India suffers from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) in the winter, bringing on depression, anxiety, loss of energy and appetite, and social isolation. She looks back on happy summer memories with friends and longs for those feelings again. After hitting her lowest point on New Year's Eve, India decides to get professional help. With counseling and support from friends, India's outlook improves and she is able to socialize again as winter ends and summer approaches.

1. “S.A.D IN THE WINTER”
By
Jasmine Prior
JASMINE PRIOR
RINGWOOD SCHOOL
Priorj.student@ringwood.hants.sch.uk

2. 1
FADE IN:
INT. In India’s bedroom. Late afternoon.
India is laying on her bed looking up at the ceiling
looking extremely sad and worried with ear phones in.
INDIA (V.O.)
Christmas, Halloween and Bonfire night,
all of which occurs in the winter. Events
that are supposed to be happy and
exciting. All of which people look forward
to all of which I dread.
EXT. outside in India’s local town- Last winter- Flashback
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I dread the bitter winds. I dread the
harsh rain.
END FLASHBACK
INT. inside India’s bedroom- Last winter- Flashback
India is in her room clutching her head and crying, in
floods of tears.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
But most of all I dread the sadness. The
closer I get to it, the worse the
depression gets. The more the anxiety
kicks in, so I block everyone out, I turn
off the lights and I sit in my room alone.
I try to go out but when I do, it just
brings back good memories.
END FLASHBACK
EXT. at the forest and on the beach- summer earlier that
year- Flashback
India is laughing with all of her friends and looking
extremely happy.

3. 2
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
It brings back good memories that are
over. Good memories that only make me sad
and I set myself up for another six months
of sadness.
End Flashback
INT. India walking around her house.
India ignores everybody that she walks past and goes
outside, when she gets outside, she bursts into tears again
and we see her screaming.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I suffer from the mental illness SAD.
Every day in the winter I long for it to
go, to leave me alone. To not feel like
I’m trapped in my own mind. Every day for
me is a battle in the winter, every day I
struggle to get out of bed. I have a loss
of appetite and energy. I can only wait
for the pure sadness to pass when winter
does.
EXT. at the beach
India looks across at the sea. She is looking at an
extremely empty beach. She walks up and down the beach with
tears in her eyes.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I long for the day’s that I was having fun
with my friends, I miss constantly
smiling. I miss the feeling of the sun on
my skin and not being wrapped up with
scarfs and big winter coats and feeling
like I’m suffocating in them. I long to be
free.

4. 3
EXT. At the beach- Last Summer- Flashback
India is at the beach with her friends, they are all sat
laughing and having a picnic.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
My friends. I miss my friends so much.
I’ve shut them out. Like I always do in
the winter. They say they understand. They
act like it doesn’t hurt them when deep
down, I know that it does hurt them. I
just want it to go back to how it was a
few months ago. Why can’t time just turn
back?
END FLASHBACK
INT. In India’s car
India is in her car crying.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I try to go out, I really do try but every
time I do, it ends with me sat in my car,
crying, having a breakdown. Only 4 months
left.
INT. Christmas eve. India’s lounge.
India’s family is laughing and chatting together.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
Christmas Eve a time of laughter and
joyousness. Spending time with loved ones
and feeling happy. I wish that I saw it
that way again. Christmas Eve used to be
my favorite day of Christmas. It’s a
tradition for our wider family to come
round to our house. It was amazing. I wish
it still was amazing for me.

5. 4
INT: India’s room.
India is laying on her bed listening to music.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I want to go downstairs, I do I really
want to join in on all of the festivities
but for me Christmas is not a time of
happiness. For me, Christmas, marks my
halfway point. I start to feel sad in
October and start to feel better towards
the end of March. I still have a quarter
of a year left of this and I hate it.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I long to feel happy again, I want this to
end. Why can’t I just start to feel happy
again? It’s all I want.
INT. India’s lounge
It is New Year’s Eve and India is all ready to go out but
then has a change of mind and decides to cancel. She is sat
crying into her hands.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I wanted to go out. I wanted to celebrate
New Year’s Eve. I really did. I told them
that I would go. I said that it sounded
really fun and that I would love to go
out. I was having a good day that day. I
fooled myself into thinking that I was
getting better. I told myself that I was
better. The next day, I felt worse. I
wasn’t getting better I just had one good
day and again, I feel like I’m trapped in
my own mind.
India’s phone makes a sound to signal that she has got a
text. It is from one of her friends that are out having
fun.

6. 5
ALICIA (TEXT)
Wish you were here. Never the same without
you!
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I know she means it. I know that she
really does wish I was there and that it
isn’t the same. She is my best friend and
I know that she wants me there. I just
can’t bring myself to go and have no
motivation. I feel like I am just wasting
my younger years. I just want to feel like
a teenager again.
EXT. In India’s local town
India is walking through the town that she lives in. She is
walking with her hands in her pockets and her head down.
Looking around every once in a while.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
When I was younger, really young I used to
love coming down here all wrapped up warm
and feeling happy and free. I never felt
like this in the winter. I always
preferred the summer but I never felt
depressed. It started two years ago. I
suddenly started hating the dark nights,
the cold. I started to feel more and more
drained of energy until I didn’t want to
get out of bed.
India stops and supports herself by leaning on a building
she squeezes her eyes shut tight and lets out a shaky
breath.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I know that I need to get help. I don’t
think that I can do this on my own.

7. 6
INT. India’s bedroom
India is finally starting to feel a bit better.
India has a smile on her face and looks a lot more relaxed.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I decided that it was time to get help. I
went to the doctors and talked to somebody
about the way that I am feeling. I got
referred to a counselor and have been
given self-help tips.
India falls back onto her bed and lets out a sigh of relief
with a smile on her face. She gets out her phone and sends
a text to Alicia.
INDIA (TEXT)
Hey, was just wondering if you wanted to
maybe get a coffee sometime.
India plugs her ear phones into her phone and falls back
onto her bed again and looks around her room at all the
pictures she has up of her and her friends.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I know that I am always going to hate the
winter and recovering from this illness is
going to take time. I know that it is not
going to happen overnight.
EXT. India is walking into a coffee shop with all of her
friends.
INDIA (V.O.) (CONT’D)
I have started going out with my friends
more and am feeling a lot better. I still
have bad days but I have been having more

8. 7
good days, than bad. Summer is just around
the corner now. I suffer from the mental
illness SAD and I am learning to cope with
it.
FADE OUT:
THE END