying to get a look. But the manager and film crew told us to get lost. Nobody saw anything.

The waiter gestures wildly with his hands in front of his chest.

PETER: She is probably the most beautiful woman in Hong Kong.

WAITER: Do you know Dolly Parton? Big blonde hair, big...everything. Tiny waist, though. Like a doll?

Peter shakes his head sideways.

WAITER (Cont'd): You will. You can't miss her. Huge!

INT. RESTAURANT- NIGHT (1974)

Peter (20) and SHARON (19) are having dinner. They hear background music: Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Oh, I'm begging of you please don't take my man...

PETER: A very catchy tune.

Sharon nods.

INT. PETER'S STUDIO - NIGHT (2011)

Surrounded by guitars and amplifiers. Peter (57) is humming a melody and using a phone's voice memos to record it.

PETER (V.O.): I've discovered composition late in life.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Who wrote Whitney Houston's song: I Will Always Love You?

He types his question into his phone's search bar. He reads the results.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): By Dolly Parton? I Will Always Love You is Dolly's song?

RETURN TO PRESENT

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): And now, Dolly is gone.

He gets out of bed with purpose.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me learn how to play the song on piano.

MONTAGE OF PETER LEARNING TO PLAY: I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU ON PIANO IN THE LIVING ROOM

A. Peter walks to the piano and opens the lid. He looks at his phone, pulls up a YouTube tutorial: Dolly Parton - I Will Always Love You - Piano Lesson.

B. The YouTube tutorial plays. Peter pauses, rewinds, and re-plays a section repeatedly.

C. Peter's hands are on the keys. He is struggling, but a melody is slowly emerging.

END MONTAGE

Evening, Peter takes a break. He scrolls through articles on his phone.

PETER (V.O.): Elvis wanted half of the publising rights of the song "I Will Always Love You" if he did a cover of it. Dolly said no, knowing her own worth.

Reading: She wrote Jolene and I Will Always Love you on the same day.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): 1946-2026. 80 years. A blink. And yet in that brink, she wrote two classics in one day. What did I do with my brink?

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Do I need everything in a tool box to be a master? Why can't I just use the tools I do have with relentless determination?

Act 3

INT. BEDROOM -22:45

Peter uploads an image to a draft on his laptop. It prominently shows the range of years: 1946-2026 emphasizing a person's lifespan.

PETER (V.O.): Dolly made her body a trademark so that world would stop and listen. Then she made her soul the reason they stayed. Strategic self-branding is a form of artistic intelligence.

Thinking.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Dolly wrote two masterpieces in one day. I spent one afternoon learning three minutes of one, Both are victories.

Reflecting.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Legacy isn't about being remembered by the masses; it's the satisfaction of having tried one's smartest with the time one has left.

The END

FADE OUT