FADE IN:
EXT. YARA RIVER, SOUTH BANK, MELBOURNE - DAY
Smart phone in hand, PETER compares an image on the screen with the scene before his eyes.
PETER (V.O.)
A booking agent chooses
the scene here to symbolize
Melbourne. The image
looks more attractive.
Perhaps, I've come here
at the wrong time.
A seagull flies in and stays on the top of a wall near Peter. Then a second one; and a third one.
PETER (V.O)
What I like about Melbourne
and Sydney as a tourist is
that there're seagulls even
in the urban area.
FLASHBACK
INT. FISHERMAN'S WHARF, SYDNEY - DAY (September, 2018)
Peter and his WIFE are enjoying seafood in an open-air sitting area. Making some high-pitched seagull calls, a flock of seagulls fly in from different directions. One dares staying on their table and gets their full attention.
PETER
They all want a share of
food. This one is either
very hungry or has unique
character. It's bold and
smart to assume that we
pose it no threat.
As they finish their meal and leave, the daring seagull is the first to have some leftovers before the others.
END FLASHBACK
PETER (V.O.)
It seems that locals are
indifferent to the seagulls.
They co-exist peacefully.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
I see seagulls are more
than their bodies and feathers.
They look pretty independent
to make their own living.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
I love to see the seagulls
fly - spreading their wings.
taking off, flying, gliding and
landing.
Peter takes snapshots.
INT. STUDY - DAY
Seagulls images on Peter's phone screen.
PETER (V.O.)
Their freedom is tangible
and visible.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
As a career civil servant,
I had to follow instructions
cascading downwards
along the chain of command.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
When I became a department
head, I was fully accountable
for the acts or omissions of
my subordinates.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
I ceased active civil service
at the age of 60. But it was
only when I had complied
with my sanitization period
in 2017 that I had my first
taste of independence and
freedom!
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd) I can't fly like a bird. But
I travel light. I just want
to experience more.
Something dawn on Peter.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
Why there're no seagulls in
Hong Kong? I've never
seen one and so I feel the
difference when seeing
seagulls elsewhere.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
Oh, this has been my blind
spot! I've conformed to Hong
the Kong condition. It's
only now that I'd query why
there're no Hong Kong
seagulls.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
Is Hong Kong too polluted
that seagulls have no fish
to hunt? Or too clean that
there're any leftovers for
them?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
Are Hongkongers their
predators? Or the Hong
Kong weather is too
extreme?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
Perhaps the species know
long ago that they can't
have nests in Hong Kong;
and so they fly to and settle
in other better harbours
before humans do!
EXT. ROAD - NIGHT
Walking leisurely, Peter suddenly remembers something and uses his smart phone to research.
PETER (V.O.)
What I've just drafted echoes with the story of
"Johnathan Livingston
Seagull". When I read it in my teens, I didn't quite
get the fable's messages.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd)
Yes, I've the freedom to
be myself - my true self!
And I mustn't forget to
"keep working on love".
Let me be a Hong Kong
seagull!
Peter looks upbeat. FADE OUT. The End