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Cocorná
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COCORNÁ
1. Pickup truck in movement. Outdoors. Day. (7:30)
We observe, as the pickup truck moves, a grayish sky filtering the green and the maroon hills around the rural path through which the vehicle passes by.
ANA CECILIA (VO) (voice over)
My little daughter, I’m missing you today, I need you and I love you more than ever, I’d love to be by your side and never get away, because you’re my reason to live…
A tough movement of the pickup truck lets us know that ANA CECILIA’s (27, good-looking, outgoing and youthful) view of the landscape is a subjective one. She observes the landscapes through the stakes of the pickup truck the road where it is passing by.
INSERT
A ray of light filters through the wall boards of a stable. ANA CECILIA uses that light to see the line of the paper that she is writing on.
Since her left hand bends a little the cover of the booklet where the paper is, to give support, it is not leaned on any surface, but held up by her hand at the level of her chest.
She can barely write, the balance of her left hand is weak and she leans her right hand the ray of light moves away. Whenever she finishes a sentence, she uses the thin ray of light to revise what she just wrote.
ANA CECILIA (VO)
ANA CECILIA. (VO)My baby, I know you need me as I need you. You know God is kind and good to us. He will let us be together again…
Continuation of scene 1.
ANA CECILIA’s look is very vague. The acres of the farm through which she passes by, the vegetation that fluctuates through the coffee plantations, short trees and branches move in front of her eyes, but none of them catches her attention. She just keeps on nourishing her thoughts. A blink of an eye and a sudden move of her sight to observe a FAT MAN (37), who is sitting in front of her, with long beard, rubber boots, and dark blue pants and shirt. The FAT MAN responds to the glance with a neutral gesture and turns away and then looking somewhere else, being seen as the truck moves on different directions.
ANA CECILIA looks through the stakes again; abandoned. The only fluctuations, marked by the irregularity of the tough road and the deficient car suspension in which they were moving.
ANA CECILIA (VO)
I’m fine, everyone here is nice to me and they treat me very well. Please, tell Julio, Monito, Eduardo, David, and César that I’m fine. My lovely daughter, I send you a kiss and a big hug…
The landscape stops along with the truck. A noise front the front doors is heard followed by another sound from the back.
ANA CECILIA (VO)
I love you a lot. Mommy…
The FAT MAN removes the gates and throws it to MAN 2 who receives it down out of the truck. The FAT MAN stays on the edge of the pickup truck with his body facing ANA CECILIA as if waiting.
ANA CECILIA takes her bag that is on her side, stands up holding carefully her books with only one hand as she hangs her bag with the other. She goes towards the gate where the FAT MAN seizes hold o f her arm very roughly to help her down. There is a bahareque house.
2. Indoors. Monito’s living room. Day.
We can see in a close-up the inferior part of Monito’s face as he speaks (he’s 65, white-yellowish hair, noble appearance, tall, corpulent, but a little bit diminished by his state of mind.)
MONITO
On Monday, some people from the Carlos Alirio Buitrago were taken away. They phoned in the afternoon and said that in exchange of their life, they request me to kill someone Matute … (his account is full of impotence) he lives in the front of the municipality…. (Silence) from the Self-Defense Forces.
MONITO is sitting in the living room of his house in silence; he looks at the camera as if waiting for an answer. Every now and then, his sight gets lost in a vacuum, uncomfortable, as if longing to escape form the place and situation that aggrieves him.
Close-up of the superior part of MONITO’s face. His eyes turned red, desperate, and disconsolate. The camera and the questioning help to complete the gesture of his face. There is no movement of his lips; however his voice is heard again.
MONITO
On Wednesday, they got in touch again to say that his life would be safe.
After moving about, the camera stops in front of his face.
3. Municipal school. Indoors. Day.
A group of about 15 children was in a classroom in a disorderly fashion. Some were sitting in their seats, other were standing, and a couple more running around the room. A WOMAN in her forties, in a humble appearance and with her apron on, comes in and adds her voice to the already existing noise, upset and trying to make herself be heard.
WOMAN
Kids, go home. Your teacher is not here today!
The children’s mess instead of dissipating becomes louder as they grab their school materials to go home. The noise of the chairs over the floor evidences their leaving.
4. Barn. Indoors. Day. (12:50 p.m.)
ANA CECILIA has a rag in her hand, like a kind of tow. She passes it over her chest to soak up the sweat. The edge of her vee neck in her blouse looks tarnished and the hem wasted by humidity. With a clean side of the fabric she dries her eyelids.
She puts the dry part of the fabric over a paper and leans her hand there (some colored stains and a raised section on the paper let us see a childish drawing).
On top of the page there is a text from which only a few words can be seen next to her hand as she starts writing again:
LETTER TEXT:
Today is another day without you, without seeing you, and without telling you how much I love you, my loving baby. Oh, God, how I long to be with all my beloved people; I know they’re desperate as I am…
We can see different parts of her body in the position that she adopts as she writes (In the background, in the dark, the figure of a useless barn can be seen). Her knees put together, smoothly rubbing one over the other; her feet slightly separate, one of them with only her toes inside the shoe and the other is bare over the floor, with some straw around, her right shoulder marking the rhythm of her writing and her face looking at the paper.
ANA CECILIA (VO)
I just want you all to know that I love you so much. My lovely daughter, be good, study and work hard, I don’t wanna hear any complaints from you when I go back. I have hope, I know God has always been good to me and He is gonna let us be together again. Give my best wishes to Erlides and César…
I love you and miss you so much, mommy…
ANA CECILIA smiles unconsciously interfering with her mechanical way of writing, but her faces immediately breaks down.
She dries the palm of her hand with the tow pushing with small circles.
5. Municipal swimming pool. Day. (4:00 p.m.)
The water around ANA CECILIA waves with her movements. Her hands shake as if inviting expectedly.
ANA CECILIA
(The voice is heard along with some sounds from the environment, as if it were recorded by a Handy cam)
Come on! Jump and I’ll pick you up!
ELIZABETH, who has a pair of small floats in her forearms, jumps into the water splashing with a lot of strength.
She sinks for a moment and seizes hold of ANA CECILIA’s arms very strongly, and she helps her go out of the water. ELIZABETH takes her head out of the water and is a little bit afraid, repeatedly blinking and putting her lips together as she swallows some water. When she feels safe, her face appears to be more satisfied.
6. Jeep. Indoors. Day. (05:50 a.m.)
A jeep passes by a rural road in the morning fog. It is still dark. In the front part of the jeep, we can see the back of THE DRIVER who has a kind of rag around his shoulders and a COUNTRY LADY. The rough hand of a COUNTRY MAN leans on the back of the front seats.
Then, a face with the same texture and the same color of the hand leaning on the front seats emerges between the two heads of the people sitting in the front to see the road better. He shrinks a little and moves his head from one side to the other exploring the road. Suddenly, he reaches out his arm and points at a certain place on the road.
COUNTRY MAN
Stop near the grill, please!
The jeep stops and the COUNTRY MAN walks into the back door.
COUNTRY MAN
(As he advances through the people) Excuse me!
MAN 1 (Voice off)
Go ahead!
The DRIVER and the COUNTRY LADY look at the country man as the gate opens and he gets in.
The jeep is on the run again. The landscape is similar to the one in scene 1, but a little foggier. THE DRIVER turns up the volume of the radio, but only a distinct noise can be heard as he tries in vain to tune a station. He turns down the volume until the noise that can be heard is the one of the jeep moving on the tough road. Suddenly, the jeep stops abruptly.
The COUNTRY WOMAN leans forward to protect herself. The DRIVER waits for a moment. Without the noise of the jeep, the sound from the radio can be perceived again. The DRIVER gets off and through the windshield he can be seen walking away some 5 feet from the vehicle. The COUNTRY WOMAN lifts herself from her seat and spreads a rumor throughout all the passengers in the back of the vehicle.
7. Rural road. Outdoors. Day. (06:10 a.m.)
The rag hangs from the DRIVER’s right hand. His feet are some inches from a body lying face-down on the road. From the fabric of her dress and her bag, from which two letters can be seen, we can recognize ANA LUCIA.
8. Corridor at Monito´s house. Day 8
MONITO is sitting in the corridor of his house with ELIZABETH on his knees. ELIZABETH, sadly, plays with her hands. MONITO looks ate her with his mind blank.
9. Kitchen at Ana Cecilia´s house. Day. (06:30 a.m.)
ELIZABETH is sitting at the table wearing her school uniform. She finishes brushing her wet hair, leaves the brush on the table and holds the cup of chocolate in front of her.
ANA CECILIA touches her shoulder with her hand with which she is holding a piece of arepa with its edges burn.
ANA CECILIA
(As she is chewing) How much this one?
ANA CECILIA shows her a drawing. ELIZABETH looks at it with hesitation keeping her mouth open and her tongue behind her upper teeth.
ANA CECILIA
Eight. Isn’t it?
ELIZABETH nods smiling. ANA CECILIA passes the drawing behind a pile, leaving one on top which lines and colors are completely defined, a little bit particular.
ANA CECILIA
How about this one? Eight as well?
ELIZABETH
Mmmmmm…she didn’t do that one. Can’t you see it looks just the same as when she helps with my homework?
ANA CECILIA
She’s so shameless!
ANA CECILIA grades it with a six, keeps the drawing in a folder, finishes up her chocolate and stands up.
ANA CECILIA
I didn’t give you an egg, but I’ll give double meat at lunch, is that ok?
ELIZABETH nods.
ELIZABETH
Sure!
Ana Cecilia holds the folder and a couple of textbooks and her bag. However, when she turns her face to ELIZABETH she leaves the folder and the books on the table again, takes the brush and approaches the girl.
ANA CECILIA
Look at this mess. It still has chlorine. You don’t seem to have taken a shower!
ANA CECILIA combs her hair strongly. ELIZABETH stands it and due to the intensity she accidentally spills some chocolate on her uniform. She covers the stain so that ANA CECILIA can’t notice it.
ANA CECILIA kisses her cheek and reaches out to hold the books and folder again.
ANA CECILIA
Bye, then honey. Finish up your breakfast and don’t be late. God bless you, sweetie.
ELIZABETH
Amen.
ELIZABETH cleans her uniform with saliva and looks at the door when she heard it was closed.
NOTE: during this scene, as ANA CECILIA and ELIZABETH have breakfast, they listen to the radio at a very discrete volume. At the beginning, a fragment from songs sounds: the brief space when you are not here by Pablo Milanés. The songs is part of a news which account is as follows:
RADIO:
Dario Serna, ex sentimental partner of the educator, listens to the song once and again trying to console himself and relieve her daughter’s pain, “We liked it a lot”, he says.
The relationship that lasted 11 years finished 11 months ago and he, who is also and educator, cannot let go.
“We made some mistakes and that’s why we broke up.”
He says he is afraid because they can kill whoever as well as they did with ANA CECILIA, a woman who didn’t have anything to do with the armed conflict.
Overwhelmed and despaired, Monito, her dad, suffers from the situation from which there is nothing else to do. “But what else can we expect forma such a situation which the country is going through?”
Little ELIZABETH also wonders “Why was she killed?” she questions herself with the few words she can think of. (This fragment overlaps with the moment in which ELIZABETH looks at the door through which her mom has just gotten out)
10. A Street of the Town. Outdoors. Day. (06:50 a.m.)
ANA CECILIA walks in a hurry through one of the streets of the town. Suddenly, she startles when she hears a car in front of her approaching at a high speed. She moves away from the road. A pickup truck with stakes in the back stops in front of her.
FADE OUT