North Country Spring
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- Apr 15
- 3 min read
FADE IN
Act 1
INT. BEDROOM - 7:30
Sunlight filters through the curtains. PETER lies in bed, thinking.
PETER (V.O.): I've been practising the song "North Country Spring" for many weeks and I'm progressing well. It's a melodic tune. Who is the composer?
Peter grabs his smartphone and begins to research. He reads through the research results, one by one.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The music composer is Minoru Endo. The song was written in 1977.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Wow, he wrote over 5000 songs in his lifetime. "North Country Spring" became his most famous.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): By "North Country", he meant Niigata, where he lived when he was young.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The winter there was so bitterly cold that he could never stop dreaming of Spring.
Act 2
MONTAGE
A Apartment, Niigata, - Day (April, 2024). Peter, his WIFE and their younger DAUGHTER work together to fix the washing machine.
B. Nitori, Niigata, - Day (April, 2024). They choose and purchase curtains, along with a small desk and a small chair.
C. Agano - Yasuda, Niigata - Day (April, 2024). Peter and his wife watch the cherry blossoms.
D. Sado Island, Niigata - Day (July, 2025). They motor around the island, soaking up the scenery along the way.
E. Nagaoka, Niigata Night (Aug, 2025). Fireworks explode overhead. They've a great time at the fireworks festival.
END MONTAGE
Peter scrolls through the photo app on his phone.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me relive the wonderful experience.
INT. LIVING ROOM - 11:30
Peter sits before an upright piano and positions his fingers over the keys.
PETER (V.O.): Let me play "North Country Spring" without refering to the online tutorial.
He plays. Still rough.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But the melody is there.
He stops.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Minoru Endo wrote 5000 songs. He started young.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've just a few dozens. I started late.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But I write the music and lyrics, play guitar, sing my songs, and produce my music videos.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): By learning to play great songs on the piano. I've started to understand their structure and hooks - so I can write stronger songs myself.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Creative growth isn't a race - its a continuation.
INT. DINING ROOM - 20:45
Peter and his wife are having dinner.
WIFE: Remember last Nov when our younger daughter did an internship as a props artist/maker with a Tokyo studio?
PETER: Yes, of course... and soon afterward, she received a job offer.
WIFE: The film is coming soon in Japan.
PETER: We should go to Japan to watch the film...to visit our daughter and her apartment in Tokyo.
WIFE: Incidentally, her employer is training her on everything, even driving the company car.
PETER: We won't go back to Niigata though...
WIFE: No need.
PETER: Our younger daughter has found her Spring. She has graduated and is moving forward.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.): Some places are not meant to be revisited. They're meant to be thanked and left.
Act 3
INT. LIVING ROOM - 21:30
Peter uploads an image to a draft on his laptop. It shows the cherry blossoms in Niigata last Spring.
PETER (V.O.): Minoru Endo wrote 5000 songs, but his 1977 "North Country Spring" outlived them all.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I don't wait for Spring to practise. I practise so that Spring has something to wake up to.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The man in the song is still waiting. Our younger daughter has found her dream job in Tokyo. That's the difference between a lyric and a life.
The END
FADE OUT
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