The document is a draft screenplay titled 'Killer Dreams' by China Thomas, depicting a woman forced to protect her children amidst a violent invasion. The narrative shifts to her daughter, Rose, who struggles with nightmares of war and suffering connected to her ability to control minds. Rose seeks solace from her friend Jet as she grapples with the reality of her traumatic dreams and her inability to control her own life.

1. Killer Dreams
Written by
China Thomas
Copyright (c) 2024
Draft
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2. FADE IN:
EXT. LOCAL NEIGHBORHOOD/STREET- NIGHT
Bombs fall from the sky. Helicopters fire shots aimlessly.
Tanks roll over cars and people. Gunshots and screams mingle
in the air.
INT. LIVING ROOM- NIGHT
A MOTHER (32) hears screams echo in her apartment building.
Quickly, she grabs her SON (5) and DAUGHTER (2). She shoves
them in the crawlspace downstairs. Rushing back upstairs,
she looks for a place to hide, but it's too late...
Footsteps pound outside the door. SOLDIER 1 kicks it open
and enters. SOLDIER 2 follows.
MOTHER
My kids. I can't let them get my
kids...
SOLDIER 1
(snarling) Anyone else here?
Soldier 2 rifles through drawers. Tosses couch cushions.
Looks for something to pawn.
SOLDIER 2
Bleh. These people are filthy. Like
animals.
He shakes dust from his hands and knocks it from his
clothes. The GUN over his shoulder rattles violently,
threateningly.
I can't let them get my kids. I can't let them get my
kids...
SOLDIER 1
Hey! I asked you a question!
MOTHER
There's no one else here.
SOLDIER 1
(smirks) I don't believe you.
MOTHER
But I'm telling the truth!

3. SOLDIER 1
(chuckles) Roger, check downstairs.
SOLDIER 2 (ROGER)
Copy that.
The woman jumps in front of Roger, blocking the staircase.
MOTHER
You don't have to go down there.
(desperate) There's no one else here!
Just me!
ROGER
(impatiently) Move woman!
The woman doesn't budge.
I can't let them get my kids. I can't let them get my
kids...
Roger levels his GUN at her.
ROGER (cont'd)
Move! I won't say it again!
Still the woman doesn't move. Soldier 1 sighs. Shakes his
head.
SOLDIER 1
When will they learn?
Aims his gun...
Pop! Pop! Pop!
INT. ROSE'S BEDROOM- DAY
ROSE (19) lays in bed.
ROSE
Aaah!
Gasping, Rose sits up. Checks her body for bullet holes.
It was just a dream...
ROSE (cont'd)
It was just a dream. It was just a
dream.
She repeats that phrase over and over. Desperate to convince
herself that what she just lived through wasn't real.
2.

4. EXT. PARK- DUSK
Rose languidly walks down the street. She almost moves in
slow motion as people bustle around her. External
conversations and internal monologues surround her. They
engulf her brain. Too many VOICES. So overwhelming. The
voices get louder and louder. She loses her own thoughts.
Then...
YOUNG MAN
Hey!
Rose's best friend, JET (20), runs up from behind. His
greeting cuts through the chaos in her mind. The other
voices go silent. He walks next to her, lining up his steps
with hers. Cars honk as they cross the street.
ROSE
Hey.
Eyes downcast. She unconsciously bites her bottom lip.
JET
What's wrong?
They stroll through grass, underneath huge trees with deep
green leaves, heading to their FAVORITE SPOT.
ROSE
Nothing.
Jet bends down to look in her eyes.
JET
Oh, come on. I'm not stupid, y'know.
ROSE
I said I'm fine.
JET
Actually you said nothing.
ROSE
(scrunches eyebrows) What?
JET
I asked what was wrong, and you said
nothing.
Rose rolls her eyes and turns to walk away.
3.

5. JET (cont'd)
Wait! (struggles to contain his
laughter) I'm serious. I really want
to know. What happened?
Before she turns around, he quickly wipes the smile from his
face. It is replaced with a look of concern. She squints,
focuses on his mind, and listens...
Silence.
Rose sighs. She sits on the WOODEN BENCH they have claimed
as their own. He follows suit.
The sun has started to set. Deep oranges and yellows paint
the sky. Her hands start to shake. She closes her eyes.
Tears flow down her cheeks.
JET (cont'd)
(true concern now) Rose?
ROSE
(eyes still closed) I can't sleep.
Jet parts his lips slightly. Eyebrows furrowed, forehead
wrinkled. But he doesn't speak.
ROSE (cont'd)
I have these nightmares. Not about
ghosts or monsters. But about wars,
murders, rapes. Famines. Diseases. I
feel all the pain, the grief, and the
suffering.
Scenes flash through her mind.
The Mother with two kids... A young man getting stabbed to
death... Civilians being tortured in prisons...
ROSE (cont'd)
It feels like I'm living their lives.
But it can't be real, right? I just
want it to stop. I can't make it
stop.
Tears continue to fall. Jet leans closer.
ROSE (cont'd)
I can control other people's minds.
Opening her eyes, she whispers more to herself than him...
ROSE (cont'd)
Why can't I control my own?
4.