Twists And Turns
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- Dec 8, 2022
- 3 min read
FADE IN
Act 1
INT. BEDROOM - 23:45 (THE NIGHT BEFORE)
In bed, PETER is in thoughts.
PETER (V.O.): Should I visit an outlying island beach tomorrow? But all lifeguard services have been suspended.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): If I don't swim, I can focus on songwriting.
Peter sleeps. Later, Peter wakes up. Checking the time, he sees 02:45.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Anything to do with the coffee that I had at lunch?
Thinking of something, Peter jots down some words in Chinese and English on sheet#1.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've just cooked up the lyrics of a possible trilingual song!
Going back to bed, Peter tosses and turns all night.
Act 2
INT. DINING ROOM - 08:15
Peter is having breakfast with KAJI, the family pet.
PETER (V.O.): Feeling unrefreshed, I've no inclination to go anywhere today.
INT. STUDIO - 09:15
Lying on a sofa, Peter checks Yahoo!Finance on his phone screen.
PETER (V.O.): Despite good news, the Hong Kong stock market fell considerably yesterday.
Peter checks his investment portfolio.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The market may rise today. Let me place some "Sell" orders. I need cash to pay the taxman.
Having typed on screen, Peter picks up a 12-string Fender Villager acoustic guitar.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I haven't played this one for a long time. I've many guitars at home.
Peter tunes the guitar with the Guitar Tuna app.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I go to outlying islands, I take the handy ukulele and learn to play it well.
Having tuned the 12 strings, Peter strums the guitar. We hear special rich sounds.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me use it to compose the melody for the lyrics that I wrote in the small hours this morning.
Playing guitar chords C, Am, F, G7, Peter is improvising a song.
PETER (V.O.): OMG, I'm singing different lyrics as they sound better with the melody being improvised.
Peter jots down his new lyrics on sheet#2.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Same unique theme, but more emotional. I like the new lyrics.
Peter then taps Voice Memo on his phone screen.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me record my new song.
Abruptly, Peter pauses.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, my heart speaks....
Peter hums catchy notes: Ah...Ah...Ah...Ah...
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): A really good tune!
Recording. Peter first hums Ah...Ah...Ah...Ah...and then continues to play other guitar chords.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've got another new melody. It's completely different from the one I improvised moments ago.
After jotting down the song's melodic structure on sheet#3, Peter stares at sheet#2.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've already forgotten the melody. It's done.
Frustrated, Peter puts aside his smart phone and guitar.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That's enough for today.
Later, Peter plays the piano. We hear the John Lennon song: Imagine.
PETER (V.O.): In "McCartney's 3,2,1", the celebrity says that in the early 1960s, there wasn't any mobile recording machine, but John Lennon could remember their new songs.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): He must have higher IQ than others.
As he's about to play another song, Peter stops.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, I've forgotten how to play other songs.
Exhausted, Peter retreats to the sofa.
Act 3
INT. BEDROOM - 20:00
Peter works on a laptop.
PETER (V.O.): Two of my stock orders were executed. The Hong Kong stock market has recovered yesterday's loss.
From the radio, we hear: On Dec 1980, John Lennon was shot to death outside his apartment building in New York City. He was 40.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Sometimes, things don't go as planned. They take unexpected twists and turns. It's fortunate that I can still face them.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): What looks like a very bad day can be just clearing the way for good things to come. Let me embrace my tomorrow.
THE END
FADE OUT
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