BDM125 Storyboarding: Step Outline "Monkey Saves the DayPaint!"

Step Outline

“Monkey Saves the DayPaint!”

By Traci Meek

EXT. PARK SQUARE-EVENING

A small, European park square separates an old brick building covered in graffiti and a gleaming art museum.  A teenager works tirelessly through the night to create a mural of a woman with a palette of spray paint and a canvas.

EXT. PARK SQUARE-MORNING

The park square comes to life as businesses open, people go on their errands and kids play in the park.  The little café has burnt someone’s toast and the fire department has just finished putting out the little fire with the fire hydrant in the park.  The slightly smoky coffee lovers continue on with their lattes and newspapers.  A snobby museum patron pauses to note the new addition to the side of the building and clearly disapproves of the mural.  The Graffiti Girl opens her eyes, looks around and excitedly begins to paint what she sees going on around her.

INT. MUSEUM, CLASICAL HALLWAY-MORNING

The residents of the paintings in the museum, all worth millions of dollars, begin their day.  The Hero painting polishes the buttons of his military coat with the tail of his horse.  A Trio of barely dressed ladies begin their warm up and the other paintings generally stir to life.  Amongst all of these Very Worthy Paintings we spy, small and off to the side, a small canvas of a monkey in a red coat and a tricorn painting a picture of his own.  With his tail, he swipes a banana from a painted bowl of fruit and paints a moustache and eyes on the horse’s butt.  He’s been doing this for hundreds of years and he’s just going through the motions:  he’s bored. 

EXT. PARK SQUARE- MORNING

The Graffiti Girl sees the Artist Monkey and the other paintings and tries to communicate with them.  They are polite, but too busy posing for the patrons of the museum.  She makes eye contact with the Artist Monkey and they compare paintings.  The Artist Monkey feels a swell of creativity that he hasn’t felt in a long time.

INT. MUSEUM FOYER-AFTERNOON

The snobby museum patron tells the director of the museum she doesn’t like this “garbage art” that’s dominating the view out of the windows.  She throws some money at him and demands that a painter be sent out to whitewash the side of the building across the park.

MONTAGE  Graffiti Girl and Art Monkey show each other the new paintings that they’re working on and do silly cartoons of Hero painting and his horse and the patrons of the café.

EXT. PARK SQUARE-AFTERNOON

The painter begins to white wash the building but is getting paid by the hour, so he starts with a small brush.  The Graffiti Girl is able to hold him off for a while with her spray paints, and it’s a funny joke between her and Artist Monkey until the snobby museum patron intervenes.  She insists that the painter “hurry up” and he reluctantly brings out a roller and brush.  As the paint beings to rise around Graffiti Girl’s legs, she reaches out to the paintings across the square for help.

INT. MUSEUM, CLASSICAL HALLWAY-AFTERNOON.

The handsome Hero painting sees her! But, his public is here to take his picture, admire his pants and the shiny buttons on his coat, so he can’t do anything right now.  The paintings notice her predicament, but agree that there’s nothing they can do either.  The Artist Monkey can’t believe what he’s seeing; they’re going to let her disappear!  He resolves himself to do something and busts out of his frame.

INT. MUSEUM, IMPRESSIONIST HALLWAY-AFTERNOON

Artist Monkey flings himself from painting to painting, changing to fit in with the style of the painting he’s traveling across. 

INT. MUSEUM, POP ART HALLWAY- AFTERNOON

Artist Monkey works his way through the Warhol and Lichtenstein and stops short.  The foyer and the exit are ahead of him but there is no more paint for him to use as a stepping stone to the outside.  He’s never been outside, either!  Can he do it?  Can he really go OUTSIDE?

INT. MUSEUM, FOYER- AFTERNOON

Artist Monkey sees a patron coming down the hall who has a colourful graphic t-shirt on.  He leaps “into” the shirt and rides the patron out the doors.

EXT. STREET CAFÉ- AFTERNOON

Artist Monkey leaps off the shirt and onto a passing truck with a colourful logo painted on the side.  He then leaps onto the back of the horse logo on the local bank window and from there to the side of the street, just across from the park square and the Graffiti Girl.

EXT. PARK SQUARE-AFTERNOON

The snobby museum patron has had enough of this and brings out a super spray gun powered by a generator.  The spray of white paint comes out thick and fast.  Graffiti Girl is now literally up to her neck in paint.

EXT. STREET CAFÉ- AFTERNOON

Too late, Artist Monkey realizes that he should have brought his paints and brushes with him because he is now stuck at the yellow painted curb next to the café with no more paint for him to use to get to the Graffiti Girl.  He sees a little girl sitting at an outside table colour in her book while her parents chat.  They lock eyes and she holds up a fistful of crayons for his inspection.  He grabs a crayon with each paw, and his tail and busily colours himself across the street, looking like a kid’s drawing as he goes.

EXT. PARK SQUARE-LATE AFTERNOON

He’s too late!  Graffiti Girl’s last eye has just been covered by the triumphant snobby museum patron’s super spray gun.  She victoriously hands the gun off to the painter so he can finish off the last bits and clean up.  Artist Monkey has worn the crayons down to nothing and can go no further.  Dejected, he slumps against the fire hydrant.  With his head bowed, he re-opens his eyes and sees a little painting at the base of the hydrant.  He remembers seeing it being used that morning to put out the fire in the café.  He grabs the plug and sets off a torrent of water.  The snobby museum patron is blown away, then the painter.  The water washes off most of the paint, freeing Graffiti Girl from her white tomb.  Artist Monkey raises his arms in victory!  The museum paintings have been watching the whole time and begin to cheer as Graffiti Girl smiles down at him.  The snobby museum patron shakes her fist and berates the painter.  They’ll just have to come back tomorrow!  Artist Monkey and Graffiti Girl lock eyes:  it’s not over, is it?  How can she be saved?
 

EXT. PARK SQUARE- THE NEXT MORNING   

The painter and the snobby museum patron return to find a crowd gathered in front of the mural and more people coming from inside the museum.  During the night, someone has painted a big gold frame around the Graffiti Girl and fixed a bunch of brass plates to the bottom.  The teenage graffiti artist poses for pictures in front of the mural, a huge sensation in the street art scene, as Graffiti Girl and Artist Monkey beam down on the crowd.