INT. MOTEL, HOLLYWOOD BLVD - NIGHT

                Lawrence sits up in bed.  Listens to the traffic out his
                window.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          May 15th, 2007.  Arrived in Los Angeles
                          day.  Barely had time to unpack the
                          contents of the trunk into our new home
                          before Cecily passed out.  We've got a
                          ton of work ahead of us.  And I don't
                          know what I'm doing in this fucking town.

                Lawrence hears a lot of yelling outside his door.  He
                jumps up to check the lock.

                                                               FADE OUT:



                TITLE: "SAVINGS: $4,000"



                INT. CAR - DAY

                Lawrence and Cecily drive around West Hollywood.  It's
                hotter than hell and Cecily is doing the driving. 
                Lawrence looks like he's about to puke.

                                      CECILY
                          You okay?

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Huh?  I'm fine.  That last one was too
                          small.

                                      CECILY
                          Yeah and the carpet was nasty.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          I feel like this isn't our neighborhood.

                                      CECILY
                          Well, I don't know where our neighborhood
                          is.  
                                (turning the wheel hard)
                          I don't even know where I am right now.



                INT. PROSPECTIVE APARTMENT, SILVER LAKE - DAY

                Cecily and Lawrence walk in.  Cecily is immediately
                smitten with the place.

                                      CECILY
                                (to owner)
                          Hi, I'm Cecily.  This is my boyfriend
                          Lawrence.

                                      OWNER
                          Terrace is through there.  We're redoing
                          the cabinets by the first of the month.

                Lawrence walks behind the Owner and gives a slice across
                the neck motion with his finger.



                EXT. STREET, SILVER LAKE - DAY

                They walk to their car.

                                      CECILY
                          What was wrong with that one?

                                      LAWRENCE
                          It had a weird feeling to it.

                                      CECILY
                          But it had a great view.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Well, I'm not paying thirteen hundred for
                          a view of some damn reservoir.  It's not
                          even a real lake!  



                INT. HOTEL - NIGHT

                Cecily sits awake, sorting through endless apartment
                listings.

                Lawrence does pushups on the floor in front of the bed.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Up.  And down.

                                      CECILY
                          I don't know.   I've already seen all
                          these damn listings.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          You can take a break if you want.

                                      CECILY
                          I can't.  If I don't get a list I have no
                          one to call tomorrow and we have nothing
                          to do.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Lets go see Hollywood.  We're in
                          Hollywood for fuck's sake!  Lets look for
                          apartments tomorrow.



                EXT. HOLLYWOOD BLVD - DAY

                Lawrence and Cecily are just your average everyday
                tourists.  They walk over the Hollywood walk of fame
                stars.  Always looking down, reading names.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          Hollywood is immediately a misnomer. 
                          It's not what it purports.  About sixty
                          years ago, Hollywood had studios and
                          agents, people made their fortunes
                          between Vermont Ave and La Brea.  Now
                          those people are retired and the folks
                          that took their place moved to Beverly
                          Hills, Westwood and other neighborhoods I
                          haven't learned yet.  What's left is 10
                          miles of star sidewalks a few souvenir
                          stands and a shit-load of fetish clothing
                          stores.

                                      CECILY
                          I haven't recognized a single name on any
                          stars.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          I've never seen so many strip clubs on
                          one street.

                                      CECILY
                          Oh there's Spike Jones!

                                      LAWRENCE
                          I don't think that's the same Spike
                          Jones.



                INT. NEW APARTMENT, BEDROOM - NIGHT

                Lawrence and Cecily lay awake on a blow up mattress that
                still has sand in it from camping on the beach.

                                      CECILY
                          Do you want one?

                                      LAWRENCE
                          What?

                                      CECILY
                          A star?  On Hollywood Boulevard.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          No way, Michael Jackson's got like 3. 
                          They give them away once you're done, and
                          tourists can't recognize your name as
                          they're disappointed on the single most
                          bull shit tourist attraction in all of
                          Los Angeles.  I'd rather they forget I
                          was ever here.

                After a long while.

                                      CECILY
                          It'll get better.  Just wait til we start
                          meeting people.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          Cecily was aware that I hated L.A. way
                          before I was.  Maybe it was how I freaked
                          out our first trip to Trader Joes that
                          tipped her off.  I was trying to make the
                          best of it.  She didn't have to.  She
                          loved this town before she ever got here.

                                                               FADE OUT:

                TITLE CARD: 3 THOUSAND DOLLARS LATER

                FADE IN:



                INT. BEDROOM - DAY

                Lawrence and Cecily put together their new bed.  Which
                is, very obviously IKEA.

                The wall's are an indigo-grey now.

                                      CECILY
                          I called about another job.  I'll find
                          something soon, I promise.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Yeah, I've got to transfer all the money
                          into some kind of low-interest credit
                          card.

                Cecily works on her screw, ignoring the money talk.

                                      CECILY
                          Do you want to go to a bar?  I found a
                          few that I'd like to check out in the
                          L.A. Weekly.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          I don't know.  I'm feeling a little broke
                          this month.

                                      CECILY
                          Okay.



                INT. APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

                Lawrence is online, late.  He looks for jobs.

                CU SCREEN:  "WEB DEVELOPER NEEDED, PASADENA, CA"



                EXT. SUBWAY PLATFORM - DAY

                Lawrence is wearing a clean shirt.  Calls Cecily.

                                      CECILY
                          Hey Baby.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Hi, I didn't get the job.  They wanted me
                          to write code on a white board in their
                          conference room.

                                      CECILY
                          Jeez.  I was hoping you'd come home
                          before I have to leave.



                INT. APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM - DAY

                Cecily walks around, holding her purse, her phone, a
                sports bag full of clothes and the laptop.

                                      CECILY
                          I'm printing directions to the Fox lot. 
                          I have to leave soon.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Well, good luck.

                                      CECILY
                          Thanks.  Are you gonna be okay?

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Yeah, you know.  Just feeling unwanted
                          and alone.

                                      CECILY
                          What?  It's cutting out.  Fucking T
                          Mobile.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          I said I feel like a failure!

                                      CECILY
                          I'm sorry, it keeps going fuzzy.

                                      LAWRENCE
                                (yelling into the phone)
                          I'm not good enough.  I'm feeling all
                          alone out here.



                INT. APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM - DAY

                Lawrence returns home.  Sits at Cecily's laptop.  On the
                screen is a post-it note.

                CU POST-IT NOTE:

                "Hey baby, I was researching short film festivals and I
                wrote a few down that looked cool."

                Lawrence walks to the kitchen and opens up a beer.

                Sits back down.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          For a while now I've had this idea in my
                          head that my writing had special powers. 
                          Whatever I write tends to come true.  I
                          haven't written about anything except for
                          the past and fantastical things in so
                          long because of this power.  I use it
                          sparingly.

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          I could really use a little fairy
                          godfather advice right now...

                Lawrence looks around.  Walks to the other room.

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          Hmm.  Maybe he'll drop in unannounced
                          later.



                EXT. LOS ANGELES - NIGHT

                The city breathes.  Wheezing the layer of smog.

                Lawrence is on the roof.  Video-tapes police helicopters. 
                Getting really tight close ups and following them.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          I often think about the apocalypse. 
                          Nothing biblical.  Just catastrophe and
                          decline.  I think about how I need to buy
                          a gun and stockpile food.  But then I
                          wonder what I'd do, stuck in L.A. alone
                          with my gun and my food.  I wouldn't
                          stay.  I'd fucking leave.  I'd go north. 
                          Try and ek out a living far from the
                          epicenter.
                                (beat)
                          So the only thing keeping me in LA is the
                          fact that the world hasn't ended yet.



                INT. APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

                Lawrence paces the floor.   Suddenly, leaps into a
                fighting stance.  Whispers something quickly.  Leaps over
                the back of the couch.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          I try to stay in the inspired mind.  Let
                          my silly finances go and be creative. 
                          They're gone anyway.  The finances.  I
                          understand why people are poor.  They
                          have an idea of how they want to live and
                          they don't make enough, so they charge
                          it.

                Somewhere in the distance the rapid clicking of a
                thousands keyboards fills the night sky.

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          And I've been thinking about energy too. 
                          Not the global crisis kind.  The new age
                          kind.

                Lawrence sparks a bowl.  Takes a hit.

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          I think about the energy in this place. 
                          This L.A.  There's something going on at
                          night here.  I reach my hand up and dip
                          my fingers into the creative outer
                          bibulum.

                Lawrence flips up his laptop.

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D) 
                          And sometimes I use it to write.  Other
                          times I look up words, I think I may have
                          just made up.

                Lawrence googles "bibulum."

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          Yep.



                EXT. HOLLYWOOD FOREVER CEMETERY - NIGHT

                It's summer and the cemetery is surprisingly inviting.

                Lawrence and Cecily sit on a blanket and watch actors
                perform Hamlet.

                A young man (Hamlet) climbs out of a hole in the ground,
                holding a skull in his hand.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.)
                          I guess that may be why I haven't posted
                          a script-journal in so long.  I've been
                          writing for real.  I've got 5 years in
                          this city, starting May 15th 2007 to do
                          something about this career or I'm
                          forever giving up on it.  And I've got a
                          reason to be successful now.

                Cecily's eyes follow the actor's movements.  Envious.



                INT. APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

                Lawrence lays on the floor.  His old video camera lays
                with him.  The view through the viewfinder is of plastic
                explosives, under a leather coffee table.

                On the other side of the coffee table.  Cecily kneels on
                the floor.  Around her are make shift lighting from ikea
                lamps.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          So when you come down into position.  I
                          want to see the light glint off your eye
                          just right before I do the zoom out.  So
                          we're gonna do it a bunch of times to try
                          and get it perfect.

                                      CECILY
                          Okay.  So I just go down and look and
                          wait for you to say when to move.

                                      LAWRENCE
                          Yeah.  Okay, rolling... And down.

                Cecily bends down to look under the coffee table. 
                Lawrence zooms out.

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          And up.  Okay, down.

                Cecily repeats this.

                                      LAWRENCE (V.O.) (CONT'D)
                          That's pretty much L.A., in 3 words.

                                                               FADE OUT:

                                      LAWRENCE (CONT'D)
                          And up.  Down.