Solitary

The following piece is a short, 5-page comic script I wrote for a Writing Contest on PencilJack.
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Solitary
By Itai Rosenbaum
08.08.06



A Note: Throughout the piece I will use a lot of dialogue for which there is no speaker. It should be just a balloon floating mid-panel, with no tail. Maybe color it in some way to emphasize that whoever is saying these things is not in the room, like making them semi-transparent, or something like that. I will signify these balloons using VOICE as the speaker.

Page 1

Panel 1 - Large. Overhead shot of the inside of a prison cell. It is a solitary confinement cell, so there are no bars, just a solid, bolted iron door. The walls are poured concrete, flat, and lifeless. The only thing in the cell is a small iron bed, bolted to the wall. In the bed lies ZACHARY IRONS. ZACK is in his late twenties, and fit. He is sleeping.

CAP: THEY PUT YOU IN SOLITARY SO YOU CRACK.

Panel 2 - Close Up on ZACK’s face. He’s still sleeping, and has a calm expression across his face, enjoying the dream he is dreaming.

CAP: SO YOU BREAK DOWN.

Panel 3 - Extreme-Close up on ZACK’s eye. It is wide open. He’s got icy blue eyes, and it’s got a far-away, distant look.

CAP: 33 DAYS.

VOICE: IN THE CASE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS AGAINST ZACHARY IRONS, WE THE JURY FIND THE DEFENDANT...

VOICE: GUILTY.

Page 2

Panel 1 - Medium shot of ZACK, sitting on the edge of his bed. He’s got his arms on his knees, head hanging down. He wears a wife-beater and a pair of blue, standard-issue prisoner trousers.

CAP: I BEAT TWO CONS IN THE YARD.

Panel 2 - ZACK stands up, and stretches.

CAP: WARDEN GAVE ME TWO MONTHS IN SOLITARY. THINKING BACK, A THIRD MONTH MAY HAVE BEEN WORTH IT.

VOICE: ZACHARY IRONS, I HEREBY FIND YOU GUILTY IN THE CHARGES OF THE MURDER OF ALICE AND JACK RAYS AND THE ASSAULT OF OFFICER JOHNATHAN BARREN, AND SENTENCE YOU TO A LIFE SENTENCE TO BE SERVED IN GRAHAM CORRECTIONAL FACILITY...

Panel 3 - ZACK lies on the floor of his cell, doing push-ups.

CAP: HEH, I CAN DO THIS. THIS IS EASY. 33 DAYS.

Panel 4 - ZACK is now doing crunches, exhaling deeply as he rises up from the floor.

CAP: JUST GOTTA KEEP OCCUPIED. KEEP MYSELF BUSY.

Panel 5 - ZACK is spread out on the floor, arms stretched over his head, toes stretched in the other direction, cooling down from his exercise. Beads of sweat have formed on his arms and face, and sweat-stains can be seen on his shirt.

VOICE: ...STANDING OUTSIDE THE COURTROOM WHERE ZACK IRONS HAS JUST BEEN CONVICTED OF MURDERING HIS SISTER, ALICE RAYS, AND HER HUSBAND.

VOICE (connected): REPORTS FROM THE HOSPITAL WHERE JOHNTHAN BARREN, THE POLICE OFFICER WHO ARRIVED AT THE SCENE, IS BEING HELD CLAIM THAT HE IS STILL IN INTESIVE CARE. DOCTORS ARE DOING...

Page 3

Panel 1 - ZACK sits on the bed, leaning up against the wall.

CAP: AFTER A MONTH, YOU LEARN THE TIME-TABLES.

SFX: SCRAPE

Panel 2 - Close-up on a metal tray with food on it. There is also a small new-paper clipping on the tray. The clipping reads “6 YEARS AFTER BRUTAL ASSAULT - JOHN BARRENS WALKS AGAIN”.

CAP: YOU GET TO KNOW WHEN IT’S TIME TO EAT.

Panel 3 - Same as previous, only the plate on the tray is empty, only crumbs and a little left-over’s litter it. The clipping is gone.

VOICE: I-- I’M NOT VISITING YOU ANYMORE, ZACK. THIS IS THE LAST TIME. I-- I’M... I’M PREGNANT.

Panel 4 - ZACK lies on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. His jaw is set, and he has a very serious look on his face.

VOICE: IT’S YOUR BABY.

Page 4

Panel 1 - ZACK paces in his cell.

CAP: BEING HERE, IT GIVES YOU TIME TO RELAX... TO... THINK.

Panel 2 - Same, different camera angle.

CAP: THIS IS EASY.

Panel 3 - ZACK is in boxing pose, practicing fighting against an imaginary opponent.

CAP: 33 DAYS.

VOICE: MR. IRONS, I AM SORRY TO INFORM YOU, YOUR REQUEST FOR EARLY PAROLE HAS BEEN DENIED.

Panel 4 - A shot of the cell, taken from the wall opposite the wall. The camera should be about a foot off the floor. We can see the bed, the door, but ZACK is not in the panel.

CAP: THEY PUT YOU IN SOLITARY SO YOU CRACK.

Page 5

Panel 1 - Splash panel. Over-head shot of the entire cell. We see ZACK huddled up in the corner, against the wall opposite the door. He’s got his head between his knees.

CAP: SO YOU BREAK DOWN.

VOICE: GUILTY

VOICE: TWO CONS

VOICE: MURDER OF ALICE AND JACK RAYS

VOICE: IN INTENSIVE CARE

VOICE: TWO MONTHS

VOICE: YOUR BABY

VOICE: GUILTY

VOICE: MURDERING HIS SISTER

VOICE: DENIED

VOICE: LIFE SENTENCE

VOICE: WALKS AGAIN

VOICE: PREGANANT

VOICE: NOT VISITING YOU ANYMORE

VOICE: CRACK

Panel 2 - Inset into panel 1, close-up of ZACK, he lifts his head, looking slightly to the left of the camera, tears are running down his cheeks, and his eyes are red,

CAP: I CAN’T DO THIS.

The End