A winning drama from the Nashville Film Festival Screenplay Competition. It is featured on the Six-Page Scripts podcast.

1. ONE ROSE
Chasing Dreams
("oneiros": personification of dreams in Greek mythology)
A Psychological Thriller TV Drama - Proof of Concept Script
Written by
Richa Rudola
Log Line: When a self-doubting, narcoleptic PhD student faces
deportation, knowing her astrologer mother predicted her academic
failure, she turns to neuroscience to create a dating algorithm to
match people based on dreams, to prove her self-worth as a woman
of science.
WGAE Registered

2. EXT. BUILDING ROOFTOP - DAY (DREAM)
A pair of feet shuffle on a building ledge, flanked by blue
skies in the background.
Arms balance against the wind.
A pair of eyes, scrunched shut behind thick glasses, slowly
open. They peek at the ground, 40 floors below, and OPEN WIDE
in PANIC. Heavy breaths. This is CARINA JOSHI, South Asian,
30s.
A male voice echoes in the wind. She looks up in its
direction.
Across from her, on top of another building a few feet away,
stands a CAUCASIAN MAN, 30s. He beckons to her. Love emanates
from every pore in his body. This is STONEY MARKHAM. Mild
mannered, good natured.
STONEY
You can do it, babe! It’s not as
hard as it looks.
Carina takes a deep breath as she positions herself to leap
forward.
A bell TOLLS behind her LOUDLY. Carina turns around.
A MIDDLED AGED SOUTH ASIAN WOMAN sits with hands folded in
prayer. Fiercely proud woman. Maternal but in a manly way.
This is RASHMI JOSHI, Carina’s mother.
Next to her an OLDER PRIEST tolls a bell in his hand, its
loudness incongruous with its small size.
Rashmi consults an astrological chart. Both seem unaware of
Carina’s presence.
RASHMI
(Hindi)
You’re right Panditji. She’s
wasting her time with that PhD
nonsense. Love will elude her
unless it’s handed to her. She
won’t accept my help, we will have
to trick her into it.
Carina looks back in Stoney’s direction. He now holds a baby
strapped to his chest. He opens his arms wide to her.

3. 2.
She meets his gaze, then turns to look at Rashmi who stares
at Carina in anticipation.
Carina takes a deep breath and JUMPS below.
Stoney and Rashmi’s voices ECHO in the wind behind her.
INT. CAR - DAY
SILENCE except for some heavy breathing.
Deep sweat stains on the armpit of a blouse. Underneath,
brown arms shake uncontrollably as they hold a steering wheel
tainted with blood.
Carina sits in the driver’s seat, her glasses cracked and
with a fresh wound on her forehead.
EXT. STREET - DAY
Fumes arise from the hood of the car as it idles, rammed
against a wired fence. Snow on the ground.
Carina strains to look around, no other cars or people in
sight.
An empty street on a suburban highway.
INT. CAR - DAY
Still dazed, she looks at the scattered state of the insides
of her car. Her purse lays on the floor, contents spilled.
How did this happen?
She spots her phone on the floor and picks it up. It shows
10:02AM and two missed calls from “Ma”.
She lowers her window and sticks her head out for some air.
The wound flashes bright red as it catches the sunlight.
She closes her eyes. Beat.
SMASH CUT TO:
INT. MIT CLASSROOM - DAY
Bright classroom light falls on closed eyelids as rapid eye
movements flicker across them. Carina sleeps sitting up in
her chair.
2.

4. 3.
She opens her eyes with a START. A full class is in session.
A heavyset voice floats to the surface. She straightens up.
A stern-faced CAUCASIAN MAN, 50s, delivers a lecture in an
even tone. Behind him, impossibly crisp handwriting adorns
the blackboard. Fastidious and precise, just like him. This
is DR. BRIAN LEVINE.
Levine’s eyes briefly meet Carina’s. He looks away, a flash
of displeasure evident on his face.
Her cheeks flush with embarrassment. She busies herself into
her notebook.
INT. MIT CLASSROOM - LATER
Class has ended. Students gather their things and leave.
As Carina passes Levine’s desk, he looks up.
DR. LEVINE
Carina, can you stay back a moment?
She walks up to his desk, fidgeting. Levine waits for the
last student to trickle out before turning to Carina.
He clears his throat before talking. She gulps.
He holds an academic paper in his hand.
DR. LEVINE (CONT'D)
I read your draft. If I didn’t know
better I could have mistaken it for
a piece in the student newspaper.
I’ve never before needed to ask
this question in this program..but
astrology??
CARINA
(stammers)
I’m sorry Professor, I just wanted
to explore it as a faulty
matchmaking domain.
He gives her a hard LOOK.
DR. LEVINE
Do you recall your PhD statement of
purpose?
3.

5. 4.
CARINA
(nods)
Of course.
DR. LEVINE
That paper which came before any
coursework, qualifying exam and 1
year of research, was more
scientific than this pseudoscience
territory you’re playing in now. I
find this neither sufficient and
far from necessary.
She nods, stricken.
DR. LEVINE (CONT'D)
PhDs are not about disruption,
they’re about enhancement. What can
you add to the discourse? By now
you should have a solid idea of
what you want to pursue but you’re
flailing.
She tears up. He softens his tone a tad.
DR. LEVINE (CONT'D)
Have you considered a Masters?
She blinks, confused.
CARINA
Masters in what?
He meets her gaze. She understands.
DR. LEVINE
Not everyone has what it takes to
survive a PhD program. It’s
perfectly acceptable to cut your
losses. Lots of job opportunities
here or back home for you.
She opens her mouth to speak, struggles for words as she
watches him pack up his things.
DR. LEVINE (CONT'D)
Think about it.
CARINA
I’ve thought about getting a PhD my
whole life.
He looks up at her.
4.

6. 5.
DR. LEVINE
Then you know you have your work
cut out for you. I need to see
demonstrable progress on your
agreed-upon area of research. You
chose the field of dating
algorithms. Pick a scientific
angle! Believing in yourself is
just as, if not more, important as
the idea.
He leaves.
Off her anxious face.
BACK TO:
INT. CAR - CONTINUOUS
She opens her eyes but her eyelids remain droopy. She checks
her reflection in the rearview mirror, touches the wound
gingerly and WINCES.
She sees a FLASH of a MAN reflected in the mirror. She turns
around but finds an empty backseat. No one is around the car.
She turns back to the rearview mirror and there he is again.
A SOUTH ASIAN MAN, 40s. Dressed like a yogi, he meditates
with his eyes closed. Carina’s dazed face breaks into a smile
as she watches him. Respectful, almost as if by habit.
CARINA
(Hindi)
Is this how it ends, Papa?
SAROVAR, Carina’s father, opens his eyes and meets his
daughter’s gaze. He doesn’t respond, just gives her a nod of
understanding.
Carina tilts her head back to rest, still in his gaze.
CARINA (CONT'D)
(Hindi)
I’m a scientist Papa..almost. And I
found someone who loves me. I wish
you could meet him.
Carina’s eyes droop further as her speech becomes slurred.
5.

7. 6.
CARINA (CONT'D)
(Hindi)
Did you know about the dashas..she
was right..I ran looking..couldn’t
find y-
Sarovar’s voice washes over Carina as her upper body slumps
over the wheel.
SAROVAR (V.O.)
(Hindi)
Never stop chasing your
dreams..that’s where you’ll find
me.
Carina stares ahead vacantly with heavy eyes and a limp face.
Fade to black.
6.