1
FADE IN
INT, OFFICE, DAY
- The office is dimly lit and kept very organized. It is
furnished with leather chairs and a large executive desk.
The bookshelves that hide the walls are packed with books.
- We see a young STANLEY dressed in a suit walk across the
room to a leather chair, which he pivots to better face the
office desk.
SLOW SHOTS – Stanley grabs a piece of paper and a pen from
the desk and begins to draw on the seat of the leather
chair.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stan Slavski was a troubled boy.
- The office door cracks open and Stanley walks in the room
and sits in a chair. MRS. SLAVSKI, his mother, watches from
the door and shortly after leaves the room shutting the
door with her.
- The PSYCHIATRIST is sitting at the desk
The Doctor glances back and forth between the notes he is
jotting and Stanley
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
I had been meeting with Stanley since
October. It is now February.
Stan sits very quietly in the cozy chair, glaring at the
psychiatrist.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stanley’s mother, Mrs. Slavski, brought Stan
to me early into his school year. He’s in 2nd
grade. He is having trouble getting along
with the other children at school.
The Psychiatrist clicks his pen and placing it in his coat
pocket. Crossing his legs he examines his notes.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stan’s father, Mr. Slavski, was very wealthy
and always away on business.
2
- The psychiatrist has rolled his chair closer to Stan’s,
slouching over to the child’s height.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stanley spent a lot of time at home alone
and on his own. So I asked…
PSYCHIATRIST
Do you have anyone you like to play with at
school Stan?
Stanley eyes search around slowly. At anything abut the
psychiatrist.
STANLEY
Just Casey.
PSYCHIATRIST
What do you boys do?
STANLEY
Just talk.
The psychiatrist folds his hands together.
PSYCHIATRIST
What do you talk to Casey about?
CUT TO
EXT, PLAYGROUND, DAY
- Stanley is in a busy school ground at school full of
playing children. He and CASEY sit very still on a bench
and talk quietly amongst each other.
CUT TO
INT, OFFICE, DAY
Stanley looks down for a moment then looks up at the
psychiatrist’s face.
STANLEY
Not supposed to tell.
3
- Mrs. Slavski cracks the door open and peaks inside the
room. She smiles happily at the psychiatrist and quietly
leaves the room again.
As the door shuts the psychiatrist drops his eyes back down
to Stanley.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
That was the most I ever saw of Mrs.
Slavski.
CUT TO
INT, OFFICE, RANDOM DAY
- We see a separate scene of Mrs. Slavski dropping Stanley
off at the office and leaving quite quickly after.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
I tried many times to get a word in with
Mrs. Slavski about her son’s behavior.
- Mrs. Slavski leaves the office another day in different
clothing.
CUT TO
INT, OFFICE, DAY
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
But she always seemed in too much of a hurry
- We find Stanley sitting in the same chair he was
previously in the office. The Psychiatrist is at his desk
looking down and smiling at a picture.
The Psychiatrist holds up the picture and smiles. The
picture depicts a motherly figure holding hands with a
small boy. The drawing is done very carefully in pencil and
is far beyond what a normal child could produce.
PSYCHIATRIST
Did you draw this Stanley?
Stanley slowly looks up and nods in the same fashion.
PSYCHIATRIST
Is this your mother…? And you?
4
Stanley nods again.
CUT TO
INT, SCHOOL CLASSROOM, DAY
– We find Stanley doing various kinds of schoolwork
including coloring and writing assignments.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stanley was very intelligent and acted older
than his age. His schoolwork was always
above average.
CUT TO
INT, ANOTHER SCHOOL CLASSROOM, DAY
– We find Stanley confronting another YOUNG BOY with Casey
in the back of the empty room.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
But for whatever reason, his relationships
with other children only worsened.
Stanley and Casey shove the Young Boy into a closet and
lock the door behind him. Afterwards Casey stands still,
grinning at Stanley.
CUT TO
INT, OFFICE, DAY –
Stanley is slouched down in his usual chair. The
psychiatrist tilts his glasses as he looks down at his
papers.
The Psychiatrist tilts his head and looks off to the side.
PSYCHIATRIST
Stanley, would you like to tell me why you
wanted to push the boy into the closet?
The psychiatrist looks straight at Stanley with his hands
folded. Stanley’s eyes drop.
5
PSYCHIATRIST
Did the boy do something to hurt you or make
you mad?
Stanley remains silent, staring into the corner of the
room.
STANLEY
(Hesitating)
Casey wanted to. It was his idea. He told me
to.
The Psychiatrist’s eyes and meet with Stanley's.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Over the months Casey had become Stan’s
excuse for just about any trouble he got
into.
CUT TO
EXT, PLAYGROUND JUNGLE GYM, DAY
– Many children are at play. Stanley and Casey stand at
the top of a slide. Stanley is yelling with an angry face
down at some young boys below them but we do not hear him.
Casey stands quietly with a smirk behind him.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
But I could hardly persuade Stanley to tell
me anything about his friend...It was like
he did not exist unless Stan was in trouble.
CUT TO
INT, OFFICE, DAY
– Stanley is slouched as usual in his chair. The
psychiatrist is found walking from his desk and takes a
seat close to Stanley.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
I think the answer to Stan’s problem was in
himself. He would just need some help
digging it up.
The Psychiatrist smiles at Stanley as he stares back.
6
PSYCHIATRIST
Stan… Today I want to talk about your
friend.
Stanley remains silent.
PSYCHIATRIST
I want to talk about Casey… Is it ok if we
talk about Casey Stanley?
Stanley’s eyes drop to the floor.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stan, do you, when you play at school or
recess, do you ever pretend?
Stanley looks up at the Psychiatrist, expressionless.
PSYCHIATRIST
Do you ever make believe things just for
fun? Like monsters or Dragons? Or maybe you
pretend to have a space ship?
Stanley shifts in his seat and looks down again.
STANLEY
Yeah… Sometimes I’ll be the policeman.
The Psychiatrist smiles and leans back a bit in his seat
and toys with his pen.
PSYCHIATRIST
Yeah? You like to play cops and robbers?
STANLEY
(Nodding)
Yeah…
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Stanley, do you ever think that maybe Casey
is make-believe too?
Stanley stares coldly at the Psychiatrist. We hear the
Psychiatrist speak but his lips do not move.
7
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Maybe like one of those robbers you have to
catch?
STANLEY
Maybe…
Smiling, the psychiatrist leans to one side of the chair
and clicks his pen a few times.
PSYCHIATRIST
It’s ok to pretend Stanley. I used to make
believe when I was a boy too.
Again we hear the Psychiatrist speak but his lips do not
move.
PSYCHIATRIST (V.O.)
Sometimes… I still like to pretend.
SLOW CUTS – between Stanley and the psychiatrist’s chair.
At first we see the chair as empty. Then we see Stanley in
the place of the psychiatrist and Stanley’s original seat
empty. Stanley now has the psychiatrist’s pen and continues
to click it several times.
- We see Mrs. Slavski crack the door open and peer into the
office to find Stanley sitting at the desk.
MRS. SLAVSKI
Come eat your lunch Stanley. Mummy’s got a
meeting soon.
- Stanley hops out of the seat and leaves the room through
the door that Mrs. Slavski has held open for him. The door
slowly shuts afterwards.
- We see a close up of the picture Stanley drew on the
desk. It still depicts a mother holding the hand of a small
boy but is rendered in crayon and now looking very childlike.
FADE OUT