365: A Duo Story

FADE IN

Act 1

INT. STUDY - 10:30

PETER sits on a sofa with smartphones and iPad Minis open to Duolingo.

PETER (V.O.): I use various devices for different accounts.

Peter taps the Duollingo French icon on an iPhone 8+ and starts practising French.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The names of my account align with the language, such as "Pierre" in French and "Pedro" in Spanish.

After completing his daily quest, Peter earns his 365-day streak.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I was happy to reach my 100-day streak; now I'm thrilled to reach my 365-day streak in French.

 Peter taps the Duollingo Spanish icon on an iPhone 12 pro max and starts practising Spanish. And after completing his daily quest, he looks thrilled.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've earned my 365-day streak in Spanish too!

Peter taps the Duollingo Korean icon on his iPad Mini 5 and starts practising Korean. And after completing his daily quest, he looks thrilled again.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've earned my 365-day streak in Korean as well!

Act 2

FLASHBACK

INT. RESTAURANT, BUSAN - NIGHT (Feb, 2024)

Peter, his WIFE, their elder DAUGHTER, her BOYFRIEND, and the boyfriend's MOTHER are having dinner.

PETER (V.O.): It's the first time the two families are meeting.

While Peter and his wife speak Cantonese to their daughter, she interprets their messages into Japanese for her boyfriend, who then relays them in rapid Korean to his mother.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Our daughter and her boyfriend were classmates studying Japanese in Fukuoka. Our daughter is learning Korean in SNU.

INT. LIVING ROOM - DAY (March, 2024)

Peter's WIFE turns to Peter.

WIFE: I'm taking HKU SPACE's Introductory Korean I class on Thursday evenings. Would you like to join me?

PETER: Yes! I hope to be able to communicate in Korean as well.

PETER (V.O.): I know learning a foreign language later in life can be challenging, but it'd be wonderful if my wife and I can be classmates.

RETURN TO PRESENT

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): After attending a class or two, I discovered the possibility of learning languages on Duolingo with AI-embeded exercises.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I'm curious about which approach is more effective: traditional methods or AI-assisted learning.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Since I can learn on Duolingo for free, I started studying not only Korean but also French and Spanish on the same day.

Recalling.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I studied French through traditional methods twice, once in my early 20s and again in my late 40s; in both cases, I stopped after less than a year.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've always wanted to learn Spanish as it's a prominent language, alongside English, Chinese and French.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I soon realized that learning Korean at my own pace on the game-like Duolingo is less challenging than participating in an intensive weekly class with younger students.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Among Korean, French and Spanish, I think Korean is the most challenging - comparable in difficulty to Cantonese.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Pronouncing and dictating the similar-looking Korean characters poses a great challenge for me.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've no regrets about failing my Introductory Korean I class, except for not being able to accompany my wife to her Introductory Korean II class.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That I want to maintain the Duolingo streak helps sustain my learning momentum.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Yet, my monthly travel hobby means that focusing on my streaks can diminish my enjoyment of my adventures.

Recalling.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Over the past year, I've worked hard to maintain my streaks before or after flights and visits.

Pausing.

PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I practise a language, it's fine if the other person doesn't respond or ask questions. But if they do, I often have difficulty understanding.

Act 3

INT. LIVING ROOM - 22:15

Peter inserts an AI drawing titled: "365 - A Duo Story..." to a draft on his laptop.

PETER (V.O): 365 days on Duo. I'm not fluent, but I''m persistent.

Thinking.

PETER (V.O) (Cont'd): Three languages so far, zero regrets. Okay, one regret: To maintain my streaks, I've to use Duoling even though I can learn eg French effectively while travelling in France.

Reflecting.

PETER (V.O) (Cont'd): 365: A Duo story. Turns out, my greatest skill is not quitting.

FADE OUT

END