Screenplay

INT. KITCHEN. DAY

ANNE (45), mousy housewife, listens absentmindedly to the

radio as she prepares sandwiches on the counter.

ANNOUNCER (V.O.)

(on radio)

Another lovely winter’s day in

Sydney. But remember, we’re in the

middle of flu season, so make sure

you keep rugged up.

Anne glances at the ceiling.

ANNE

(loudly)

Rob. Time to get up. You’ll be late

for your job interview.

She listens for a response but can’t hear anything. She

wraps the sandwiches, turns and walks out of the kitchen and

up the stairs.

She strides towards a bedroom and bangs forcefully on the

door.

ANNE

Rob. Get up.

She hears a grunt in reply, opens the door and walks into

the bedroom. She notices ROB (22), her moody son, under the

covers on the bed.

ANNE

Come on Rob.

Rob grunts again. Anne approaches the bed and pulls back the

covers. Rob lies stationary with his face pressed into the

pillow.

ANNE

We’re not doing this again.

She grabs Rob’s arm, who moans again, and rolls him over.

She reveals Rob’s pale, corpse-like face and screams. Rob is

a Zombie.

CUT TO:

2.

INT. DOCTOR’S WAITING ROOM. DAY

Anne and Rob sit patiently in a quiet doctor’s waiting room.

Rob wears a mouth guard, a dog leash, and oven mitts. A

DOCTOR (50) emerges from his office and reads off his

clipboard.

DOCTOR

(looking around)

Rob. Rob Watson.

Anne stands up, grabs the leash and pulls Rob to his feet.

DOCTOR

(noticing Rob)

Oh God.

INT. DOCTOR’S OFFICE. DAY

Doctor Jones sits behind his desk and stares in

thinly-veiled horror at Rob, who sits next to his mother.

DOCTOR

(consulting clipboard)

Any allergies you’re aware of?

ANNE

No.

DOCTOR

Is he on any medication?

ANNE

Not at the moment.

DOCTOR

Any unusual symptoms? He’s not

aggressive, violent...

ANNE

He’s been quite docile. Not like

the scary ones you see in the

movies.

DOCTOR

Honestly, I’m at a loss. I can’t

find any similar cases, no

outbreak, nothing. All I can do is

maybe prescribe some antibiotics -

hope it all clears up. Maybe some

painkillers... Is he in pain? Hard

to tell. Rob. Are you in pain?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: 3.

Rob moans.

DOCTOR (CONT)

Is that ’yes’, you are in pain, or

’no’, you’re not in pain?

Rob moans again.

DOCTOR (CONT)

I’ll give him a script anyway. Just

in case. We’ll do some blood work,

try to find a cure, but that’ll

take months at the very least.

He writes out a prescription.

INT. KITCHEN. DAY.

Anne sits at the table with a mug of tea and reads a book

entitled ’The Zombie Survival Guide’. Rob sits on a nearby

couch, mouth guard still on, and dog leash tied to a small

table.

ANNE

There’s nothing in here about

living with a... z-word.

Rob looks at her mournfully.

ANNE

What’s wrong dear? Are you hungry?

Rob moans.

ANNE (CONT)

Is that a ’yes’? We really need a

system. How about one grunt for

’yes’ and two for ’no’. Is that OK?

Rob grunts once.

ANNE

OK. Good. So you are hungry?

Rob grunts once.

ANNE

I’ll see what we have.

She looks through the fridge.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: 4.

ANNE (CONT)

Is leftover lasagna OK?

Rob grunts once. Anne puts the lasagna in the microwave,

heats it up and brings it over to Rob. She places it on the

small table and carefully tries to remove Rob’s mouth guard.

ANNE

Hold still.

She pulls out the mouth guard and Rob suddenly lunges to

bite her hand. She pulls it away just in time.

ANNE

Rob! No. That’s not allowed.

She takes a forkful of lasagna and hand-feeds it to Rob. He

chews on it for a second then spits it out, groaning.

ANNE

(firmly)

You heard what the doctor said. You

won’t be back to normal for a long

time. Maybe ever. We’ve got to make

this work.

Rob looks back at her dolefully. She sighs in sympathy.

ANNE

I know it’s tough, but we’ll get

through it. Look, I’ll call bythe

butchers, get you some raw steak.

Maybe that’ll be more appetising.

Rob groans in appreciation.

INT. LIVING ROOM. NIGHT.

Rob, leash removed, sits and watches TV. A plate of

half-devoured steak sits on the table next to him. Anne

walks into the room and sits next to him, careful to keep

her distance.

ANNE

Rob. I’ve been thinking about it

and I think it’s best if you try

and live as normally as you can. I

spoke to Mr Benson at the store, he

said he’s happy to reschedule your

interview, and that he’ll probably

have some delivery work for you.

Rob moans in acceptance.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: 5.

ANNE (CONT)

I also spoke to the doctor and he

said they’d run some tests, but not

to get your hopes up. He agreed red

meat was a good idea, and you

seemed to like that, didn’t you?

Rob grunts once.

ANNE (CONT)

I think you make the effort to see

your friends. It’s no good for you

moping around all day.

He moans reluctantly.

ANNE (CONT)

I’m going to bed. Let me know if

you need anything.

She kisses him gently on the forehead and leaves. Rob sits

in silence, watching the TV.

TV ANNOUNCER (O.S.)

Ever felt you were surrounded by

zombies. Coming up next - it’s

Shaun of the Dead.

Rob groans in bemusement.