ROUTINE: a week in shadows
Genre: Drama, Social Commentary
MAIN CHARACTERS:
Lana (24): A sharp-minded journalist, deeply aware of the world’s injustices but hesitant to act.
Ariana (21): A fearless university student, outspoken about feminism and gender issues.
Olivia (18): A high school girl struggling with her sexual identity in a homophobic society.
Shawn (25): Charismatic, charming, yet complicit in the toxicity he claims to oppose.
Bruno (30): A man battling his violent tendencies, raised in a culture that glori es dominance.
Harry (27): A passionate activist who refuses to stay silent.
STRUCTURE & THEMES:
Each day portrays a di erent social issue, mirroring the repetition of oppression in daily life—until change
disrupts the cycle.
Monday: Catcalling & Misogyny
Tuesday: Homophobia & Gender Identity
Wednesday: Toxic Masculinity & Domestic Violence
Thursday: Sexual Assault & Victim Blaming
Friday: Police Brutality & Injustice
Saturday: Self-Re ection & The Breaking Point
Sunday: Revolution
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MONDAY: THE ROUTINE BEGINS
(Music: good 4 u (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
EXT. CITY STREETS - MORNING
Lana walks alone, headphones in. The air is tense. A group of men, (Bruno, Shawn, and another friends) lean
against a wall, watching.
SHAWN: (smirking) Damn, where you heading so fast, sweetheart?
BRUNO: Relax, bro. Girls like her? They love attention.
SHAWN: (laughing) Yeah? Then smile for us, babe.
Lana stops. A deep breath. But she keeps walking.
Ariana, standing nearby, sees everything. She approaches Lana.
ARIANA: (annoyed) They always do that, huh?
LANA: (nods) Every damn day.
ARIANA: And we just let them.
(Cut to black.)
TUESDAY: THE SECRET WITHIN
(Music: pretty isn’t pretty (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
INT. HIGH SCHOOL BATHROOM - EVENING
Olivia stares at herself in the mirror, practicing the words:
OLIVIA: “Mom, I… I think I’m… (sighs)
Her phone buzzes. Text from Harry: “Pride meeting at 5. You in?”
She hesitates. Deletes the message.
CUT TO: SCHOOL HALLWAY.
(Music: bad idea right? (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
She overhears whispers.
STUDENT 1: “Did you hear? Olivia’s, like, into girls.
STUDENT 2: (laughs) She totally checks us out in the locker room.
Her face drops. She shrinks into herself.
CUT TO: LANA, at her desk, reading an un nished article: “Coming Out: Fear in a Modern World.”
She sighs. Deletes the title.
(Cut to black.)
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WEDNESDAY: BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
(Music: love is embarrasing (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
INT. BRUNO’S APARTMENT - NIGHT
Bruno pours another drink. Ariana stands at the door.
ARIANA: You promised, Bruno. No drinking.
BRUNO: (slurring) I work my ass o . The least I deserve is a drink.
She takes a step back. His voice lowers, darker.
BRUNO: Don’t look at me like that.
He reaches for her wrist. Tightens his grip. She winces.
A tense silence. Then, she yanks herself free and storms out. Bruno punches the wall.
(Cut to black.)
THURSDAY: SCARS UNSEEN
(Music: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo)
INT. NEWS OFFICE - NIGHT
Lana stares at a draft: “The Silence of Victims.”
She hesitates. FLASHBACK
EXT. HOUSE PARTY - NIGHT (A WEEK AGO)
A girl, drunk, barely conscious. Shawn leading her upstairs. Lana sees. She freezes. Looks away.
BACK TO PRESENT
Her ngers tremble over the keyboard. She deletes the article.
(Cut to black.)
FRIDAY: INJUSTICE BREATHES
(Music: obsessed (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
EXT. CITY STREETS - NIGHT
Harry and Olivia walk home from a protest. Sirens.
A Black man on the ground. Police pin him down.
MAN: I CAN’T BREATHE.
Harry rushes forward.
HARRY: Get o him!
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The o cer shoves him back. Olivia records on her phone.
The man’s screams fade. The crowd watches. No one moves.
(Cut to black.)
SATURDAY: THE WAKE-UP CALL
(Music: brutal (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
Montage:
Lana rewrites her article. This time, she publishes it.
Ariana packs a bag. She leaves Bruno behind.
Olivia texts Harry: I’m ready.
Shawn stares at himself in the mirror. Ashamed.
Bruno sits in the dark. A choice to make.
(Cut to black.)
SUNDAY: BREAK THE CYCLE
A PROTEST. The crowd roars. Olivia holds a sign: I AM NOT AFRAID ANYMORE.
Lana lms. Ariana shouts. Harry leads.
Bruno watches from a distance. Hesitates. Then
He steps forward. Joins them.
CUT TO: SHAWN, standing alone. The world moving without him.
(Final black screen. Words appear:)
“The world won’t change until we do.”
FINAL LOOP: MONDAY
CUT TO:
Lana walks the same street. Troye catcall another woman.
She STOPS. The woman STOPS. Other women STOP.
The cycle breaks.
FADE TO BLACK.
CREDITS
(Music: get him back! (instrumental) - Olivia Rodrigo)
Directed by: Carlos Gastélum
Zoe: Audio
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