Empty Heart
Rebecca Lee, Amber Cui, Cassie Yang
Empty Heart
Rebecca Lee, Amber Cui, Cassie Yang
Plot Chronology Timeline
1) Young man: first entry to the organ bank, signs the contract
2) Middle-aged: grows financially successful by being cruel to others
3) Old man: regrets and feels bitter about his past actions
4) Hospital: back to organ bank, operation room
5) Imaginations: illusions the the old man sees on the jar’s reflection
4) Hospital: back to organ bank, operation room
5) Imaginations: illusions the the old man sees on the jar’s reflection
6) Death: Sound of the ECG machine reveals his death
1. Old man in front of the deteriorated Organ Bank building
Run down building with its signs falling off
Black and white/ greyscale
SoundFX: Low bass sound, gloomy ambient sound
Black and white/ greyscale
SoundFX: Low bass sound, gloomy ambient sound
Camera: Still, Low-angle shot
Transition: Dissolve, crossfade
2. Flashback: his younger state, when he first came to the
Organ Bank Action: Young man steps up to reach for the door
SoundFX: birds chirping in the distance, more lively atmospheric sounds,
SoundFX: birds chirping in the distance, more lively atmospheric sounds,
then sound of door chimes right on the transition cut.
Camera: Still, Low-angle shot
Transition: cut on action
3. Inside the Organ Bank, Young ambitious man
SoundFX: Continue of the door chimes, birds chirping sound disappears
SoundFX: Continue of the door chimes, birds chirping sound disappears
Camera: Still, Wide shot, establishing the interior environment
Transition: cut
4. Inside the Organ Bank
SoundFX: silence
Camera: Still, Close up shot
Camera: Still, Close up shot
Transition: cut
5. Young man signs the contract in the Organ Bank
SoundFX: pen scribbling sound
Camera: Still
Transition: Dissolve, crossfade, cut on action
Camera: Still
Transition: Dissolve, crossfade, cut on action
6. Middle-aged man, coldheartedly pursuing for career
Signing the contracts for corporations
SoundFX: pen scribbling sound
Camera: Still
SoundFX: pen scribbling sound
Camera: Still
Transition: no cut, zoom out to reveal
7. Establishing shot, shows the office environment
Middle-aged man in the office chair
8. Turns around, rotates the chair away from the camera
SoundFX: chair creaking sound
9. Shows his cruelness
Yells at his employees
Transition: quick duration, dissolve, crossfade
Yells at his employees
Transition: quick duration, dissolve, crossfade
10. Yells at his employees
Transition: quick duration, dissolve, crossfade
Transition: quick duration, dissolve, crossfade
11. Yells at his employees
Transition: Slow fade out, dip to black
Transition: Slow fade out, dip to black
12. Black
13. Family photo,
Heartless middle-aged man is not interested.
Heartless middle-aged man is not interested.
Transition: continuous action
14. Family photo Son shuffles around.
Man fixes his tie.
15. Family photo
Wife eases the child.
Man looks at the watch.
16. Family photo
Wife and son are smiling.
Man is uninterested.
Man is uninterested.
Transition: Slow fade out, dip to black
17. Black
18. Old man and his son
Man became older, grey hair, at home
“Son!” Old man calls out to his son.
19. Son looks up.
20. Son ignores the Old man.
21. Old man is disappointed and heartbroken.
Transition: Slow fade out, dip to black
22. Black
23. Man became older, grey hair, at his work place
Old man witnesses a younger worker doing the same
action that he used to do (yelling at the employees).
He feels bitter and upset about his past actions.
Transition: continuous action
24. Old man closes his eyes and regrets.
Transition: Slow fade out, dip to black
25. Black
26. Old man back to the deteriorated
Organ Bank building (back to the first frame)
SoundFX: Low bass sound, gloomy ambient sound
SoundFX: Low bass sound, gloomy ambient sound
Camera: Still, Low-angle shot
Transition: cut
27. Old Man, looking at the Organ Bank, Looks determined
SoundFX: Silence
Camera, Still, Close up shot
SoundFX: Silence
Camera, Still, Close up shot
Transition: cut
28. Surgical operation light turned off
SoundFX: low whirring sound, hospital interior
29. Surgical operation light turns on
SoundFX: Cling of the light turning on
Transition: cut
30. Close shot of Old man, lying on the operation table
31. Old man opens his eyes
Camera: pans down to his chest
32. Operation tools on his stomach
33. Establishing shot
Operation room with doctor and nurse
SoundFX: metal sounds of tools, footsteps of nurse
Operation room with doctor and nurse
SoundFX: metal sounds of tools, footsteps of nurse
34. Nurse retrieves Old man’s heart in a jar with gold liquid
The jar is the only thing in color
Transition: cut
Transition: cut
35. Nurse drops the jar on the operation table
SoundFX: thud of jar on the table
Camera: tracks to the screen left to reveal Old man’s face
36. Close shot of the Old man
Looks at the jar in awe
Transition: Dissolve and Flash (dip to white)
Looks at the jar in awe
Transition: Dissolve and Flash (dip to white)
37. Close up of the illusion on the jar
the focus changes from the jar to the Old man’s face
the focus changes from the jar to the Old man’s face
Transition: zoom in
38. Morphing of the golden illusion image
39. Zoom of illusion on the heart jar
The reflection on the jar appears as the Old man’s imagination
The reflection on the jar appears as the Old man’s imagination
Transition: cut
40. Illusion on the heart jar
The reflection on the jar appears as the Old man’s imagination
The reflection on the jar appears as the Old man’s imagination
The reflection turns into flashes of images.
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
Transition: slow dissolve, crossfade
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
Transition: slow dissolve, crossfade
41. Illusion becomes clearer
Old man becoming kind during the holiday season.
Old man becoming kind during the holiday season.
Transition: Dissolve and Flash (dip to white)
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
42. Golden illusion with his loving wife on the beach
Transition: Dissolve and Flash (dip to white)
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
43. Complementing his employee at work
Transition: cut
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
44. Zoomed close up of Old man’s face
in warm rosy color
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
in warm rosy color
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
45. Turns around to face the camera
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
SoundFX: light, mellow instrumental soundtrack
46. Color suddenly changes back to greyscale
SoundFX: suddenly pauses, Gloomy deep bass tone,
and then Distant long beep of ECG machine
Transition: Slow fade out, dip to black
47. Black
SoundFX: continued long beep of ECG machine, louder
48. Slowly fades in, to reveal the ECG machine
SoundFX: continued long beep of ECG machine Dead.
Transition: fade out
Transition: fade out
