Scene #1

INT. FAMILY RESTAURANT – DINING ROOM – NIGHT

The restaurant hums with late-night energy. Plates clatter, chopsticks scrape bowls, steam hisses from the kitchen. 

At the counter, FATHER packs take-out orders while MOTHER answers a ringing phone, pen tucked behind her ear.

ADRIAN, 17, weaves through the narrow aisles: taking orders, dropping off dishes, checking on tables, sliding crumpled bills into the till. Her young face carries a maturity beyond her years—girlish softness shadowed by a boyish stubbornness, tempered by adult composure.

Shot List:

1. Establishing Shot (Wide)

   • Interior of the restaurant at night. Diners eating, clatter of plates, steam rising.

   • Purpose: establish space and atmosphere.

   
   

2. Medium Shot – Counter

   • FATHER packing take-out boxes, MOTHER answering the phone, pen tucked behind her ear.

   • Shows the parents’ routine and busyness.

   
   

3. Tracking Shot – Adrian Moving Through Aisles

   • Camera follows ADRIAN weaving between narrow tables, delivering dishes, bussing plates.

   • Gives the audience a sense of her pace and agility.

   
   

4. Close-up – Adrian’s Hands

   • She stuffs crumpled bills into the register.

   • Detail that conveys roughness and lived-in reality.

   
   

5. Close-up – Adrian’s Face

   • Young but already mature, girlish softness mixed with boyish stubbornness.

   • Holds for a beat to introduce her as protagonist.

   
   

6. Cutaway – Diners

   • Chopsticks scraping bowls, someone slurping noodles, a glass clinking.

   • Adds texture and rhythm, fills the background world.

   
   

7. Medium Shot – Adrian at a Table

   • She delivers a dish, polite smile → turns away, face goes neutral.

   • Reveals duality between her public mask and private state.

   
   

8. Insert – Kitchen Steam / Wok Sounds

   • Quick shot: steam billows, wok flames flash, sound design punctuates.

   • Adds heat and energy, reinforcing atmosphere.