Emily finds a woman named Tanya pretending to be dead in the park. Tanya encourages Emily to take acting classes focused on playing dead women, or "dead girls", from a controversial coach named Larry. Tanya claims the best roles for women are as dead girls and that focusing on appearing dead and violated will lead to work. However, when Emily questions if Tanya has actually booked any roles, Tanya begins to cry, revealing she may feel exploited by the industry's demand for dead girls.

1. Dead Girls
Micheline Auger

2. INT. BEDROOM - DAY
A pale arm hangs limply from beneath the covers. Bare feet
exposed. A woman (late 20s) lies prostrate in the bed. Eyes
closed, mouth open.
The phone alarm RINGS. It’s 6:00 AM.
EMILY’S eyes open. She grabs the phone and silences the
alarm.
INT. BATHROOM - DAY
Emily washes her face. Looks up to mirror, soap dripping.
EMILY
I am a successful actress. No, I am
a successful actor... I am a
successful THESPIAN!
INT. BEDROOM - DAY
Emily puts on her running shoes.
EMILY
I’d like to thank the Academy...
INT. KITCHEN - DAY
She opens the fridge covered with inspirational notes.
EMILY
I’d like to thank the Tony
voters...
EXT. APARTMENT - DAY
Emily starts her run.
EMILY
“I look good, I feel good, I should
be in Hollywood. I look good, I
feel good, I should be in
Hollywood...”
EXT. PARK - DAY
Emily catches a glimpse of something underneath the leaves.
An arm or something. She looks closer. It’s a dead girl. She
looks closer. The dead girl is breathing.
(CONTINUED)

3. EMILY
Tanya?
TANYA
Oh! Hey!
EMILY
What are you doing?
TANYA (20s) jumps up.
TANYA
Were you running? I’ll join you.
Gosh, what a beautiful day!
She takes off. Emily runs after her.
EMILY
I thought you were dead!
TANYA
Really? Thanks! I gotta tell Larry.
He’ll be so proud.
EMILY
Who’s Larry?
TANYA
“Who’s Larry?” You’re kidding,
right?
EMILY
No.
TANYA
He’s the only acting coach worth
studying with. BURPEE BREAK!
EMILY
What?
Tanya jumps into plank, then a push-up, then pops back up.
Emily follows suit, not quite keeping up.
TANYA
You should definitely take his
class. He guarantees you’ll book
something in the first month or
your money back.
Emily tries to catch her breath.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
2.

4. EMILY
Really?!
TANYA
Yeah. You ok?
EMILY
Totally!
TANYA
Hold in plank.
They hold in plank pose.
EMILY
FEELING GOOD! LOOKING GOOD!
TANYA
What?
EMILY
Nothing.
TANYA
You should start with his
Auditioning for Dead Girls class.
All the great roles for women are
dead girls.
EMILY
Are you in that class?
TANYA
I’m in his advanced dead girls
class. We cover decomposition, eye-
glazing, and accents.
EMILY
Who cares about accents?
TANYA
Who cares?
EMILY
Yeah, they’re dead.
TANYA
Agents care.
EMILY
Why?
Tanya starts doing squats.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
3.

5. TANYA
You've got to be able to bring more
to a dead girl audition than a
really good stare. Like if you’re a
southern dead girl, they really
want to believe you had a soft
lilting voice before you got tied
up and mutilated. It helps us care
about you.
Emily watches Tanya and attempts to copy her.
EMILY
My friend Sara went out for pilot
season last year and didn't have to
learn one line because all they
were looking for were dead girls.
TANYA
Did she book?
EMILY
What?
TANYA
Did she book?
EMILY
I think she booked three separate
jobs.
TANYA
She probably brought her ice pack.
Erect nipples need to be part of
your wheelhouse, regardless of
temperature.
EMILY
I can fence, speak with an
Elizabethan accent, and ride a
horse side saddle.
TANYA
You also want to be fuckable.
She runs off. Emily follows her.
EMILY
What?
CONTINUED: (3)
(CONTINUED)
4.

6. TANYA
I mean, it's not PC to say anymore
but it's true. Dead or alive, you
have to look fuckable. I use
visualization and positive
affirmations.
EMILY
I heard this affirmation that I
really like. It goes, “I look good.
I feel good. I should be in
Hollywood.”
TANYA
That’s awesome. All you need to do
is change it to “I look dead. I
feel dead. I should be in
Hollywood.”
EMILY
Not quite the same ring.
TANYA
Keep working on it.
Tanya stops to tie her shoelace.
TANYA (CONT'D)
Have you been to the Dead Girl
exhibit at Madam Troussaud's Wax
Museum?
EMILY
Oh, yeah... No.
TANYA
All the great TV dead girls are
there: True Detective, The Killing,
and, of course, the queen of all
dead girls: Laura Palmer from Twin
Peaks.
EMILY
Who?
TANYA
Oh, my God. Don’t let Larry hear
you say that. Do your research.
It’s part of being an actor.
EMILY
I went to Yale Drama School.
CONTINUED: (4)
(CONTINUED)
5.

7. Tanya stretches.
TANYA
You gotta start somewhere.
EMILY
And I was offered an adjunct
teaching position at UCLA.
TANYA
You’ll make more money as a dead
girl. But you should do it before
it’s too late.
Emily tries to touch her toes.
EMILY
What do you mean?
TANYA
If you’re over 30 and dead no one
really cares. But don’t worry, you
look young. Maybe lose a little
weight.
EMILY
You really think I could make some
money doing this?
TANYA
Oh, totally. If you’re lucky you
can even book your body parts in
crime shows. Larry has a workshop
on Embodying Body Parts. It’s
great. I got my SAG card doing that
stuff.
EMILY
I have an MFA.
TANYA
Great! You'll probably get a few
lines before they kill you.
EMILY
Have you booked anything?
Tanya goes into a downward dog yoga pose.
TANYA
I just booked a new series playing
the featured dead girl whose death
turns this whole town upside down.
CONTINUED: (5)
(CONTINUED)
6.

8. Emily joins her.
EMILY
I read about that! That’s the one
that takes place in a small town in
Denmark?
TANYA
No, that’s a different one.
EMILY
Is it the one that takes place in a
small town in the Midwest?
TANYA
That actually didn’t get picked up.
Don’t you read the trades?
Emily's arms start shaking.
EMILY
Is it the one that takes place in a
small town in the south?
TANYA
That’s network.
Emily sits.
EMILY
I was actually thinking about
writing my own pilot.
TANYA
Seriously. Start it with a dead
girl. All good stories start with a
dead girl. Did you see that
special on Dateline?
EMILY
No.
TANYA
Oh my gosh, don’t tell Larry or
Hollywood that you didn’t see that.
EMILY
I've been busy with Shakespeare in
the Parking Lot.
CONTINUED: (6)
(CONTINUED)
7.

9. TANYA
It was amazing. Archeologists
actually discovered the original
manuscript of the bible and it
says, "In the beginning, God
created a dead girl."
Emily lies down.
EMILY
My niece confided in me that she
wants to be a dead girl when she
grow up.
TANYA
Have you seen the dead girl dolls?!
EMILY
What?
Tanya rotates her hips.
TANYA
One has a little rope around her
neck from being strangled, another
has a fingernail missing, and the
SVU edition comes with a little
sperm sample jar.
EMILY
Do you think I should get her one?
TANYA
They’re a little pricey. If you
can't afford it, you can just get
the toe, I think. There's a little
tag on it and you can write her
name in. It's so cute.
Emily gets up.
EMILY
I should probably take every class
Larry offers.
TANYA
There’s a great "How to Take
Larry’s Class" class that he
teaches. It’s amazing. It made
every other class after that like
PHD-y.
CONTINUED: (7)
(CONTINUED)
8.

10. EMILY
What?
TANYA
Like grad school. Upper level shit.
Emily redoes her ponytail.
EMILY
But, honestly, I don’t think I’ve
actually seen you in anything.
TANYA
Oh, you’ve seen me.
EMILY
No, I don’t think I have.
TANYA
Oh, you have.
EMILY
I’m pretty good at spotting people.
TANYA
Really? Maybe you recognize this...
Tanya's eyes glaze over.
TANYA (CONT'D)
Or this...
She tilts her head to the right.
TANYA (CONT'D)
Or this...
She tilts her head to the left.
EMILY
Oh, my god! I saw you on NCIS!
TANYA
Exactly.
EMILY
Wow. That must have been great!
You've really made it.
Tanya smiles.
TANYA
Yeah.
CONTINUED: (8)
(CONTINUED)
9.

11. Her eyes well up with tears. She looks away.
EMILY
Are you okay?
TANYA
Uh huh.
EMILY
You don't look okay.
TANYA
I don't know.
EMILY
Do you want a hug?
TANYA
Okay.
Emily hugs her. Tanya wipes her tears.
TANYA (CONT'D)
Thanks.
EMILY
Do you feel better?
TANYA
I feel kinda dead inside.
EMILY
That’s great, right?!
TANYA
Sometimes I get stuck in this weird
victim mentality and I don’t know
why.
She thinks for a minute, then shrugs her shoulders.
TANYA (CONT’D)
Well, off to another audition.
Crushing it!
She runs off.
EMILY
Break legs!
FADE OUT.
CONTINUED: (9)
10.