1. PITCH PROJECT
Name: Katie Lighthall Date: 4-8-14
Main Details
Title: The Fourth Tie
Concept Log Line: Professionalism Doesn’t Always Pay
Comparable Existing Project(s): “The Fourth Kind,” “Batman,” “The Pursuit of
Happyness,” “Boiler Room,” “Office Space,” Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married,”
and “Up In Smoke.”
Synopsis
Walter Pinkman always believed in professionalism. The way he ironed his suit, the way
he matched his socks, and even more importantly-his ties. He even wore a tie to bed.
One morning, his tie was not around his neck. In a panic, he checked his tie-closet. They
were all gone. Walter could not remember the night before; he only remembered walking
in his house, wearing a new pink tie he bought after work that day. The story develops
through a shocking discovery, that his ties have developed a fourth sense, and have come
to life. The ties make a plan to dominate the world and Walt will stop them with his own
fourth sense-a special suit.
Character Development
1) Walter Pinkman- Walt is business man, working for a computer equipment
corporation. Suit and tie, they called him. He only bought ties in his spare time,
no time for anything else. Work, ties, work, ties. He had no family, for they were
all alarmed by his shocking tie collection of 360 ties (the pink one included), and
for his business-obsession. Any time someone would ask to see him, he would
only reply with “I need a new tie,” or “I need to iron my ties.”
Physical- Walt is a clean-shaven man of 40 years of age. He does not own
“lounge wear” and can only be seen in a suit and tie. Walt has short brown hair,
green eyes, and a slight pudge to his stomach-for he has no time to work out.
2) Skylar Goodman- Sky is Walt’s ex-wife. She was known for her psychedelic
nature, and believed that through peace and change, the world can be a better
place. There are many reasons why she and Walt never worked out, and claimed
that “after years of professionalism were shoved down my throat, it was the last
straw when he bought me a stupid mop for Christmas.”
Physical- Sky is a thin, well mannered ‘hippie,’ with long, wavy blonde hair. One
would describe her style as “so totally 1970’s.” She only wore clothes from
Goodwill, even though Walt could afford Gucci. Sky was one with the world,
and loved bell bottoms and floral tops.

2. 3) Jesse Schrader- Jesse is Walter’s only friend: his cubicle mate. Although Jesse
does not follow in Walt’s footsteps with the constant tie purchases, he has a tie
collection of his own, and often trades ties with him. Jesse constantly presses on
starting a tie manufacturing plant with Walter, even though he lacks the persistent
professionalism that Walt so desperately displays.
Physical- Jesse looks to have an eating disorder quite the opposite of his friend’s:
anorexia. If it wasn’t for the drug abuse problem, he would have the build of an
average man’s. He has short, spiked up, dirty blonde hair, and crystal blue eyes.
4) Saul Fring- Saul is the 360th
tie that Walter purchased. This is the “devious fourth
tie” and plans to completely take over Walt’s life, and then the entire world.
Physical- Saul is the longest tie Walt bought, it was at a thrift shop. Although
some of his ends are fringed, he is a pretty magenta pink color with striped
texture.
Major Supporting Character(s)
1) Weston Pinkman- Weston is Walt’s oldest son, although only 5 years old. He
does not know his father very well, for he is always working. Any time his
mother Sky asks if he would like to visit his father, his reply is “I do not like the
office; it smells like coffee and despair.” Weston is highly educated for his age,
and skipped the first grade.
Physical- Weston is a healthy boy, although a bit short for his age. His mother
feeds him an organic diet, so he is far fit than his father is. He has light, big blue
eyes, and short light brown hair.
2) Spruce Pinkman- Spruce is Walt’s youngest daughter, who also does not know
her father. Walt pays a special amount of attention to her, but only about once a
month. Walt was tie shopping and missed her birth a couple years ago. She cries
for her daddy at night, but it amounts to less and less every week. She will
eventually forget that she has a father, and live a life full of alcohol abuse and
multiple boyfriends. But for now, she is an innocent, lively little girl of almost
two years.
Physical- Spruce is growing fast, and so is her curly, blonde hair. Her hair
reaches to the upper half of her back, and compliments her fair complexion. She
has dark, long eyelashes that frame her bright green eyes.
3) Naomi Goodman- Naomi is Sky’s eccentric mother. With her, this trait can be
defined when she carries her grandchildren arm-in-arm to the office where Walter
works, and shouts nasty remarks while throwing potted plants at him. She suffers
from bi-polar disorder and tends to make a hasty escape after hearing that the cops
are being called in. When not angry at Walter for abandoning his children, she
spends her days being the typical sweet grandma, fattening up the children with
pastries and chocolate milk.

3. Physical- Naomi is a short wrinkly woman with short, gray curly hair that goes all
ways. If seen on the street, you might consider leaving an extra foot in between
you and her. Her wrinkles indicate that she spent the majority of her life angry,
although usually wearing a smile. She has thin lips, and deep blue eyes.
4) John Rind- John is Walter’s boss. He always tries to crack jokes that make no
sense, and his employees laugh in response (not because they are funny), because
he would fire them if they did not. Only John is allowed to crack jokes. When
other employees try to make jokes in the coffee lounge, he gives the crooked-eye
to them. This makes for a very stiff work environment. No one actually knows
why he is the head of this corporation, because he constantly makes the same
mistakes over and over again. Not only that, he denies making the mistakes in the
first place. One might say that he has a “God complex.”
Physical- Mr. Rind is a tall man of 6’3”, with balding black hair and a thick black
beard. His squinty eyes have a sort of strange essence of them; the dark brown
center deepens the iris of amber brown. His lips are always drawn in a thin,
straight line.
Pre-Production Planning
My locations will most likely be local. For the action scenes, I will most likely
place “Walter” in a grassy, open environment where ties can be thrown at him at a
constant pace. I would prefer to shoot during the “magic hour” and even let it go on until
dawn. For the opening scene, where Walter is waking up out of bed and checking his
closet in a panic, I will use a random friend’s bedroom (mine is too messy.)
For crystal clear sound quality purposes, I will not use the “sound proof” room in
Radio TV, for it is not sound proof at all. I will be better off concealing myself into a
small closet, and placing towels under the door. That’s if I even use dialogue. More often
than not, ideas are better portrayed through visuals and not just audio. For the music, I
will avoid the whole pirating thing and just make my own songs, or bribe Josh to make
me one.
Casting Ideas:
1) Walter Pinkman---Bryan Cranston
2) Skylar Goodman---Anna Gunn
3) Jesse Schrader---Aaron Paul
Major Plot Points
Seven Major Plot Points OR TV- Episodes
1) It all began in a small house in the suburbs. Mr. Pinkman woke up from his exactly-8-
hour-sleep and reached for his neck as he does every morning. There was something
different about today, and he shortly realized this when the tie was missing. Walt often

4. “conditioned” his ties by wearing them to bed the night after purchasing a new one. He
said it made them feel “just right.” He sprung up out of bed to check his tie-closet,
thinking that maybe he stepped out of this ritual by accident. It was no accident, for
every single one of his ties was gone: 360 to be exact.
2) Walter immediately blamed his ex-wife for the mishap. She was down-to-Earth and
thought that his obsession was not practical at all. She also knew that his obsession was
keeping him away from his children. He knew this as well. It often bothered him. But
every time he began to imagine little Spruce laughing and screaming “higher Daddy,
higher!” on the swing-set, it always turned into a tie. A straight-up cross-dissolve from
his precious curly-headed little girl, to a brand-new tie. He often had vivid dreams of
getting a new tie, with a new pattern, or maybe a skinny tie, or maybe a color of rarity.
3) Walter called Sky. Her ringtone was “Time,” by Pink Floyd. She was not picking up.
Typical of Sky, she rarely has her phone on her for she spends all of her time outdoors.
And of course, he replayed that phrase over and over in his head in THE MOST annoying
voice he could think of. But her voice was not annoying. In fact, it was quite the
opposite. It had a gentle ring to it, kind of like the bells in her ring tone do. Walter often
thought of her voice, soothing his crazed-mind after a long day at the office, as she pet
his hair. He ruined the relationship that he had, and he almost did not care. “I have my
ties, and my ties have me. Oh wait… The ties… They’re... Gone…”
4) “Jesse you have to pick up,” Walt exclaimed into Jesse’s voicemail. “I feel like no one
is here… When…” *dial tone* Walter fell to his knees with the look of despair. Sound
did not exit his gaping mouth. This look is often presented upon someone’s face after
they lose a loved one. In Walter’s eyes, he has lost everything in his entire life. The ties
are gone, and after trying a few numbers, he realizes that they are also gone - all of them.
Dead: (figuratively dead, not literally). This was an epiphany of his life. He had to get
his life back – his children back.
5) His eyes hazy, his mind even worse. Driving down I-95 with a coffee at room-
temperature in his right hand, and the steering wheel gripped in his left. He was
on a multi-mission. To first (and he regrets this to this day) find out what
happened to his ties. And secondly, (this is the part to regret) to find his family.
He knew where they generally lived. But New Jersey was a small place full of a
many people.
6) He pulled up to the one place where a phone line would not be recognized by
Skylar – the office. He had never called her from there, she did not even know
his work line. Separate family from work; maybe separate the two too far. The
door looked dingy and larger than usual tonight, and the handle felt cold on his
fair cubicle-working hands. Upon opening the door, he noticed a faint odor in the
air. It reminded him of old chicken, which was a huge contrast to the smell of
faxing paper and cleaning supplies.
7) One step after the other. He tried the light switch to the right and even jiggled it a few
times, but light would not see this office for a long time from now. The smell was getting

5. stronger as he took one step after another. He heard a slither, almost like a snake, and
before he could run, he was tripped. Although the room was already dark as night, he
saw spots in his eyes. “Don't fall under, it was only a cable,” he reassured himself. But
no, he felt something fall into his hand. Terrified, he ran his finger across the foreign
object, and realized that it was not so foreign at all. It was... A tie. Walter's mind traced
back along events in his life, losing his children, losing his wife, and more importantly-
losing his life. His life is the office, and his side-chick is his ties. All tangible, but not
quite relevant. Memories of swinging Spruce on the swing years ago when he still had
hair, and Sky still smiled when she looked at him, all hit him like a tidal-wave. And the
worst part about it all, is that he realized that he was in a punch-in-the-clock schedule,
nothing was ever out of sorts. And what will become of him, he does not want to know.
All he knows is that he is face down in the carpet that he stares down at all day, with a tie
that he primly ties every day of his life. As the next tie wraps around his neck, he lets out
his last words-professionalism doesn't always pay.
Three Strong Sequences or Highlights
1. [fade in on a quaint white house, with blue shudders and tulips in the mulch]
[narrative] It all began in a small house in the suburbs. Mr. Pinkman woke up from his
exactly-8-hour-sleep [alarm sound blaring, cut to 90's digital alarm clock in the dark,
reading 7:00 am] and reached for his neck as he does every morning [pan moving up the
blanket to the bottom of his chin] [pause]. There was something different about today,
and he shortly realized this when the tie was missing. [panting sounds] [stop narrative]
Walt often “conditioned” his ties by wearing them to bed the night after purchasing a new
one [show walt walking melancholicly out of a generic “Tie Shop”] . He said it made
them feel “just right.” He sprung up out of bed to check his tie-closet, thinking that
maybe he stepped out of this ritual by accident. It was no accident, for every single one
of his ties was gone: 360 to be exact [ambient spooky sounds, and cross-fade from a
closet full of ties to an empty closet] [fade out]
2. [sound of engine running along highway lines] Walter called Sky, although not
expecting a response. Her ringtone was “Time,” by Pink Floyd. [sound of ringtone
muffled through the ear piece on a blue-tooth headset device] Anxiety increased as each
type of bell was set off in the song, all at sporadic times. She was not picking up.
Typical of Sky, she rarely has her phone on her for she spends all of her time outdoors.
[close-up shot of Sky's face, in tears, laying with an unknown bottle in a paper bag at her
own home] And of course, he replayed that phrase over and over in his head in THE
MOST annoying voice he could think of. [Walt's face crumbling to a grimace] [sound of
annoying voice] But her voice was not annoying. [face then crumbles to regret]
[soothing voice muffled] In fact, it was quite the opposite. It had a gently ring to it, kind
of like the bells in her ringtone do. [voice sing-songs to the tune of “Time”] Walter often
thought of her voice, soothing his crazed-mind after a long day at the office, as she pet
his hair. [Shot of old Walt and Sky laying in bed, facing eachother, with her hands in his
hair] And then the words “EX” flash across the screen like an alarm to wake him up and
remind him that they will never be together again. He ruined the relationship that he had,

6. and he almost did not care. “I have my ties, and my ties have me. Oh wait… The ties…
They’re... Gone…” [shot fades along with the memories, in a pool of professionalism]
3) One step after the other. [sound of footsteps muffled by carpet] He tried the light
switch to the right and even jiggled it a few times, [dark shot of him jiggling light switch]
but light would not see this office for a long time from now [straight shot to slow pan out
of the exterior of the office]. The smell was getting stronger as he took one step after
another, breathing to the rhythm of his feet hitting the new carpet [sound of the two going
into rhythm]. He heard a slither, almost like a snake, and before he could run, he was
tripped. Although the room was already dark as night, he saw spots in his eyes. “Don't
fall under, it was only a cable,” he reassured himself. But no... Face down, in the new
carpet the boss treasured so dearly, he felt something fall into his hand. Terrified, he ran
his finger across the foreign object, and realized that it was not so foreign at all. It was...
A tie. Walter's mind traced back along events in his life, losing his children, losing his
wife, and more importantly-losing his life. [pan across the office] His life is the office,
and his side-chick is his ties. All tangible, but not quite relevant. [flashback] Memories
of swinging Spruce on the swing years ago when he still had hair, and Sky still smiled
when she looked at him, all hit him like a tidal-wave. And the worst part about it all, is
that he realized that he was in a punch-in-the-clock schedule [sound of punch in], nothing
was ever out of sorts. And what will become of him, he does not want to know. All he
knows is that he is face down in the carpet that he stares down at all day, with a tie that he
primly ties every day of his life. As the next tie wraps around his neck, he lets out his last
words-professionalism doesn't always pay. [fade to black]

7. and he almost did not care. “I have my ties, and my ties have me. Oh wait… The ties…
They’re... Gone…” [shot fades along with the memories, in a pool of professionalism]
3) One step after the other. [sound of footsteps muffled by carpet] He tried the light
switch to the right and even jiggled it a few times, [dark shot of him jiggling light switch]
but light would not see this office for a long time from now [straight shot to slow pan out
of the exterior of the office]. The smell was getting stronger as he took one step after
another, breathing to the rhythm of his feet hitting the new carpet [sound of the two going
into rhythm]. He heard a slither, almost like a snake, and before he could run, he was
tripped. Although the room was already dark as night, he saw spots in his eyes. “Don't
fall under, it was only a cable,” he reassured himself. But no... Face down, in the new
carpet the boss treasured so dearly, he felt something fall into his hand. Terrified, he ran
his finger across the foreign object, and realized that it was not so foreign at all. It was...
A tie. Walter's mind traced back along events in his life, losing his children, losing his
wife, and more importantly-losing his life. [pan across the office] His life is the office,
and his side-chick is his ties. All tangible, but not quite relevant. [flashback] Memories
of swinging Spruce on the swing years ago when he still had hair, and Sky still smiled
when she looked at him, all hit him like a tidal-wave. And the worst part about it all, is
that he realized that he was in a punch-in-the-clock schedule [sound of punch in], nothing
was ever out of sorts. And what will become of him, he does not want to know. All he
knows is that he is face down in the carpet that he stares down at all day, with a tie that he
primly ties every day of his life. As the next tie wraps around his neck, he lets out his last
words-professionalism doesn't always pay. [fade to black]