"La Vie En Rose"
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- Sep 2, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 4, 2023
FADE IN
Act 1
INT. STUDIO - 16:30
Reading a song sheet, PETER plays the piano slowly.
PETER (V.O.): I've found out some of my inaccuracies.
Practising.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I just want to play a few musical pieces very well.
Stopping, Peter stretches his fingers.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Time is right to buy an afternoon tea set for my wife.
Smartphone ringing. Peter hears it's from his wife.
PETER (To phone): Yes, Darling...
WIFE (From phone): Come to the dining room to have some snacks...
Act 2
INT. STUDIO - 18:00
We see Peter watching a French version of the Benny Hill show on YouTube - a pretty actress is singing a ballad with style in French.
PETER (V.O.): I've listened to the song many times before.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): What's the title of the song?
We hear the song's refrain: ...Quand il me prend dans ses bras, qu'il me parle tout bas...
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My several attempts from my 20s to 50s to pick up French haven't been successful.
We hear the song's ending:...Alors, je sens en moi, mon coeur qui bat.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Is the title of the song "Mon coeur qui bat?"
Surfing the web with his smartphone, Peter finds no result.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): How can I identify the title of the song?
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): There're song recognition Apps! They must be able resolve my problem in seconds.
Having downloaded "Shazam" and lets it listen to the video clip, Peter focuses on the screen.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): No response?
We then see a response on screen: It's tough.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Its French may be worse than me.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I'm not giving up.
Surfing the web again, Peter downloads "SoundHound" and let it listen to the video clip. We see no response on screen.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me play an English song and see if it can identify it.
Peter turns on an Internet radio, taps the App's icon and sees the names of the song and the artist appearing in seconds.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd):Perhaps the song I want to identify is too old for the Apps.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I don't want to give up, but what can I do?
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me see if I can find clues in the comments section of the video clip.
We see on screen comments in French. Peter taps "translate to English" to study them.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): No, just some nostalgic remarks.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Am I naive to conduct my research like this?
Later, Peter recognises something in one comment.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It's "La Vie En Rose"!
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Months ago, a DJ mentioned the title of the song and I thought I wouldn't forget it.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Now, I've more reasons to learn French again.
Act 3
INT. STUDIO - 23:00
Having input the prompt: "La Vie En Rose" in an AI art generator in his smartphone, Peter sees a cubist image appearing.
PETER (V.O.): "La Vie En Rose" means "life in pink" literally or "to see life through rose-coloured glasses" in English.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Pink is beautiful as it's one of the colours the sun creates in the dawns and at twilight.
Pondering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Sometimes, I like to see the world in a naive, idealized and romantic way.
FADE OUT
THE END
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