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Like a Phoenix
Treatment by Care Dorghalli
FADE IN
Woody (54) and Luna (10) cruise down the road in an RV. It’s nothing more than an innocent road trip between the father and daughter. Or is it? Intercut B-roll of fires, hurricanes and tornadoes. The cuts become faster and faster. Suspense grows. Sound effects are terrifying, otherworldly. The cuts slow down. The shots of natural disasters cease. They are replaced by B-roll of destruction. The camera is now outside of the RV. The vehicle zooms by.
FADE OUT
TITLE CARD
Like a Phoenix
Woody and Luna get ready for bed in the RV. They share a sleeping space.
The father bids the daughter, “Good night.”
She reciprocates.
A beat.
Luna asks, “Dad, can we read a bedtime story together?”
Woody responds, “Mmhmm. Which one would you like to read?”
Luna thinks, “Hmmm…”
FADE OUT
TITLE CARD
Chapter 1
FADE IN
Luna narrates, “Once upon a time, in a far away land, there was a heavenly village called Paradise. The villagers lived in cottages across the forest. And they were happy. They were very, very happy.”
A fantastical scene. A young man and woman (actors) frolic through a forest. Trees, water, sunshine. Montage of colorful, eclectic houses. Stereotypical of the area.
Luna narrates, “But one day, everything changed. An inferno erupted. Wind tore through the mountains. Embers fell from the sky... It was the Camp Fire. Paradise turned to hell.”
The young man and woman watch in horror as the sky turns red. They’re in the apocalypse. They run as fast as they can. Suspense builds. Will they make it out?
Luna narrates, “In a kingdom over yonder, a brave knight could not slumber. News of the disaster kept him tossing and turning.”
The knight tosses and turns in his sleep.
Luna narrates, “So, he embarked on a quest to deliver homes to those in need. A carpenter and a queen.”
Woody (knight) exits his home. From within his doorframe, he smiles into the camera. Jim (carpenter) stands on an empty lot, smiles into the camera. Prairie (queen) stands on an empty lot, smiles into the camera.
The visuals change. The film feels more grounded, more like real life than a fairytale.
Interviews from the knight, carpenter and queen are intercut.
From his bedroom, the knight shares his story. He’s a single father in Denver, CO. He was devastated by news of the Camp Fire. He saw it as an opportunity to teach his daughter about the gift of giving. She was a 6-year-old at the time. The knight raised funds to purchase an RV. He had never driven one before, but was now traveling across state lines with his daughter to deliver the home to a family that lost theirs in the catastrophe. Little did he know that his random act of kindness would turn into a nonprofit devoted to housing families displaced by natural disasters nationwide.
From his construction site, the carpenter shares his story. He is a single father just like the knight. He’s from Paradise, CA. He has a 14-year-old daughter. He has had custody of her since she was 18 months old. They lost everything in the Camp Fire, including his construction tools. The very tools that he used to support his family. They were lucky to make it out alive. 86 people didn’t. They lived in hotels, draining their savings. They then hopped from friend’s house to friend’s house.They slept on the floor, couches, beds… any available surface under a roof. His daughter’s mom committed suicide not long after the fire, only adding to their sorrows. The carpenter was on the verge of losing custody of his daughter. He had to find a home. Otherwise, his daughter would be taken away. They began to lose hope until the knight delivered an RV to them. Receiving the RV changed the carpenter’s outlook on life. To this day, it affects how he lives. He now works to rebuild homes in Paradise. Not only that, but he and his daughter deliver homes on the knight’s behalf. They now live in a home of their own. Woody gave them the stability they needed to get back on their feet.
From her front porch, the queen shares her story. She’s a stay-at-home from Paradise, CA. She has a 5-year-old son and a 2-year-old daughter. The family escaped with their dogs and nothing else. They dealt with cramped and inconvenient living conditions. They even lived in a tent in the dead of winter when the queen was pregnant with her daughter. They had no stability until the knight delivered an RV to them. That empowered them to get back on their feet. They have since been able to purchase their first home. They now live in peace. The knight inspires the queen to be a better mother to her children. The RV he had given them now belongs to the queen’s father, who also lost his home in the Camp Fire. Multiple members of that family have been housed by Woody.
We will see:
Talking heads
Archival material from Woody and Luna’s first trip out to Paradise
B-roll of Woody and Luna interacting at home and in RV’s
B-roll of the queen on her burned out lot, mourning the loss of her home
B-roll of the queen playing with her two children
B-roll of the queen playing with her dogs
B-roll of the carpenter on his burned out lot, mourning the loss of his home
B-roll of the carpenter interacting with his daughter from within their home
Archival material of nature, flames and destruction
FADE OUT
TITLE CARD
Chapter 2
FADE IN
Luna narrates, “Before the knight could finish his quest, more natural disasters struck the four corners of the earth. Hurricanes, tornadoes and even more wildfires.”
A woman sleeps in a cabin. She’s jolted awake by thunder. She grabs a lantern from her nightstand, walks toward the window. Rain pounds the glass. Lightning strikes. The woman drops the lantern. It shatters. The sound is terrifying. The color scheme is blue.
A group of three stand out in the open, vulnerable. They look out into the distance. Fear is in their eyes. Their hair and clothes blow in the wind. Gusts tear through trees. They run into a structure, down into a basement. They huddle in a corner. The sound is terrifying. The color scheme is purple.
Montage of fire, hurricane and tornado victims running, shaking, crying.
Luna narrates: “The knight became weary. He didn’t know how to carry on. But he had to. More people needed homes, including a fearless soldier.”
Woody (knight) exits his home. From within his doorframe, he looks into the camera as he did before. He’s exhausted. Reed (soldier) stands on his empty lot, looks into the camera.
Interviews from the knight and soldier are intercut.
The soldier is the volunteer fire chief of Berry Creek, CA. It’s right by Paradise. Just two years after the Camp Fire, the Bear Fire tore through his area. He lost his business, home and fire station all while saving dozens of people. But he couldn’t save everyone. 16 people died. The soldier escaped in his fire engine. He slept in that engine for a week before the knight finally gave him an RV. He was, and still is, a pillar in his community. His new home will be rebuilt while we’re filming. The soldier will give his RV back to the knight. The knight will then give it to another fire survivor. A full circle moment.
The knight shares his experience of delivering an RV to the soldier. But not only that… He shares his hardships. He does this work because he’s still heartbroken about his divorce. He “would do anything to keep anyone from feeling pain and loss like that.” He’s putting his energy into helping “families who are actually trying to stay together and going through real adversity.” This work, however, cuts into his personal life. This isn’t his full-time job. He works at Comcast by day and delivers RVs by night. It’s difficult to manage, but he feels he must carry on. Either way, his daughter won’t let him stop.
Luna shares her story. The setting is casual. She plays with stuffed dinosaurs on her bed, on the floor, wherever she’s most comfortable. She speaks of the lessons learned as her dad’s sidekick. She learned to be grateful for what she has. She learned the importance of kindness. She learned the value in lending a helping hand.
We will see:
Talking heads
Archival material from Woody and Luna’s trip out to house the soldier
B-roll of him standing on his burned out lot, mourning the loss of his home
B-roll of him standing on his burned out fire station, mourning the loss
B-roll of Woody and Luna interacting at home and in RV’s
B-roll of Luna playing with stuffed dinosaurs
B-roll of the soldier putting on his fire gear
B-roll of him driving his fire engine
Archival material of nature, flames and destruction
FADE OUT
TITLE CARD
Chapter 3
FADE IN
The young man and woman from the beginning of the first chapter put flowers on a tombstone. They go to sleep in a bed.
The carpenter stands on his burned out lot. He sleeps on the floor. He stands in front of his new home with his daughter.
The queen stands on her burned out lot. She sleeps in a tent. She stands in front of her new home with her son and daughter.
The soldier stands on his burned out lot. He sleeps in a fire engine. He stands in front of his new home.
Luna narrates, “Like a phoenix, they rose from the ashes. The carpenter builds homes for his neighbors. He also embarks on quests with his princess to deliver homes on the knight’s behalf. The queen rules her kingdom in peace. The soldier continues to fight for his community.”
B-roll of the carpenter rebuilding homes in Paradise
B-roll of him and his daughter cruising in an RV, mirroring the opening of this film
B-roll of the queen caring for her two small children
B-roll of the soldier getting ready to battle a blaze
“The brave knight will spend the remainder of his days giving homes to people in need.”
Woody and Luna donate RV’s to Camp Fire survivors. One of the RV’s came from Reed. These people don’t know Woody has an RV waiting for them around the corner. All they know is that they’re on Woody’s waitlist of over 300 people. If it’s anything like Woody’s previous RV deliveries, the recipients will cry and bury their faces into his chest.
FADE OUT
TITLE CARD WITH STATISTICS ABOUT NATURAL
DISASTERS/NUMBER OF DISPLACED PEOPLE
TITLE CARD
To donate, visit EmergencyRV.org
