Plato Says

1. FADE IN

2. 
   

3. Act 1

4. 
   

5. EXT. ESTATE PARK - DAY

6. 
   

7. Mild sunshine. PETER is taking out Tai Gow, the family pet turtle, from a turtle box.

8. 
   

9. PETER: Fly...

10. 
    

11. Peter then puts Tai Gow on the ground.

12. 
    

13. PETER (V.O.): We haven't come out for days. There're frost warnings.

14. 
    

15. We see Tai Gow surveying the environment.

16. 
    

17. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): At home, he's at a restful state. The cold temperature has slowed him down.

18. 
    

19. Pausing.

20. 
    

21. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Having done my 4th jab, I've also slowed down.

22. 
    

23. We see Tai Gow beginning to claw in one direction.

24. 
    

25. Act 2

26. 
    

27. EXT. ESTATE PARK - CONTINUOUS

28. 
    

29. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I first heard of "The Turtles" in the late 1960s. They're a rock band.

31. Watching Tai Gow.

32. 
    

33. PETER (V.O.): I still love their hit songs "Happy Together", "She'd Rather Be With Me" and "You Showed Me."

34. 
    

35. Recalling.

36. 
    

37. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I began studying speculative cosmology in the mid 1970s, I heard about "Turtles all the way down".

38. 
    

39. Watching Tai Gow.

40. 
    

41. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd):The saying suggests that Earth is supported by an infinite stack of increasing large turtles.

42. 
    

43. Pausing.

44. 
    

45. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The suggestion leads to infinite regress.

46. 
    

47. We see Tai Gow going in another direction.

48. 
    

49. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Among the philosophical topics, I loved Epistemology the most.

50. 
    

51. Recalling.

52. 
    

53. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Then, I was studying Philosophy all by myself, wanting to get an external degree from Lond U.

54. 
    

55. Watching.

56. 
    

57. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Among the Greek philosophers, I loved Plato the most.

58. 
    

59. Recalling.

60. 
    

61. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In Sophist, Plato says that no one who can make constant progress should be discouraged, even though it be slow.

62. 
    

63. Watching.

64. 
    

65. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd: I had to study 5 years before I could take my degree exams.

66. 
    

67. Recalling.

68. 
    

69. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I got my honours degree at one go. I still take pride in that.

70. 
    

71. We see Tai Gow arriving at a grass edging.

72. 
    

73. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Speed doesn't matter. Forward is forward.

74. 
    

75. We see Tai Gow attempting to climb over it.

76. 
    

77. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Is he a climber?

78. 
    

79. We see Tai Gow standing up, trying to get his right footing on the edging.

80. 
    

81. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It seems that he has good capacity.

82. 
    

83. We then see Tai Gow falling on his back.

84. 
    

85. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh dear!

86. 
    

87. Peter hesitates to help the upside-down Tai Gow.

88. 
    

89. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me first see if he can right himself.

90. 
    

91. We see Tai Gow sticking his head out on one side, shifting his body slightly. He then uses a foot to push against the ground, getting enough lift to flip back.

92. 
    

93. PETER: Smart!

94. 
    

95. We see Tai Gow resting. Then, he climbs, falls on his back and flips over again.

96. 
    

97. PETER (V.O.): Are you determined to try, try again!

98. 
    

99. Act 3

100. 
     

101. EXT. ESTATE PARK - CONTINUOUS

102. 
     

103. On his 3rd attempt, we see Tai Gow succeeding.

104. 
     

105. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): He is as determined as me.

106. 
     

107. Thinking.

108. 
     

109. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When a turtle sticks its neck out, it can do many things, including righting its upside-down position.

110. 
     

111. Pausing.

112. 
     

113. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Having had my 4th jab for 48 hours, I feel like an old turtle - at ease in my own shell.

114. 
     

115. Hearing Peter saying "Fly...", we see Tai Gow being put back inside the turtle box.

116. 
     

117. THE END

118. 
     

119. FADE OUT