RECALL
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INTENT DAS
Director's Annotated Screenplay
Pre-Production Draft
Written by Liana Marie Sive
Cinematographer: Eugene B. Sive, Jr.
Pattern Films
January 2026
RECALL: INTENT DAS
Director's Annotated Screenplay --- Pre-Production Draft
Film: RECALL
Writer/Director: Liana Marie Sive
Cinematographer: Eugene B. Sive, Jr.
Production Company: Pattern Films
Document Type: Intent DAS (Pre-Location, Pre-Cast)
Version: 1.0
Date: January 2026
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PREFACE: WHAT THIS DOCUMENT IS
This is not an Execution DAS. An Execution DAS requires actors,
locations, and sets --- it specifies exact camera positions, blocking,
lens choices, and lighting plots.
This is an Intent DAS. It establishes:
• What each scene is FOR --- its function in the film's visual
and emotional architecture
• How scenes relate to each other --- the rhymes, mirrors, and
callbacks that create coherence
• The visual grammar --- the rules that govern how meaning is
communicated through image
• The pattern's manifestation --- where and how 1638 appears, and
what it means when it does
When locations are scouted and actors are cast, the Execution DAS will
flow from this document. Every blocking choice, every lens selection,
every lighting setup will be in service of the intent established here.
For Gene: This document answers "why" before we answer "how."
Read it before questioning any scene's purpose.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I: VISUAL GRAMMAR
• 1.1 The Governing Principle
• 1.2 The Four Modes of Seeing
• 1.3 The Visual Hierarchy
• 1.4 The Aspect Ratio
PART II: THE PATTERN'S MANIFESTATION
• 2.1 What 1638 Is
• 2.2 Where 1638 Appears
• 2.3 The Wall as Altar
• 2.4 The Equation as Resolution
• 2.5 What's Under the Floor
PART III: SCENE RELATIONSHIPS
• 3.1 The Rhyme Structure
• 3.2 Primary Rhymes
• 3.3 Secondary Echoes
PART IV: LIGHT LOGIC
• 4.1 The Four Lights
• 4.2 Light Transitions Through Three Acts
PART V: COMPOSITIONAL PRINCIPLES
• 5.1 Camera as Moral Position
• 5.2 The Down-Look
• 5.3 The Fourth Wall
PART VI: SCENE-BY-SCENE INTENT
• All scenes, Act One through Act Three
APPENDICES
• A: The King of Hearts Transmission
• B: Questions This DAS Does Not Answer
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PART I: VISUAL GRAMMAR
1.1 THE GOVERNING PRINCIPLE
RECALL is a film about perception --- specifically, about what it
costs to see what others walk past, and what happens when that
perception transmits from one person to another.
The visual grammar must therefore accomplish two things:
1. Show the audience what Gil sees --- the details, the patterns,
the things hiding in plain sight
2. Track the transmission of perception --- from Gil to Elena to
Destiny to the audience
Every camera position, every lighting choice, every composition answers
the question: Who is seeing, and what are they seeing?
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1.2 THE FOUR MODES OF SEEING
The film operates in four distinct visual modes. These correspond to
four different relationships between character and environment --- and
four ways the camera can tell the truth.
MODE A: OBSESSION
Visual signature: Single-source lighting. Darkness surrounding a pool of
focus. Close angles. The world reduced to the object of attention.
Used for: Gil at the wall. Gil examining documents. Gil measuring. Any
moment where a character has narrowed their vision to a single point.
What it communicates: The cost of seeing. The tunnel. The way obsession
excludes everything else --- including the people who love you.
Key scenes: 1 (The Wall), 9 (Gil's Office), 26 (The Discovery), 32
(Storage Unit)
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MODE B: INSTITUTIONAL
Visual signature: Overhead fluorescent lighting. Flat, even illumination
that eliminates shadow. Wide angles that emphasize the geometry of
rooms. Characters as figures within systems.
Used for: Council chambers. The clinic. Municipal offices. Any space
where bureaucracy operates.
What it communicates: The system's indifference. The way institutions
flatten individuals into functions. The ugliness of power that doesn't
need to hide.
Key scenes: 7 (Installation), 23 (Council Meeting), 28 (Emergency
Session), 38 (Clinic), 50 (State Report)
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MODE C: PERCEPTION
Visual signature: Golden hour. Natural light. Stillness. Characters
alone with what they're seeing. Often exterior. The camera as witness
rather than participant.
Used for: Moments of awakening. Moments where a character sees something
they cannot unsee.
What it communicates: The transfer point. The instant before everything
changes. Beauty and dread coexisting.
Key scenes: 15A (Bank Steps), 17 (Elena's Basement), 54A (Destiny's
Steps)
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MODE D: DOCUMENTARY
Visual signature: New Mexico daylight --- harsh, clear, unforgiving.
Minimal stylization. Procedural coverage that feels earned rather than
staged.
Used for: Evidence becoming public: Oak Street exteriors, water
sampling, press conference, state presence. Any moment where the film
stops arguing and starts proving.
What it communicates: Reality that cannot be denied. The world in
which institutions must respond --- even if only with delays, reports,
and recommendations.
Key scenes: 6 (Aguaverde Establishing), 35 (Water Test), 40 (Press
Conference), 44 (Escalation), 50 (State Report)
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• Insert shots that isolate what Gil notices
• Rack focus that shifts attention from the "normal" subject to
the detail
• Held frames that give the audience time to scan and find what
Gil has found
By the end of the film, the audience should be looking at frames the way
Gil looks at rooms.
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1.4 THE ASPECT RATIO
2.39:1 (Anamorphic Widescreen)
The wide frame accomplishes several things:
1. Horizontal emphasis --- Documents, walls, tables, steps all
read as horizontal surfaces. The wide frame makes the paper trail
cinematic.
2. Isolation through negative space --- A single figure in 2.39:1
is visually alone even in a crowded room. Gil's isolation is
geometric.
3. The conspiracy board --- The wall NEEDS the width. In 1.85:1,
the wall is a prop. In 2.39:1, the wall is an environment.
4. New Mexico --- The landscape demands width. The Manzanos, the
baseline wind, the enormity of the desert against human-scale drama.
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PART II: THE PATTERN'S MANIFESTATION
2.1 WHAT 1638 IS
1638 is not a MacGuffin. It is not a clue. It is not a code to be
cracked.
1638 is the shape of grief.
Rosa Elena Padilla was case #1638 in the RECA system. She was denied
four times. She died filling out her fifth application. Her son Gil
inherited the case file and the number became the container for loss
that had no other form.
When Gil sees 1638 in an invoice, a permit number, a timestamp, a
storage unit --- he is not finding a conspiracy. He is finding his
mother. He is finding the moment the government told her that her cancer
was not their fault.
The film's visual treatment of 1638 must honor this: **the number is
sacred, not sinister**.
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2.2 WHERE 1638 APPEARS
The number manifests in three registers:
EXPLICIT (Visible, Readable)
• Rosa's denial letter: "CASE #1638"
• Storage unit number: "1638"
• Invoice amounts: $16,380 / $32,760 / $49,140 / $81,900 (all
multiples)
• Elena's address: "1638 Oak Street" (if used)
• The timestamp: 4:16:38 AM (the earthquake)
• The distance Gil measures: 16.38 miles along the baseline
Visual treatment: These should be READABLE but not HIGHLIGHTED. The
camera should not push in dramatically. The audience should have to look
for it --- or notice it retroactively.
STRUCTURAL (Pattern in the Math)
• 1638 ÷ 43 = 38 remainder 4 (the four denials)
• 42 × 39 = 1638 (the storage combination)
• The invoice unit price: $16,380
• The clinic overpayment: $3,800 (38 × 100)
Visual treatment: The math should be SHOWN being done. Gil's hand
writing on index cards. The equation on the wall. The audience sees the
process, not just the result.
SUBLIMINAL (Frequency)
• Scene 16 occurs at 38 minutes (approximately)
• Scene 43 is "Dolores's Choice" --- the climactic confession
• The film's internal rhythm follows 1-6-3-8 in the narrative
structure
Visual treatment: This is felt, not seen. The audience will not
consciously register this. It operates below perception.
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2.3 THE WALL AS ALTAR
The conspiracy wall is not a prop. It is the film's visual thesis.
What the wall contains:
• Center: Rosa's denial letter ("CLAIM DENIED --- CASE #1638"),
framed, glass cracked
• Below center: Rosa's photograph, the crack running through her face
• Surrounding: Newspaper clippings, government forms, permit
applications, photographs with faces circled
• Connecting: Red string between pushpins, mapping relationships only
Gil can see
• The map: New Mexico, colored pins marking locations, Trinity site
and baseline wind implicit
• The Geiger counter on a shelf below, labeled "ROSA"
How the wall changes:
• Scene 1: The wall is complete, dense, overwhelming
• Scene 9: A new board begins at Gil's office --- the pattern
spreading
• Scene 27: The earthquake shakes pins loose, papers fall --- the wall
wounded
• Scene 55: The wall is rebuilt, the equation at center: 1638 ÷ 43 =
38 r 4
What the wall means:
The wall is Gil's attempt to make visible what the system hides. It is
also his prison. He is both its architect and its captive. The wall is
grief made physical --- and grief that has become architecture cannot be
moved out of.
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2.4 THE EQUATION AS RESOLUTION
The final image of the wall contains the completed equation:
1638 ÷ 43 = 38 remainder 4
This is not a plot reveal. The audience will not "solve" anything by
seeing this math. The equation is emotional resolution:
• 38 is the quotient --- the "clean" number, the years of Gil's
life spent carrying this
• 4 is the remainder --- Rosa's four denials, the wound that won't
divide evenly
The remainder is what's left over. The part that doesn't fit. The
thing the system cannot process.
Gil carried his mother in every number. The equation proves it was
always there.
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2.5 WHAT'S UNDER THE FLOOR
This is the film's hidden thesis, revealed in Act Three.
The investigation appears to be about:
• Falsified invoices (paper)
• Injection wells (water)
• Corrupt officials (people)
But the truth is geological:
**Trinity test (1945) → fallout → baseline wind → settling ponds → fill
sand (1960s) → foundations → every house on Oak Street → Gil's
trailer**
The fill sand used for foundations along the baseline came from settling
ponds that collected fallout carried by prevailing winds from the
Trinity test site. They drained the ponds in the sixties and sold the
sand cheap. Nobody asked where it came from.
The injection wells didn't CREATE the contamination. They CRACKED THE
SLABS. The cracks let what was always underneath come up.
Why this matters for the ending:
When the camera descends through Gil's floor into the crawlspace, we
see "raw sand, foundation fill." The Geiger counter clicks. This is
not a mysterious tag. This is CONFIRMATION of what Gil explained in
Scene 54:
• The fill sand is radioactive
• It's under every foundation on the baseline
• It's under Gil's trailer
• It's been there since before Gil was born
• Rosa knew. Nobody would test. Nobody would look.
Trinity isn't history. It's geology. It's still ticking beneath their
feet.
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PART III: SCENE RELATIONSHIPS
3.1 THE RHYME STRUCTURE
Certain scenes exist in pairs. They share visual grammar, compositional
logic, and thematic function. The second scene in each pair is only
meaningful because the first scene established the pattern.
Understanding these rhymes is essential.
If 15A and 54A are shot with different visual logic, the rhyme is broken
and 54A becomes meaningless. They must be shot as a pair --- same light,
same composition, different subject.
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3.2 PRIMARY RHYMES
RHYME A: THE STEPS (15A ↔︎ 54A)
Scene 15A: Bank Steps --- "The Public Embarrassment"
• Gil crouches on worn stone steps, measuring with ruler
• Destiny stands behind him, arms crossed, watching passersby watch
her father
• Golden hour light
• She is embarrassed. She is watching HIM, not the steps.
• He is looking DOWN at the missing rail.
Scene 54A: Destiny's Apartment Steps --- "The Conversion"
• Destiny alone, approaching her own steps
• Same golden hour light
• She is looking DOWN now --- at a hairline crack in the concrete
• Her hand hovers where a rail should be (echo of 15A's missing rail)
• She stops. Pockets her keys. Turns away from entrance.
• She cannot go home. She sees it now.
The rhyme: Same composition, same light. But Destiny has moved from
watching Gil (embarrassed) to seeing what Gil sees (converted). The
transmission is complete.
CRITICAL: These scenes must be shot as a VISUAL PAIR. Same time of
day. Same camera angle on the steps. Same focal length. The only
difference is who is looking down.
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RHYME B: THE COUNCIL CHAMBER (7 ↔︎ 28)
Scene 7: Installation
• Fluorescent institutional light
• Gil installed as mayor
• Wade announces "43 votes"
• Sandra's legal pad shows "42"
• Dolores knitting in the back, watching
• Gil is the subject of the room's attention
Scene 28: Emergency Session
• Same fluorescent light, same room
• Gil now controls the room
• Invoices spread across dais
• Elena holds up the jug of brown water
• Gil is no longer the subject --- the EVIDENCE is
• The room's attention has shifted to what he sees
The rhyme: Same room, same light, opposite power dynamic. Gil enters
the system as its curiosity; he commands the system by making it look at
what he looks at.
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RHYME C: THE WALL (1 ↔︎ 55)
Scene 1: The Wall --- Opening
• Darkness. Lamp clicks on.
• The wall revealed: dense, complete, overwhelming
• Gil touches Rosa's photograph
• He writes "1638 ÷ 43 =" on an index card but doesn't finish
• The equation is incomplete
• A pushpin falls (the tremor foreshadowed)
Scene 55: The Fourth Wall --- Closing
• The wall rebuilt after the earthquake
• At center: the completed equation (1638 ÷ 43 = 38 r 4)
• Gil looks at the equation, then at Rosa
• His eyes find the camera: "Did you see it?"
• Camera descends through floor into crawlspace
The rhyme: The wall opens and closes the film. The equation moves
from incomplete to complete. Gil's gaze moves from inward (at the wall)
to outward (at us).
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RHYME D: THE DIG (9 ↔︎ CRAWLSPACE)
Scene 9: Gil's Office
• Gil begins a NEW wall --- the pattern spreading from home to work
• He circles numbers on invoices: $16,380
• He is digging INTO paper
• Surface investigation: documents, permits, signatures
Scene 55: Crawlspace Reveal
• Camera descends THROUGH the floor
• Beneath the trailer: raw sand, foundation fill
• The Geiger counter clicks
• He was digging in the wrong direction. It was always below.
The rhyme: The investigation begins on paper and ends in earth. The
truth was never in the documents --- it was under the floor. Under every
floor.
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RHYME E: THE JUG (28 ↔︎ 40)
Scene 28: Emergency Session
• Elena holds up jug of brown water at council meeting
• The image that cannot be spun
• Local audience, hostile council
Scene 40: Press Conference
• Elena holds the same jug beside Gil at press conference
• Same prop, same woman
• Now: state media, official report, vindication
The rhyme: The jug is the visual throughline of Elena's arc. Same
evidence, different power dynamic. The first time it's accusation; the
second time it's proof.
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3.3 SECONDARY ECHOES
These are not exact rhymes but visual/thematic callbacks:
• The crack: Rosa's photo glass (Scene 1) ↔︎ Elena's basement
(Scene 17) ↔︎ Destiny's steps (Scene 54A) --- the crack as motif,
different scales of the same wound
• Brown water: Elena's jug ↔︎ basement seepage ↔︎ implied in every
Oak Street tap
• The legal pad: Sandra's "42" (Scene 7) ↔︎ found later as
evidence of Dolores's intervention
• Red string: Gil's wall ↔︎ metaphorically in Tommy's storage
unit documentation (the institutional version of obsession)
• The Geiger counter: Labeled "ROSA" in Scene 1, explained in
Scene 54, activated in Scene 55
• Untouched food: Destiny's Mesa Swirl (Scene 15) = relationship
frozen
• Looking down: Gil at steps (15A), Elena at crack (17), Gil at
floor (54), Destiny at crack (54A), camera through floor (55)
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PART IV: LIGHT LOGIC
4.1 THE FOUR LIGHTS
LIGHT A: SINGLE SOURCE (Obsession)
• One lamp, one window, one shaft
• Everything else in darkness
• Used for: Wall scenes, document examination, storage unit interior,
trailer night scenes
• Emotional register: Tunnel vision, cost of seeing, isolation
LIGHT B: FLUORESCENT (Institutional)
• Overhead, flat, green-tinged
• No shadows, no escape
• Used for: Council chambers, clinic, municipal offices, Desert Freeze
• Emotional register: System indifference, bureaucratic horror,
ugliness of power
LIGHT C: GOLDEN HOUR (Perception)
• Magic hour, warm, horizontal rays
• Natural, exterior or window-source
• Used for: Steps scenes (15A, 54A), key emotional beats, awakening
moments
• Emotional register: Awakening, beauty-and-dread, the transfer moment
LIGHT D: NEW MEXICO DAY (Documentary)
• Harsh, clear, unforgiving
• The light that hides nothing
• Used for: Oak Street exteriors, press conference, Elena's basement
(daylight through crack)
• Emotional register: Reality that cannot be denied, evidence in
daylight
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4.2 LIGHT TRANSITIONS THROUGH THREE ACTS
ACT ONE: Dominated by SINGLE SOURCE and FLUORESCENT
• Gil in his world (darkness + lamp) vs. the system's world
(fluorescent)
• Two incompatible visual modes, two incompatible realities
• The audience is learning to see like Gil
ACT TWO: Increasing DOCUMENTARY light
• The investigation moves outdoors: Oak Street, Elena's basement,
storage unit
• Daylight = evidence. What was hidden comes into harsh clarity.
• The pattern spreads from Gil's wall to the world
ACT THREE: GOLDEN HOUR returns + descent into DARKNESS
• The perception scenes: Destiny at her steps, emotional resolution
• Beauty returns, but it's the beauty of seeing what cannot be unseen
• Final scene: Single source (wall) → darkness (crawlspace) → Geiger
clicks
The film ends where it began --- in focused darkness --- but now we know
what's in the dark.
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PART V: COMPOSITIONAL PRINCIPLES
5.1 CAMERA AS MORAL POSITION
Where the camera stands is a statement about whose perception matters.
WITH GIL: Camera close, often over-shoulder or POV-adjacent. We see
what he sees. We are complicit in his obsession.
WITH THE SYSTEM: Camera wide, often static. Characters are figures
in institutional geometry. We observe from outside.
WITH DESTINY: Camera begins distant from her (she is observer of
Gil) and moves closer as she inherits his perception. By 54A, we are
WITH her the way we were with Gil.
WITH ELENA: Camera at her level, in her space. Her basement, her
kitchen. We are guests in her suffering.
WITH WADE: Camera gives him distance and respect. He is not a
villain to be exposed; he is a man to be understood. Wide shots that
show his context --- the town he's trying to hold together.
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5.2 THE DOWN-LOOK
A key compositional element: characters looking DOWN.
• Gil looks down at steps, documents, cracks, the floor
• Elena looks down at her water, her basement
• Destiny looks down at her own steps (54A)
• The camera looks down through the floor (55)
Looking down = seeing what is hidden in plain sight. Looking down =
refusing the normal sightline. Looking down = where the bodies are
buried.
The audience should be trained to anticipate revelation when a
character's gaze drops.
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5.3 THE FOURTH WALL
Gil's final look at the camera is not a gimmick. It is the thesis.
For the entire film, the audience has been watching. We have been
observers --- of Gil, of the system, of the investigation. We have been
safe.
"Did you see it?" turns the camera into a mirror.
The question is not rhetorical. The question is: **What did you notice?
What did you walk past? What is under YOUR steps?**
Destiny already answered. She saw it. She couldn't go home.
The question now passes to the only people who haven't been tested: us.
Staging: Gil's turn to camera should be SLOW. Not a snap. A drift.
As if he suddenly remembers we're here. As if he's been talking to
himself and realizes he has an audience.
The camera holds. He turns back to the wall. Five seconds. Ten.
Then we descend.
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PART VI: SCENE-BY-SCENE INTENT
HOW TO READ THIS SECTION
For each scene, this section provides:
• FUNCTION: What the scene accomplishes in the film's
architecture
• VISUAL MODE: Which of the modes
(Obsession/Institutional/Perception/Documentary) governs
• KEY IMAGES: The frames that must land
• RELATIONSHIPS: How this scene connects to others
• WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN: Common mistakes that would undermine
intent
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ACT ONE
SCENE 1: THE WALL
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Establish Gil's world. Establish the wall as environment.
Plant the incomplete equation. Introduce Rosa and the Geiger counter.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source)
KEY IMAGES:
• Darkness, then lamp click --- the wall revealed in sections as light
spreads
• The cracked glass over Rosa's photo (the crack runs through her
face)
• Gil's hand touching her face through the crack
• The Geiger counter on the shelf, labeled "ROSA"
• The index card: "1638 ÷ 43 =" --- unfinished
• Gil writing: "16.38 miles" --- the baseline distance
• A pushpin falling (the faint tremor --- earthquake foreshadowed)
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Rhymes with Scene 55 (wall complete, equation complete)
• The crack in Rosa's photo echoes Elena's basement crack (Scene 17)
and Destiny's step crack (54A)
• The Geiger counter planted here pays off in Scene 55
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• The wall cannot look "movie crazy" --- no thriller aesthetic with
dramatic red string everywhere
• This is ORGANIZED obsession. Gil is methodical. The wall has logic.
• Do NOT score this scene with tension music. Silence and ambient
sound only.
• The pushpin falling should be subtle --- not emphasized, just
noticed.
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SCENE 2: THE PODCAST --- FLASHBACK/AUDIO
OVER BLACK / INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- DAY --- FLASHBACK (2019)
FUNCTION: Establish Gil's history. The podcast that went viral. The
public shame that preceded the story.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (archival quality for flashback)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil at microphone, younger, focused
• The document he holds up: Trinity timestamp
• His face as he says "sixteen thirty-eight"
• The intimacy of podcast recording --- headphones, close mic
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Establishes the "before" that the present-day story responds to
• The podcast is why people know Gil, why Destiny is embarrassed, why
Wade is suspicious
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this look professional/slick. This is a guy in a trailer
with a USB microphone.
• The flashback visual quality should be slightly different ---
warmer, grainier --- marking it as past.
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SCENE 3: ONLINE REACTION --- MONTAGE
QUICK CUTS --- SCREENS
FUNCTION: Show the viral spread and public mockery. Establish
Destiny's position relative to Gil's notoriety.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (screen capture aesthetic)
KEY IMAGES:
• Reddit post mocking Gil
• YouTube comment: "genius or insane"
• News chyron: "LOCAL MAN'S CONSPIRACY PODCAST"
• Destiny ambushed outside hospital --- "He's not dangerous. He just
sees things."
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Destiny's "he sees things" is the thesis of the film --- planted
here as embarrassed defense, paid off when she inherits the gift
• The mockery establishes what Gil is up against
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT show real social media platforms if rights are an issue
• Destiny's interview should feel AMBUSHED, not staged
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SCENE 4: GIL'S TRAILER --- PRESENT
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Bridge from past to present. Gil's rules for being mayor.
The suppression of self.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil looking at printout of Destiny's interview, then putting it in
drawer
• The index card: "RULES FOR BEING MAYOR"
• The rules themselves --- "Don't mention 1-6-3-8," "Be boring,"
"Win by being boring"
• His unconvinced face as he says "Boring."
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The rules will be broken systematically throughout the film
• "Don't mention Mom" is the rule most impossible to follow
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This should feel like a man negotiating with himself, not performing
for the audience
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SCENE 5: MORNING --- THE DRIVE
EXT. NEW MEXICO HIGHWAY --- DAY
FUNCTION: Transition to Aguaverde. Establish landscape. Gil's
relationship with Rosa continues.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (New Mexico light)
KEY IMAGES:
• The truck on the empty highway --- the scale of the landscape
• The binder on the seat (thick, tabbed)
• Rosa's photo on the sun visor
• Gil talking to the photo: "Forty-three votes, Mom."
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The binder will be Gil's constant companion
• Rosa's photo travels with him --- the altar is mobile
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT score with road trip music
• The silence and wind are the soundtrack
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SCENE 6: AGUAVERDE --- ESTABLISHING
EXT. NEW MEXICO HIGHWAY / EXT. AGUAVERDE --- MAIN STREET --- DAY
FUNCTION: Establish the town. Visual vocabulary of place.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (golden morning light, harsh clarity)
KEY IMAGES:
• The wind --- "It doesn't just blow here, it delivers"
• The baseline wind along the mountains (this is the fallout path ---
planted visually)
• Desert Freeze, hardware store, church marquee
• Adobe vs. cinder block --- the town's economic history visible
• Water tower: "AGUAVERDE --- EST. 1923" --- "Green water" as
memory
• Town Hall: 1970s brown brick, flag limp
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The baseline wind is crucial --- it's the delivery system for
fallout
• Desert Freeze will be a recurring location
• The water tower name is ironic --- the water is no longer green
(safe)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make the town look charming or quaint
• This is a place that exists because it always has --- endurance, not
charm
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SCENE 7: THE INSTALLATION
INT. TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBER --- DAY
FUNCTION: Gil enters the system. Establish Wade, Sandra, Dolores.
Plant the 42/43 discrepancy.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Wide shot: Gil small before the dais, fluorescent lights buzzing
• Wade at center --- confidence, not malice
• Sandra's legal pad: "42" clearly visible (not insert shot, just
visible)
• Dolores in back, knitting, watching everything --- slight smile
• Wade saying "forty-three" while we've seen "42"
• Gil's first request: water quality testing, injection wells
• The room shifting --- "something in the air changes"
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Rhymes with Scene 28 (same room, Gil in control)
• The "42" plants the seed for Dolores's confession in Act Three
• Gil's immediate ask about water signals he's not here to be boring
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make Wade sinister. He's competent, territorial, but not
evil.
• Sandra's hesitation at "42" should be MICRO --- not a dramatic
beat
• Dolores's smile should be ambiguous --- we don't know why yet
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SCENE 8: THE HALLWAY
INT. TOWN HALL --- HALLWAY --- CONTINUOUS
FUNCTION: First encounter with Sandra. Her genuine helpfulness and
the limits of her position.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent corridor)
KEY IMAGES:
• The hallway --- institutional beige, framed photos of past mayors
• Sandra offering genuine assistance
• Her office door: "TOWN MANAGER"
• Gil's awareness of being watched/evaluated
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Sandra is not an antagonist --- she's trapped in the system too
• Her helpfulness will become important as she provides access
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Sandra should not seem suspicious or evasive
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SCENE 9: GIL'S OFFICE
INT. GIL'S OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: The pattern spreads from trailer to workplace. Gil begins
the investigation.
VISUAL MODE: Mixed (fluorescent office + single source focus on
documents)
KEY IMAGES:
• The new board starting: index cards on the wall
• Rosa's photo --- now in his WORK space
• Invoice: $16,380.00 circled in red
• Insert card: "COINCIDENCE?"
• His mother's photo watching from the desk
• The shift in lighting as he focuses on documents (fluorescent dims,
focus narrows)
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Echoes Scene 1 (wall beginning anew)
• The invoices found here pay off in Scene 28 (spread across dais)
• Rhymes with Scene 55's crawlspace --- investigation begins in
paper, ends in earth
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This is not a "beautiful mind" scene. No montage of swirling
connections.
• Simple: man, documents, red pen. The horror is in the ordinary.
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SCENE 10: THE RECORDS REQUEST
INT. TOWN HALL --- RECORDS ROOM --- DAY
FUNCTION: Gil encounters bureaucratic resistance. The first hint
that records are incomplete.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent, cramped archive space)
KEY IMAGES:
• The records room --- boxes, files, dust
• The clerk's polite obstruction
• Missing files, gaps in the record
• Gil's patience fraying but holding
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The missing records foreshadow the storage unit reveal
• Gil's method: polite, persistent, documented
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• The obstruction should seem routine, not conspiratorial
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SCENE 11: WADE'S OFFICE
INT. WADE'S OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: Establish Wade's position and pressure. His relationship
to Rayborn. His wife Caroline.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (nicer office, but still fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Family photos --- Wade and Caroline
• The calendar with doctor's appointments (marked in red)
• Wade on the phone --- we hear only his side
• The weight he carries
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Caroline's illness is Wade's vulnerability --- explains his
choices
• Rayborn connection established indirectly
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make Wade a mustache-twirler. He's a man trying to hold
things together.
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SCENE 12: THE PODCAST --- GIL RECORDING
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Gil's internal struggle. The pull to return to the
pattern publicly.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source, microphone glow)
KEY IMAGES:
• Microphone ready but not recording
• Gil's face in the glow
• His finger hovering over record button
• He doesn't press it
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The podcast is his addiction --- the temptation to explain publicly
• He's following his own "rules" --- barely
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• He should look TEMPTED, not just contemplative
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SCENE 13: WADE'S HOUSE
INT. WADE'S HOUSE --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Wade at home. Caroline. The human cost of his compromise.
VISUAL MODE: Domestic (warm but strained --- practicals, not
fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Caroline, visibly unwell but present
• Wade attending to her
• The ordinary tenderness of long marriage
• Medical equipment visible but not emphasized
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Caroline is why Wade protects Rayborn --- they pay for her treatment
• Wade is not evil; he made a choice
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT sentimentalize the illness
• Do NOT make Caroline a prop --- she has agency
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SCENE 14: DESTINY'S APARTMENT
INT. DESTINY'S APARTMENT --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Establish Destiny's world separate from Gil. Her work,
her distance.
VISUAL MODE: Domestic (practical lighting, lived-in)
KEY IMAGES:
• Scrubs from work
• Her phone --- Gil's name on a missed call
• The distance she's chosen
• Her own life, her own space
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Contrast with Gil's trailer --- she has normalcy
• The phone she ignores will ring again
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Her apartment should not look lonely --- it should look chosen
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SCENE 15: DESERT FREEZE --- DESTINY AND GIL
INT. DESERT FREEZE --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Emotional core of father-daughter relationship. The binder
as barrier. The untouched dessert as symbol.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (commercial fluorescent --- warmer than
government, sadder)
KEY IMAGES:
• Wide: Gil and Destiny across booth, binder on table between them
• Her untouched Mesa Swirl (mint chip)
• "Home of the Mesa Swirl" sign (neon, flickering)
• Her exhaustion vs. his focus
• The binder as third presence at the table
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Leads directly into 15A
• The Mesa Swirl becomes a callback (sponsor gag, but also symbol:
untouched = frozen relationship)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This is NOT expository --- they're not catching each other up
• The binder should feel like an intrusion
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SCENE 15A: THE BANK STEPS
EXT. FIRST STATE BANK --- DAY
FUNCTION: Visualize Gil's obsession as public cost. Plant the steps
image for 54A payoff. The "King of Hearts" thesis moment.
VISUAL MODE: Perception (golden hour)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil crouched on stone steps, ruler extended
• Destiny standing behind, arms crossed, jaw tight
• Passersby watching --- woman with stroller, businessman
• The worn steps, subtly wrong (missing center rail)
• Destiny looking at GIL, not the steps --- she sees the cost
• Gil's line: "If they'll cheat in daylight---imagine what they'll
bury under a slab."
RELATIONSHIPS:
• PRIMARY RHYME with Scene 54A (same composition, Destiny now looking
DOWN)
• "What they'll bury under a slab" foreshadows the fill sand reveal
• Gil looks UP at missing rail; Destiny will look DOWN at crack
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT shoot handheld. Golden hour stillness.
• Destiny must NOT look at the steps. She watches HIM.
• The steps must be subtly wrong, not dramatically broken.
CRITICAL: Shoot at same time of day, same angle, same focal length
as Scene 54A.
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SCENE 13B: WADE'S HOUSE --- THE WEIGHT
INT. WADE'S HOUSE --- KITCHEN --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Wade alone with his burden. The jobs, the families, the
math he does.
VISUAL MODE: Domestic (single source --- kitchen light)
KEY IMAGES:
• Wade at sink, not turning on the water
• His face in the window reflection
• Counting on his fingers: "Martinez. Garcia. Salazar..."
• The weight of 47 families depending on Rayborn
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Humanizes Wade before he becomes antagonist
• The math he does mirrors Gil's math --- both counting
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this sympathetic at the expense of accountability
• The point is: his reasons are real AND his choices are wrong
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SCENE 17: ELENA'S HOUSE --- THE BASEMENT
INT. ELENA'S HOUSE --- BASEMENT --- DAY
FUNCTION: Physical evidence. The town is literally cracking.
Introduce Elena as ally.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (harsh light through crack) + Obsession
(Gil's phone flashlight)
KEY IMAGES:
• The crack: floor to ceiling, DAYLIGHT visible through it
• Gil photographing with phone --- the screen showing earthquake app
• Elena on the stairs, watching --- fear becoming action
• The water stain below the crack
• The crack as wound --- the same wound as Rosa's photo
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Echoes the crack in Rosa's photo glass
• The daylight through the crack = contamination made visible
• Pays forward to the jug scene (water as evidence)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make Elena hysterical. She is TIRED. She's been complaining
for two years.
• The crack should be REAL SCALE --- not movie-dramatic. Terrifying
because ordinary.
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SCENE 18: ELENA'S HOUSE --- THE KITCHEN
INT. ELENA'S HOUSE --- KITCHEN --- CONTINUOUS
FUNCTION: Elena's history. The timeline of complaints. Her
exhaustion and determination.
VISUAL MODE: Domestic + Documentary
KEY IMAGES:
• Kitchen table covered with her own documentation
• Photos, letters to the city, records of calls
• The brown water --- she shows him
• Elena's face: "Nobody looks."
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Elena is the first convert --- she already sees
• Her documentation mirrors Gil's wall (civilians building cases)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Elena should not be a victim waiting for rescue --- she's been
fighting alone
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SCENE 19: GIL'S TRAILER --- THE PATTERN
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Gil connects Elena's evidence to the pattern. The board
grows.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil adding Elena's information to the wall
• The connections forming
• New string, new pins
• The pattern spreading
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The wall grows --- the investigation incorporates civilian evidence
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT show Gil having a "eureka" moment. The connections are
gradual.
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SCENE 20: THE NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING
INT. COMMUNITY CENTER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: The Oak Street residents organized. Multiple testimonies.
The scope of the problem.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (community center fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Folding chairs, coffee urns
• Multiple families testifying --- brown water, cracks, health issues
• Gil listening, taking notes
• Elena leading --- she's been organizing
• Wade entering late, observing from back
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The community becomes a collective character
• Wade's presence signals the system is watching
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this a town hall shouting match
• These are tired people sharing what happened --- not performing
outrage
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SCENE 21: AFTER THE MEETING
EXT. COMMUNITY CENTER --- PARKING LOT --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: First direct confrontation between Gil and Wade.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (parking lot lights, harsh)
KEY IMAGES:
• Wade approaching Gil's truck
• The conversation --- civil but tense
• Wade's warning: "You're in over your head"
• Gil's response: "I've been under it my whole life"
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Establishes the battle lines
• Gil's line foreshadows the fill sand reveal --- literally under it
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This should not feel like movie confrontation --- it's a parking
lot talk
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SCENE 22: THE TREMOR
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: The earth responds. Minor earthquake. Tension building.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source, then disrupted)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil at the wall, studying
• The trailer shakes --- minor but real
• Items rattle, papers shift
• Phone alert: small earthquake registered
• Gil looks at the Geiger counter
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Foreshadows Scene 27 (the 4.1)
• The earth is unstable --- literally and metaphorically
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This is a 3.0-ish tremor --- noticeable, not destructive
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SCENE 23: THE COUNCIL MEETING
INT. TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Gil's first attempt to raise the issues formally.
Procedural resistance.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil at the podium with evidence
• Council's polite dismissal
• Wade controlling the room
• Sandra's notes --- what gets recorded, what doesn't
• Public comment time running out
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The system's way of not looking --- procedures that prevent
examination
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Gil should not lose his temper --- he's being strategic, not
explosive
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SCENE 24: THE PARKING LOT
EXT. TOWN HALL --- PARKING LOT --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Post-meeting. Gil and Elena. Strategy.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (parking lot lights)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil and Elena talking by her car
• The jug of brown water she brought --- didn't get to show it
• Planning the next move
• Solidarity forming
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Elena and Gil becoming allies
• The jug will get its moment in Scene 28
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This should feel practical, not inspirational
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SCENE 25: THE SECOND BOX OF RECORDS
INT. TOWN HALL --- RECORDS ROOM --- DAY
FUNCTION: Gil finds anomalies in the financial records. The invoice
pattern emerges.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional + Obsession (as he focuses)
KEY IMAGES:
• Boxes of financial records
• Gil's method: systematic, patient
• The invoices: amounts that are all divisible by 16,380
• His realization --- this is a unit price
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The invoices will be spread across the dais in Scene 28
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT show dramatic discovery --- show methodical work that reveals
pattern
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SCENE 26: GIL'S TRAILER --- THE DISCOVERY
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Gil calculates. The math confirms the pattern. $180,080
in payments.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source, calculator, paper)
KEY IMAGES:
• Calculator, pencil, paper
• The math: every invoice divisible by 16,380
• "That's not coincidence. That's a unit price."
• The wall growing with this new information
• His hands shaking slightly
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The calculation that becomes the centerpiece of Scene 28
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Gil should look VALIDATED, not triumphant --- vindication feels like
grief
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ACT TWO
SCENE 27: THE 4.1
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT (4:16 AM)
FUNCTION: The earth answers. The wall wounded. Gil's system
physically disrupted.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession → Chaos → Obsession
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil at the wall, lamp on, 4 AM
• Coffee cup ripples --- the tremor begins
• Papers falling, pushpins popping loose
• The wall shaking apart around him
• Phone alert: "MAGNITUDE 4.1 --- 4:16 AM"
• The timestamp: 4:16:38 (1638 hidden in the moment)
• Gil clutching Rosa's photo as things fall
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The wall damaged here will be rebuilt for Scene 55
• The timestamp plants the subliminal 1638
• The physical earthquake mirrors the institutional one Gil is causing
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This is a 4.1 --- strong enough to wake you, shake things loose. NOT
destruction.
• The horror is in duration. 25 seconds is a long time.
• Do NOT score dramatically --- the sound of the earthquake IS the
score
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SCENE 28: EMERGENCY SESSION
INT. TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBER --- MORNING
FUNCTION: Turning point. Gil weaponizes procedure. The jug on the
dais. Evidence goes public.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent) --- but Gil now controls
the light
KEY IMAGES:
• The invoices spread across the dais --- paper as weapon
• "$180,080 in payments with no confirmation any work was
completed"
• Gil speaks: "4:16 and 38 seconds" --- Wade: "Is that relevant?"
• 1638 embedded in the timestamp of the quake itself
• Elena stepping forward with the jug of brown water
• THE JUG PLACED ON THE TABLE --- the image
• News cameras in the back (the frame is changing)
• Wade's face --- not villain, just caught
• Earthquake damage visible --- ceiling tiles, crack in wall
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Rhymes with Scene 7 (same room, power inverted)
• The 4:16:38 timestamp is where Gil first speaks the pattern publicly
• The jug returns at press conference (Scene 40)
• The invoices were found in Scenes 25-26
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT shoot as courtroom drama. This is a TOWN COUNCIL MEETING.
• The drama is in the content, not the staging.
• Elena holding the jug is not a "reveal" --- she just holds it. The
image speaks.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 29: THE AFTERMATH
EXT. TOWN HALL / INT. GIL'S OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: After the emergency session. Calls coming in. The story
spreading.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (daylight, phones ringing)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil's office phone ringing
• Messages accumulating
• Local paper headline visible
• Elena fielding calls from neighbors
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The story has escaped the council chamber
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT show media circus --- this is small town spread, not national
news (yet)
• Tommy's voice should sound broken, not angry --- defeat, not defiance
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 30: DOLORES'S WARNING
INT. TOWN HALL --- HALLWAY / STAIRWELL --- DAY
FUNCTION: Dolores approaches Gil. First hint of insider information.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent corridor, quiet)
KEY IMAGES:
• Dolores "accidentally" encountering Gil
• Her knitting in hand (always)
• Cryptic warning: "You're asking the wrong questions"
• Her eyes --- she knows something
• She walks away before he can ask more
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Sets up the storage unit reveal
• Dolores is the system's conscience --- she's been watching
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Dolores should not seem unhinged --- she's the sanest person in the
building
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SCENE 31: THE CALL
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
**FUNCTION: Two-part scene. First: Rick's text leads to Tommy Benavides
call --- the human cost of asking questions. Second: Anonymous tip about
Unit 1638.**
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source, phone call)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil on phone with testing lab --- "results that will hold up"
• Text from Rick Salazar: Tommy Benavides in Odessa, "Works the
counter at a Desert Freeze Partner Stop"
• Tommy's call --- voice nervous, middle-aged, guarded
• Tommy's confession: falsified pressure data, disposal volumes,
injection wells exceeding capacity
• Key line: "I ended up in Odessa scooping Mesa Swirls at a Desert
Freeze while my wife filed for divorce"
• "Questions get people hurt... Answers get people killed"
• THEN: Unknown number --- the anonymous tip
• "Unit 1638. Tucumcari. Combination is 42-39-81."
• Gil doing the math: 42 × 39 = 1638
• His face: this is real
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Desert Freeze connection: Same franchise as Scene 15 --- Mesa Swirl
motif continues
• Tommy Benavides = what happens to people who ask questions
• Sets up Scene 32: The Road to Tucumcari
• The math (42 × 39 = 1638) confirms authenticity of anonymous tip
• Rick's brother at Rayborn = complicity through silence
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• The caller's voice should not be identifiably Dolores --- not yet
• Tommy's voice should sound broken, not angry --- defeat, not defiance
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 32: THE ROAD TO TUCUMCARI
EXT. NEW MEXICO HIGHWAY / EXT. STORAGE FACILITY --- DAY
FUNCTION: Gil goes to the storage unit. The conspiracy becomes
tangible.
VISUAL MODE: Perception (harsh desert light) → Obsession (cool dark
interior)
KEY IMAGES:
• The long drive --- landscape, wind
• The storage facility --- anonymous, industrial
• Unit number: 1638 (visible, not insert-shot)
• Gil entering combination: 42-39-81
• The door rolling up --- darkness inside
• Interior: boxes stacked, organized
• The Post-It on top: "YOU FOUND IT"
• Gil's face reading the note --- someone was waiting
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The combination math: 42 × 39 = 1638
• The Post-It handwriting will match Dolores's later
• This is Tommy's archive --- the institutional version of Gil's
wall
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT reveal who left the Post-It. That's later.
• The documents inside should be BORING --- pressure logs,
spreadsheets
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 33: THE EVIDENCE
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Gil processes the storage unit documents. The scope
becomes clear.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source, papers everywhere)
KEY IMAGES:
• Boxes open, documents spread
• The pattern confirmed across years of records
• Falsified inspection reports
• Tommy's notes (the original whistleblower who died)
• Gil overwhelmed but methodical
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Tommy's death mentioned --- he was killed for this
• The documents will be used in Act Three
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Gil should not celebrate finding evidence --- it's more grief than
victory
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SCENE 34: WADE'S DESPERATION
INT. WADE'S OFFICE / INT. WADE'S HOUSE --- DAY/NIGHT
FUNCTION: Wade under pressure. The system pushing back. His choices
narrowing.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional + Domestic
KEY IMAGES:
• Wade on phone with Rayborn (we hear his side)
• The pressure: lawsuits, investigations, insurance
• Caroline asking what's wrong
• Wade lying: "Just work"
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Wade's trap tightening --- Rayborn, Caroline's treatment, the town
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Wade should not be sympathetic to the point of exoneration --- his
choices are still wrong
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 35: THE WATER TEST
EXT. OAK STREET / INT. ELENA'S HOUSE --- DAY
FUNCTION: Independent water testing. Professional confirmation
coming.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (daylight, technicians working)
KEY IMAGES:
• Testing technicians with equipment
• Elena watching
• Gil documenting the process
• Samples being collected, labeled
• The official chain of custody
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Sets up Scene 39 (The Results)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT dramatize the testing --- it's procedural, methodical,
boring
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SCENE 36: THE ANOMALY
INT. GIL'S OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: Gil finds something that doesn't fit. The photograph
dated 2038.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (focused on document)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil going through Tommy's documents
• A photograph with timestamp: 2038
• "That's not possible --- that's the future"
• Realization: date format confusion (20-38 = 1938?)
• But something's still wrong
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The anomaly that never resolves --- not everything makes sense
• Keeps the pattern ambiguous
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT resolve this mystery --- it stays open
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 37: MARLENE VALDEZ
INT. LOCAL NEWSPAPER OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: Gil brings evidence to the press. Marlene, the reporter,
takes it seriously.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (newspaper office fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Small newspaper office --- local, underfunded
• Marlene reviewing documents
• Her questions --- skeptical but interested
• Agreement to investigate further
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Marlene will break the story
• The press becomes an ally
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Marlene should not be a crusading journalist cliché --- she's
tired, practical, but ethical
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SCENE 38: DESTINY'S DISCOVERY
INT. COMMUNITY CLINIC --- DAY
FUNCTION: Destiny finds the pattern in clinic funding. Her
conversion begins.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (clinic fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Destiny at work, going through files
• The Rayborn funding records
• $163,800 --- more than requested
• Her face: "It fits the pattern"
• She takes photos of the documents
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Destiny crossing over --- she's now investigating too
• The clinic amounts connect to Gil's math
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Destiny should not look triumphant --- she looks disturbed
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SCENE 39: THE RESULTS
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- DAY
FUNCTION: Water test results arrive. Contamination confirmed.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (daylight through windows)
KEY IMAGES:
• The official report
• "Elevated levels of radium-226, radium-228, barium"
• Gil and Elena reading together
• The validation --- they were right
• Elena's tears --- finally, proof
RELATIONSHIPS:
• This enables Scene 40 (Press Conference)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT play this as victory music --- it's confirmation of harm
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SCENE 40: THE PRESS CONFERENCE
EXT. TOWN HALL STEPS --- DAY
FUNCTION: Public vindication. Gil chooses boring proof over pattern.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (New Mexico daylight, unforgiving)
KEY IMAGES:
• Exterior Town Hall steps --- Gil at microphones
• Elena beside him, the jug again (same prop)
• Lab report visible --- "RADIUM-226, RADIUM-228, BARIUM"
• The crowd: Oak Street families, press, Wade absent
• Marlene's newspaper visible --- she broke the story
• "The state recommends suspension of injection well operations"
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The jug returns from Scene 28 (same evidence, official validation)
• Gil presents DATA, not pattern --- he learned
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this triumphant. This is not victory music.
• The win is procedural: "the state recommends suspension." That's
it.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 41: THE AFTERMATH
INT. GIL'S TRAILER / EXT. OAK STREET --- DAY/NIGHT
FUNCTION: After the press conference. The town responding. Gil
exhausted.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary + Obsession
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil alone in trailer, spent
• Oak Street residents talking to each other --- the community changed
• Media vans (finally --- now it's bigger)
• Gil looking at Rosa's photo
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The cost of vindication --- he's emptied out
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT show celebration --- show exhaustion
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SCENE 42: THE CONFRONTATION
INT. WADE'S OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: Direct confrontation. Wade explains his choices. Not
villain --- trapped man.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (his office)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil and Wade face to face
• Wade's explanation: Caroline's treatment, the 47 jobs
• "I'm not a bad man. I'm a man who made a choice."
• Gil's response: "And the people on Oak Street?"
• Wade: "I thought it would be contained."
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The moral complexity --- Wade had reasons
• Gil must choose how to respond
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Wade should not break down --- he's still defending his choices
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 43: DOLORES'S CHOICE
INT. TOWN HALL --- RECORDS ROOM --- DAY
FUNCTION: Dolores reveals herself. She changed the vote. She left
the Post-It.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (records room, quiet)
KEY IMAGES:
• Dolores waiting for Gil
• Her confession: "I changed the vote. Forty-two to forty-three."
• The reason: "To protect you. So the pattern wouldn't include
you."
• Her handwriting matching the Post-It: "YOU FOUND IT"
• She's been watching Gil his whole investigation
• "Ask about Tommy Ortega"
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The 42/43 mystery resolved
• Dolores as system insider who chose conscience
• Tommy named --- the original whistleblower
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Dolores should not seem crazy --- she's methodical, like Gil
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 44: THE ESCALATION
INT. VARIOUS --- DAY/NIGHT
FUNCTION: The investigation spreads. State involvement. Federal
attention.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (montage --- news clips, official vehicles)
KEY IMAGES:
• State Environment Department vehicles arriving
• Federal investigators mentioned
• Rayborn lawyers on TV
• Gil watching from the sideline --- it's beyond him now
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The story has escaped Gil's control --- institutions investigating
institutions
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this feel like victory --- it's just another system
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 45: WADE'S GAMBIT
INT. WADE'S OFFICE / INT. TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBER --- DAY
FUNCTION: Wade's last attempt to contain. Political maneuvering.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional
KEY IMAGES:
• Wade working phones, alliances
• Emergency council session called
• Wade trying to frame Gil as the problem
• The effort failing --- the evidence is too public
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Wade's power crumbling
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Wade should not be pathetic --- he's fighting for what he believes
is the town's survival
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 46: DOLORES'S CONFESSION (PUBLIC)
INT. TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Dolores confesses publicly. The vote change revealed.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent, packed room)
KEY IMAGES:
• Dolores at the podium
• Her confession: the vote, the storage unit, Tommy's documentation
• The room reacting
• Wade's face --- betrayed by his own system
• Sandra's legal pad --- the original "42" shown
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The 42/43 resolved publicly
• Dolores as moral center
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• This should not be dramatic courtroom confession --- it's
matter-of-fact
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SCENE 47: END OF ACT TWO --- THE STORM
EXT. AGUAVERDE --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Act break. Literal storm. The calm before Act Three.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (storm, darkness)
KEY IMAGES:
• The storm rolling in --- New Mexico sky
• Empty streets
• Gil's trailer in the wind
• The wall visible through the window
• Lightning illuminating the Manzanos
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The baseline wind --- same wind that carried the fallout
• Visual act break
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT score dramatically --- let the storm be the score
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
ACT THREE
SCENE 48: THE MORNING AFTER
EXT. AGUAVERDE / INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- DAY
FUNCTION: After the storm. Damage assessment. Gil processing.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (post-storm light, clear)
KEY IMAGES:
• Storm damage around town (minor)
• Gil's trailer intact
• The wall intact
• Morning light --- clarity
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The cleansing storm --- but what it reveals is worse
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this feel like resolution --- it's prelude
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 49: THE CONFRONTATION (FINAL)
INT./EXT. VARIOUS --- DAY
FUNCTION: Final confrontations. Wade. The state investigators.
Rayborn.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary + Institutional
KEY IMAGES:
• State officials at Town Hall
• Wade being interviewed
• Gil observing, not participating --- it's out of his hands
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Gil has become observer --- the system investigating itself
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Gil should not be the hero here --- the system is processing itself
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 50: THE STATE REPORT
INT. GIL'S OFFICE --- DAY
FUNCTION: Official findings released. Contamination confirmed.
Recommendations made.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional + Documentary
KEY IMAGES:
• The report (thick, official)
• Key findings highlighted
• "Recommends immediate suspension... alternative water supply...
health monitoring"
• Gil reading --- vindication, but procedural
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Official validation of everything Gil found
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make this feel triumphant --- it's bureaucracy acknowledging
harm
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 51: THE RESIGNATION
INT. TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBER --- DAY
FUNCTION: Wade resigns. The system reconfigures.
VISUAL MODE: Institutional (fluorescent)
KEY IMAGES:
• Wade at the podium
• His resignation statement
• The room half-empty
• Sandra taking notes
• Wade not apologizing --- just stepping down
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Wade's arc complete --- he chose, he paid
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Wade should not be humiliated --- he leaves with what dignity
remains
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 52: THE PRESS CONFERENCE --- WADE
EXT. TOWN HALL --- DAY
FUNCTION: Wade's public statement. His version of events.
VISUAL MODE: Documentary (daylight, microphones)
KEY IMAGES:
• Wade facing press
• His statement --- not confession, just resignation
• Caroline visible, supporting him
• Gil watching from distance
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Wade maintains his narrative --- he did what he thought was right
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT make Wade apologize --- he doesn't believe he was wrong
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 53: GIL'S REFLECTION
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
FUNCTION: Gil processing. The victory that doesn't feel like
victory.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession (single source)
KEY IMAGES:
• Gil at the wall
• The case is "over" --- but the wall remains
• Rosa's photograph
• The equation still incomplete
• His exhaustion
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Prelude to Scene 54/54A
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT show satisfaction --- show hollowness
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 54A: THE STEPS
EXT. DESTINY'S APARTMENT BUILDING --- DAY
FUNCTION: The transmission completes. Destiny inherits Gil's
perception.
VISUAL MODE: Perception (golden hour --- IDENTICAL to 15A)
KEY IMAGES:
• Destiny approaching her apartment steps --- alone
• Same golden hour light as 15A
• Same camera angle (different location, same composition)
• Her foot stopping on the second step
• The hairline crack --- subtle, real
• Her hand hovering where a rail should be (echo of 15A's missing
rail)
• She reaches for keys. Stops. Pockets them.
• She turns away from the entrance
• HOLD ON: Empty steps. The crack. She's gone.
RELATIONSHIPS:
• PRIMARY RHYME with Scene 15A
• The transmission complete --- she sees what he sees
• Cut to: she's asleep on Gil's couch (she couldn't go home)
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT add dialogue. This scene is SILENT.
• Do NOT show where she goes. The cut to Gil's couch answers.
• The crack must be REAL SCALE --- hairline.
• Do NOT shoot at different time of day than 15A.
CRITICAL: She must not cry. She must not look at the camera. She
sees --- and cannot enter her own home.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 54: DESTINY'S ARRIVAL
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- LATER
FUNCTION: Emotional resolution. Father-daughter reconciliation. The
fill sand revealed.
VISUAL MODE: Domestic + Obsession (mixed --- warmth returning)
KEY IMAGES:
• Destiny at the door
• The hug (the first physical contact in months)
• The wall --- "It's bigger than I remembered"
• Her apology: "For doubting you. For being embarrassed."
• The clinic funding reveal --- she found the pattern too
• The conversation about what the pattern means
CRITICAL NEW CONTENT:
• The fill sand revelation: Trinity → settling ponds → fill sand →
foundations
• "Everything along the baseline. Including this trailer."
• "We're on it right now."
• The Geiger counter named: "Mom knew. Mom suspected."
KEY IMAGES (NEW):
• Gil looking down at the floor
• Destiny following his gaze
• The Geiger counter on the shelf, labeled ROSA
• The weight of sitting on contaminated ground
RELATIONSHIPS:
• The fill sand revelation SETS UP Scene 55's crawlspace
• Rosa's knowledge planted --- she suspected, couldn't prove
• The horror is PRESENT TENSE --- they're on it while talking
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• Do NOT rush the fill sand revelation --- let it land
• Destiny should look DISTURBED, not satisfied
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SCENE 58: THE FOURTH WALL
INT. GIL'S TRAILER --- NIGHT
TITLE CARD: THREE WEEKS LATER
FUNCTION: Resolution. The equation completed. The question passed to
the audience. The final reveal.
VISUAL MODE: Obsession → Fourth Wall → Descent
KEY IMAGES:
• The couch empty --- uninhabited, no blanket, no pillow
• Destiny's apartment key on table --- untouched, a relic
• Gil at the wall --- rebuilt, the equation now at center
• 1638 ÷ 43 = 38 r 4
• The election certification: Sandra's "42" crossed out, "43"
written above
• The $16,379 invoice --- off by one, never understood
• Gil's eyes drifting toward the camera --- SLOW, not a snap
• "Forty-three." Pause. "Or forty-two. Depending on who you ask." Pause. "Did you see it?"
• Camera holds. He turns back to the wall.
• Five seconds. Ten.
• The camera drifts down --- through the worn linoleum
• Through a seam in the floor, into the dark crawlspace
• Raw sand. Foundation fill. Ordinary grit.
• The Geiger counter clicks. One beat. Then another.
• Above, the wind presses along the baseline of the mountains.
RELATIONSHIPS:
• Rhymes with Scene 1 (the wall opens and closes the film)
• The crawlspace CONFIRMS what Scene 54 explained
• The Geiger counter ROSA planted in Scene 1, explained in Scene 54,
activated here
• The baseline wind from Scene 6 returns --- the delivery system
WHAT MUST NOT HAPPEN:
• The fourth-wall break must NOT be a snap. It must be a DRIFT.
• Do NOT score the crawlspace descent. Silence except Geiger and wind.
• Do NOT add dialogue after "Did you see it?" --- the question
hangs.
• Do NOT explain the Geiger clicks --- we know (from Scene 54)
END CARD:
• BLACK
• "hegot43votes.com"
• "What's under your steps?"
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APPENDIX A: THE KING OF HEARTS TRANSMISSION
For Gene's reference: the Alan Bates logic.
In King of Hearts (1966), a soldier discovers that the "insane"
asylum residents are the only sane people in a world gone mad. By the
end, he chooses to join them --- sanity is contagious, but so is the
refusal to participate in madness.
In RECALL, Gil is the "crazy" one --- the man who sees patterns
everyone else walks past. The film's arc is the transmission of his
perception:
1. Gil sees (but no one believes him)
2. Elena sees (her basement crack --- she becomes his first
convert)
3. Destiny sees (54A --- the daughter inherits the father's
curse/gift)
4. The audience sees ("Did you see it?" --- the final
transmission)
The "King of Hearts" moment is 54A. Destiny cannot enter her own home
because she now sees what Gil sees. She has been "infected" with
perception. The curse is also a gift --- she will never be able to
unsee.
The question for the audience: Do you want to see? Because once you do,
you can't go home either.
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APPENDIX B: QUESTIONS THIS DAS DOES NOT ANSWER
These require locations, actors, and further development:
1. Exact camera positions --- requires location scouts
2. Blocking --- requires actors and rehearsal
3. Lens choices --- requires testing with actual spaces
4. Lighting plots --- requires gaffers and specific locations
5. Color grading specifics --- requires shot footage
6. Sound design details --- requires location audio and
post-production
This document establishes INTENT. The Execution DAS will answer these
questions once production elements are locked.
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Document Version: 1.0
Date: January 2026
Status: Pre-Production Draft
© 2025 Pattern Films
All Rights Reserved
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Pattern Films
© 2025 Pattern Films. All rights reserved.