Younger Than That Now
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- Jul 16
- 3 min read
FADE IN
Act 1
INT. LlVING ROOM - 16:15
PETER sits in massage chair, watching various guitarists perform "My Back Pages" on YouTube.
PETER (V.O.): I want to watch their performance again.
On screen, a guitarist sings the verse.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): One guitarist plays a 12-string Rickenbacker electric guitar. I've never owned one and wonder how it sounds.
On screen, another guitarist sings another verse.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've forgotten the exact melody of the song, including its catchy refrain.
On screen, the guitarists sing the refrain together.
PETER (Singing): Ah, but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.): I could only write: Ah, I was so much younger then, but I'm wiser than that now.
Act 2
FLASHBACK
INT. PETER'S NT HOME - 16:00 (Yesterday)
Living room. Peter is decluttering. An internet radio plays soft rock and we hear:..Ah, but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now.
PETER (V.O.): The song's refrain sounds good.
Listening intently.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): What does the refrain even mean? It's paradoxical.
Peter is captivated.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It's my first time hearing this song. What's the title? Who is the performing artist?
Peter taps the SoundHound app on his mobile and lets it search. We see on screen the result: My Back Pages - the Byrds.
INT. BEDROOM - 21:00
Mobile in hand, Peter searches My Back Pages on YouTube and finds a clip.
PETER (V.O.): I want to listen to the song again. The performers of this clip include Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, George Harrison...
Peter plays it. We see on screen performing artists take turns singing verses, trading guitar solos; and the crowd roars as each steps forward.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I once dreamed of rock stardom...
MONTAGE OF PETER'S DREAM OF ROCK STARDOM
A. College variety show. 1968. With a backing band, Peter (14) sings "It's Nice to be With You".
B. College variety show. 1969. With a backing band, Peter (15) sings "Just a Little".
C. College variety show. 1970. In a band, Peter (16) plays the electric guitar riff of "Who'll Stop the Rain".
END MONTAGE
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Who wrote the song?
Peter surfs the web, researches again.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Since I started writing songs 15 years ago, I've developed an interest in the creativity behind them. Without that creativity, there're no song to play, sing or interpret.
Peter finds the result.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, it's actually a Bob Dylan song.
Using his mobile, Peter mines Bob Dylan - My Back Pages (Official Audio) and listens intently.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I believe the Byrd's cover shortened the refrain slightly but kept the core line.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My friend Ricky, a record producer, believes that the best version of a song is the one that resonates most listeners.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Dylan wrote the song at 23 - back in 1964.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): By 1964, he moved away from protest music, calling his older songs one dimensional.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In 1964, I was 10 years old and in the fourth grade.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I was at 23, I set aside my dream of rock stardom to work in government squatter control in Yuen Long, NT.
RETURN TO PRESENT
Act 3
INT. LIVING ROOM - 21:15
Peter uploads an AI drawing titled "Younger Than That Now..." to a draft on his laptop.
PETER (V.O.): "Ah, but I was so much older then..." Growth isn't linear. Sometimes feeling "younger" means unlearning, not accumulating.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The older I get, the less I carry. Turns out, lightness is the new youth. Growing younger is the real maturity.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But my fire is still there. Quieter somehow. Yesterday's dreams fuel today's "Younger Than That Now".
FADE OUT
END
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