I have always wanted to make faithful conversions of classic sci-fi short stories to comics, leading up to Heinlein's "Space Cadet" novel.  I've actually half-completed Philip K. !@#$'s "Autofac" before the splash page was destroyed by accident and I abandoned the porject entirely.  One that I planned on doing was Fritz Leiber's "Mariana".  I had renewed interest in it because of the unrelated "Marianna" Brickfilm in production.  So last night I scripted the story, keeping it faithful to the original.  (Robert Sheckley's "WARM" is next, which would be awesome visually in Lego.)  Following is the entire script, which translates into about five to six minutes of animation.  Anyone interested in directing a sci-fi brickfilm, you are welcome to use it.  PM me.  I have the script properly formatted and as a PDF.

Also, I did some concept sketches for my never-made "Mariana" comic book.  I want to see if I can find  and post it.  I remember that her hairstyle looked AWESOME.  It made her look pretty cute!

Mariana
Teleplay Written By
Michael Tourette
25 March 2013

Adaptation of
A Short Story By
Fritz Leiber

EXT. VILLA HOME – NIGHT – ESTABLISHING
The house is set on rock, with PINE TREES surrounding it. A single
ROAD extends from the house, disappearing into the trees.

MARIANA (v.o.)
Nothing to look at but pine trees,
day in and day out!

CUT TO:
INT. VILLA HOME LIVING ROOM – DAY

MARIANA is searching behind the FURNITURE. A ROBOT follows behind
her.

MARIANA
There's got to be something else
around here to break up this
monotony!

Mariana finds a CONTROL PANEL COVER in a corner, next to a REGULAR
CONTROL PANEL.

ROBOT
You shouldn't touch controls,
Mariana. You know that you wreck
anything electronic.

Mariana presses a button on the regular control panel. The robot
becomes motionless and silent. As she presses the button, the
control panel cover falls off. Behind it is a SIX-BUTTON REMOTE.
Only the TOP BUTTON is lit.

MARIANA
Man! Robot had to be right!
What's this?

She looks at the remote. Next to each button is a LIGHT-UP DISPLAY.
Next to the lit button is the word “TREES”. The other displays are
unlit.

INT. VILLA HOME KITCHEN – NIGHT

MARIANA and JONATHAN are seated at the KITCHEN TABLE, eating DINNER
being served by ROBOT.

JONATHAN
Of course they're radio trees.
Real ones take decades to grow, if
they could at all on these rocks.

MARIANA
Can you walk through one?

JONATHAN
No. The matter pulses transmitted
from the city are just as real as
this house.

MARIANA
Well, why'd you cover the controls?

JONATHAN
So you don't mess with them. You
know you break anything electronic.
Besides, I like consistency, and I
like pines. I don't want to come
home one day to oaks and the next
to birches. Now eat.

INT. VILLA HOME LIVING ROOM – DAY

MARIANA watches out the FRONT WINDOW, as JONATHAN'S VAN disappears
into the PINE TREES.

CUT TO
INT. VILLA HOME LIVING ROOM – DAY

Mariana returns to the LIGHT-UP DISPLAY. She looks at it.

CLOSE-UP: light-up display, with the word “TREES” still lit.

CUT TO Mariana

Mariana presses the top button. The light turns off, and the second
button lights up. She looks out the window.

CUT TO view out the window. The trees fade away, leaving no
landscape, only the road, and rock spanning to the horizon.

MARIANA
Aw! This is worse! But I can deal
with this.

MONTAGE: Several short cuts featuring Mariana keeping busy:
– Eating Lunch, served by ROBOT.
– Dancing with Robot.
– Watching TV.

DISSOLVE TO Mariana sitting on a COUCH.

MARIANA
I can't take this any more! I'm
bringing back the trees before
Jonathan gets home and finds out.
Mariana returns to the six-button remote and presses the top button
several times, but it won't turn on.

MARIANA
(Panicked.) TURN ON! TURN ON! Aw
man! Jonathan's really going to be
mad now!

EXT. VILLA HOME – DAY

MARIANA is sitting on the FRONT STEPS, waiting, watching the road.

CUT TO the road. Jonathan arrives in the van, parks, and steps out.

JONATHAN
What did you do to the trees?

INT. VILLA HOME KITCHEN – NIGHT
MARIANA and JONATHAN are eating dinner, waited on by ROBOTS.

JONATHAN
You have to live so remotely, I
need those trees to keep me sane.
Now I have to call in a technician.

MARIANA
There's something else, Jonathan.
The second button's marked “house”.

JONATHAN
What? I bought a solid house! I
hope you're wrong and some scammer
didn't sell me a radio house!

Jonathan gets up, pushes aside a Robot in his way, and heads to the
SIX-BUTTON REMOTE. Mariana follows. Jonathan examines the display.

MARIANA
See? It's right there...

Mariana points at the second button too closely. She presses it
accidentally and the light shuts off. The third light turns on.
Suddenly, the entire villa house fades away, including the furniture
and robots. Mariana and Jonathan are surrounded by nothing but ROCK
and a STARRY SKY. The only other object in sight is the six-button
remote, now supported by a POST that was behind the wall that just
disappeared along with the rest of the villa house.

MARIANA
No!

Mariana presses the second button repeatedly, frantically, to no
effect.

JONATHAN
My house! You stupid idiot! I'm
gonna make you pay for this!

Jonathan starts chasing Mariana, hands outstretched like claws.
Mariana shields herself behind the six-button remote and its post.
He chases her around the post until he finally grabs Mariana by the
shoulder and throws her to the ground. Mariana continues to hold the
six-button remote, but she breaks it from the post when she falls.

MARIANA
Jonathan, stop!

Jonathan pins Mariana down. Mariana looks at the six-button remote.
CLOSE-UP on six-button remote. The third button is lit; the word
“JONATHAN” is lit in the corresponding LIGHT-UP DISPLAY.
Mariana promptly presses the button. Jonathan fades into
nothingness. Mariana is alone on barren rock below a STARRY SKY,
holding the six-button remote.

MARIANA
I wonder what does the next button
read?

Mariana looks at the six-button remote.

MARIANA
Stars. Well, I have no problem
with them.

DISSOLVE TO MARIANA, sleeping on ROCK, with the SIX-BUTTON REMOTE
nearby.

DISSOLVE TO MARIANA, standing on ROCK, holding the SIX-BUTTON REMOTE
under a STARRY SKY.

MARIANA
Well, it's almost sunrise, and I
have no idea what else to do, so...

Mariana presses the fourth button on the SIX-BUTTON REMOTE. The
stars vanish. Mariana is left in darkness. Time passes.

MARIANA
What's on the next button? Rock?
Air?

Mariana looks at the SIX-BUTTON REMOTE. The FIFTH BUTTON is off, and
its corresponding DISPLAY is lit with the word “DOCTOR”.

MARIANA
Doctor? I hate doctors! (pause.)
That's funny. The button's not
lit. Well, I'm not pressing that
one!

Mariana puts the six-button remote down on the rock, steps away, and
sits down.

CAPTION: “Hours later...”

MARIANA is still sitting in darkness.

MARIANA
Where are you, sun? Oh, wait. I
just realized: you're a star, too.
So you're never coming out. I have
no choice.

Mariana returns to the SIX-BUTTON REMOTE, takes it, and sits on the
rock. She presses the fifth button. The button lights up. Suddenly
the rock beneath her dissolves into a hospital bed, and she is
enveloped into a clinically clean hospital room with a CLOSED DOOR to
one side. The voice of a female THERAPIST is heard on the INTERCOM.
CLOSE-UP on intercom.

THERAPIST (v.o.)
You have chosen to interrupt your
wish fulfillment therapy,
indicating your acceptance of your
chronic depression. If you
acknowledge the need to accept
help, stand by, and a doctor will
be with you immediately.
Otherwise, you may resume your wish
fulfillment therapy and pursue it to its
inevitable conclusion.

The door opens. A male DOCTOR starts to walk in.

DOCTOR
Hello, Mariana. I'm here to help
you with your depression.

MARIANA
(Frightened.) No! I don't want
anyone's help!

Mariana looks at the six-button remote.

CLOSE-UP on remote. The fifth button is still lit, as is the word
“DOCTOR” in its corresponding display.

CUT TO Mariana.

MARIANA
Turn off, Doctor!

She presses the button. The light on the button shuts off and the
sixth button lights up. The doctor and hospital fade away, and
Mariana is again seated in the darkness on rock under a starless sky.
She remains seated there for some time.

CAPTION: “Hours Later...”

MARIANA is still in the darkness, holding the SIX-BUTTON REMOTE.

MARIANA
I'm cold. I'm scared. I'm in the
middle of nowhere.

Mariana looks at the remote.

CLOSE-UP on remote. The sixth button is lit. The corresponding
display is lit. It reads, “MARIANA”.

THE END.

Last edited by HoldingOurOwn (March 26, 2013 (07:35am))