Karma's Road

GENRE: Drama.

STATUS: Partial filming completed in May, 2024, which will be incorporated into a feature length film, the script is currently in development, for which the production schedule will eventually be determined.

COMPANY NOTES: This is a project initiated by frequent YBS production participant, and fellow filmmaker in his own right, Steven I. Dillard, which will be produced by his production company, Wicked Gecko Productions. YBS will assist in Karma’s production and eventual distribution.

The Logo For Wicked Gecko Productions

LOGLINE: Bound by secrets and shaped by loss, a troubled girl and her brother find trust and hope through an unexpected bond. Their journey through fear, deception, and love reveals that family isn’t always what it seems but it’s everything they need – and then there’s karma, teaching them the power of redemption and the importance of facing consequences – whether they want to or not.

The Initial Shoot At Kumu Kahua Theatre

Steven, in conjunction with frequent YBS collaborators Denny Hironaga (director of photography) and Mark Bush (sound mixer), collaborated to film the opening scenes of Karma’s Road (entitled at the time “A Girl’s Dream”) during an all day shoot on Saturday, May 18th, 2024, at Kumu Kahua Theatre. The synopsis of these scenes follows.

We hear a soft music box-like melody as a young girl giggles and dances in front of a mirror as she does twirls.  She is dressed in a new shiny, sparkling white dress. Her father sits nearby and watches her. “Do you like my new dress, daddy?” says the young girl. “Yes, it’s very lovely, and you look lovely in it,” the father replies. The young girl dances and giggles some more and then does a curtsy in front of him. “Thank you, daddy.” She continues to dance and twirl and giggle and having fun as we then hear footsteps increasing in their volume as they then drown out the music. The young girl suddenly stops dancing, turns to where her father was sitting, but sees no one. We fade out as the young girl stands in front of the empty chair with a horrified look on her face “Daddy?” she asks. The sound of the footsteps completely drown out the music. The sound of footsteps continue to echo loudly as we see two shadowy figures, cloaked with black robes flowing behind them, lead a young girl as she is walked down a long, dark hallway. They stop in front of a door. One of the figures unlocks the door, and it swings inward revealing a hazy, dimly lit room. The room contains only a stool, a small table with a roll of black tape, and some sort of medical looking instruments placed on it. Dim sunlight is coming from a window and casts an eerie shadow on the chair and table. The young girl looks in the room, and then frightened, up to a figure’s face, revealing only a shadow. The figure pulls back its hood, revealing an ugly, disfigured semblance of face. Cassie quickly turns to the other figure – it too reveals a grotesque aperture. The figures suddenly cackle loudly as they laugh in unison. The young girl screams as she turns and tries to run, but one of the figures quickly blocks her exit. The figures cackle even louder. We cut to the young girl as she quietly sobs in her bed, eyes shut. Her sobbing slowly dissipates as she hears Laramie’s reassuring whispers… “It’s okay, Sis, someday I’ll rescue you and we’ll run away from this awful place…together.” The young girl opens her eyes.  There is a sudden very bright flash of light.

Through Denny, who had been a longtime crew member with Kumu, Steven was able to use the theater to shoot his scenes. For casting he relied on Eric Nemoto to secure Marty Wong and Lola Conlan (who had recently worked with Eric on the YBS/LegacyVision Film The Trials Of Two Marys), as the hooded, mysterious figures. Young Faryn Matto (see audition tape below) came through the ADR Agency, and was cast as the little girl. What ensued was a very organized and ultimately productive shoot that was possible due to Steven providing a very organized and specific shot list, which follows.

The Audition Video Of Faryn Matto Secured Through The ADR Agency

Scene 1

Wide Shot (WS): Establishing shot of the room. The young girl is seen in the foreground, dancing in front of a mirror. The room is softly lit, and a music box melody is playing. The father is visible in the background, sitting and watching her.

Medium Shot (MS): Focus on the young girl in front of the mirror, highlighting her shiny, sparkling white dress as she twirls and giggles. The mirror reflects her joyful expression.

Close-up (CU) on Young Girl: As she stops twirling, facing the mirror, asking, “Do you like my new dress, daddy?”

Over-the-Shoulder Shot (OTS): From behind the father, still focused on the girl, “Yes, it’s very lovely, and you look lovely in it.”

Close-up (CU) on Young Girl: Smiling and saying, “Thank you, daddy,” then resuming her dance with more twirls and giggles.

Sound Focused Shot: No visual change, but the audio shifts to emphasize the sound of increasing footsteps, gradually drowning out the music box melody.

Medium Shot (MS): The young girl suddenly stops dancing, her expression changes from joy to confusion or alarm.

Point of View (POV) Shot from Young Girl: Showing the empty chair where her father was sitting, emphasizing her perspective and the sudden emptiness.

Close-up (CU) on Young Girl: A horrified look takes over her face as she whispers, “Daddy?”

Fade Out Shot. Dolly Zoom/Vertigo shot: Slowly zoom in on the young girl’s face as she stands in front of the empty chair, with the room growing dimmer, emphasizing her isolation and fear.

Scene 2

Wide Shot (WS): Begin with a wide shot showing silhouettes of two shadowy figures, cloaked in black robes, leading a young girl down a long, dark hallway. The robes flow behind them, adding to the ominous atmosphere. One of the figures carries a set of dangling keys in her hand, the other has a flashlight which she is using to light the way.

Tracking Shot: Follow the trio from behind as they move down the hallway, emphasizing the length and darkness of the corridor and the flashlight’s beam. (Haze would be good to accentuate the flashlight’s beam).

Medium Shot (MS): The figures and the girl stop in front of a door. This shot focuses on the action of one figure unlocking the door.

Close-up (CU) on Door: The door swings inward, revealing the hazy, dimly lit room beyond. The camera lingers on the stark contents of the room: a stool, a small table with black tape and medical instruments, and the dim sunlight casting eerie shadows.

Point of View (POV) Shot from Young Girl: Show the room from the young girl’s perspective, highlighting her reaction as she looks inside.

Close-up (CU) on Young Girl’s Face: Capture her frightened expression as she looks up at one of the figures.

Medium Shot (MS): The figure pulls back its hood, revealing a disfigured face. The shot captures the girl’s reaction and the figure’s face in the same frame.

Quick Cut to Close-up (CU) on Second Figure: As Cassie turns to the other figure, it too reveals a grotesque face.

Wide Shot (WS): Both figures begin to cackle loudly. This shot shows them laughing in unison, with the young girl in between them.

Medium Shot (MS): The young girl screams and turns to run, but one of the figures quickly blocks her path.

Close-up (CU) on Figures: Emphasize the figures’ cackling faces, focusing on their grotesque expressions and the loudness of their laughter.

Close-up (CU) on Young Girl’s Face: She turns and looks directly into the camera, capturing her terror and desperation as she realizes she cannot escape. “Help me…”

Scene 3

For this scene, the shot list would be focused on capturing the emotional intensity and the abrupt transition from a soothing moment to a startling one. Here’s how you could structure it:

Close-up (CU) on Cassie: Start with a close-up of Cassie’s face, showing her quietly sobbing with her eyes shut. The focus is on her expression of sorrow and distress.

Sound-focused Shot: Maintain the close-up on Cassie, but the audio becomes more prominent with the sound of the male voice (Voice #2) whispering reassuring words. The visuals should show Cassie’s reaction to the voice.

Dialogue Shot: As the male voice speaks, “It’s ok, Sis, someday I’ll rescue you, and we’ll run away from this awful place…together,” the camera stays focused on Cassie’s face, capturing her emotional response to these words.

Close-up (CU) on Cassie’s Eyes: A tight close-up on Cassie’s eyes as they slowly open, responding to the soothing voice.

Bright Flash of Light: As soon as Cassie opens her eyes, the scene is engulfed in a very bright flash of light. This could be achieved with a sudden burst of light on the screen, momentarily washing out the image. (This scene will match to the first scene of Karma, etc., as it will match to the headlights of an approaching car.)

Fun & Success At The Kumu Karma Shoot

The Inspiration

The following are the words of writer, director, and producer Steven I. Dillard (photo below) on how he conceptualized his movie script, Karma’s Road.

Feeling bored, lonely, unneeded, and uncertain about his life’s direction, the writer deeply misses his relationship with his daughter, who lives in Germany, thousands of miles away and seven hours ahead. Despite understanding her busy life, he feels unimportant to her due to missed birthdays, Father’s Days, and Christmases, which leave him heartbroken. These occasions, especially Father’s Day, become painful as he awaits any form of acknowledgment, often receiving none. Instead of writing a letter to express his feelings and desire for a better relationship, he channels his emotions into a script that evolves into a movie. This movie, initially titled “The Daughter I Wish I Had,” is narrated from the perspective of an idealized daughter. He infuses the story with his belief in karma, viewing it as the driving force in life, akin to the biblical principle of treating others as one wishes to be treated (Matthew 7:12, NIV: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you …”). The story is told through the eyes and emotions of Cassie, a young girl longing for a “real family.” She admires and idolizes her older brother Laramie, who acts as her father figure, but yearns for a true mother and father. She encounters David, a lonely man who deeply misses his own daughter and the bond they once shared. Through a series of conflicts, missteps, and serendipitous events driven by karma, the three characters learn to trust each other and form an unlikely bond. In the end, the story’s happy, optimistic conclusion mirrors the writer’s own wishes for his future, leaving a lasting impression of connection, redemption, and the transformative power of karma.

The Script Treatment

The story begins with a young girl dancing gleefully to music in front of a mirror, showing off for her father, who is heard but not seen. Suddenly, the music fades and is replaced by the sound of approaching footsteps. The girl suddenly discovers that her father has vanished! Confusion turns to fear as she’s led down a dark hallway by ominous figures. They unveil a sinister room, terrifying her. The girl pleads for help as she’s trapped and tries to break free and run but is stopped. Her nightmare continues as we transition to her sobbing in bed, but then a comforting voice promises her that he will rescue her and that they will run away together, someday. The scene ends with a flash of light. We cut to a dark road at night with David, (50–60’s years old) driving his car down a deserted road in the wee hours of the morning. He notices something in the road and decides to investigate. He finds a young girl, Cassie, (12–14 years old) who is unconscious and appears to be injured. David comes to her aid and attempts to help her, and after some initial reluctance from Cassie, David convinces her to go to the hospital. Later, David finds himself intervening once more, this time at a store where Cassie is being confronted by a security guard. It’s revealed that Cassie has been caught shoplifting, prompting David to reluctantly part with his possessions to secure her release, including a cherished gold watch passed down from his father. Enter Laramie (15–17 years old), Cassie’s brother, who grapples with his own struggles, and is working in an illicit trade to help ends meet. Laramie stutters when he is frightened or confused and also has a temper that he loses occasionally. Although he always regrets it, he sometimes takes out this anger on Cassie. As the story progresses, David and Cassie develop a bond, very much to the chagrin of Laramie, who sees David as a threat. David and Laramie clash. Cassie tries to run interference between them. Secretly, Cassie sees David as a father figure and doesn’t want Laramie to run him off. David’s life has hit rock bottom. He’s depressed and lonely, not quite suicidal, but not far from it. He fights his own demons inside.  His estranged, almost non-existent relationship with his daughter constantly haunts him.  He wishes things were different and that she would be more involved with his life. The lack of communication between them hurts him.  He seeks to fill that void in his heart and sees Cassie as a possible candidate. After doing some research on Cassie, he decides to do research on Laramie as well, and through exhaustive research finds out that Laramie has a different last name then his “sister” Cassie, so Laramie could not be Cassie’s brother – he’s been lying to Cassie all their lives. David also finds out that he has possibly located Cassie’s mother, who happens to live in the same city. When David confronts Laramie about his discovery, Laramie at first denies everything due to his fear of Cassie leaving him if she ever found out. David convinces Laramie to confess to Cassie, saying that she’d understand and all would be okay.  Laramie agrees to tell her, but on one condition; that David is there when he does. David and Laramie go to the trailer where Cassie and Laramie live to tell her the truth, but when they arrive, they find that the trailer has been completely gutted, no furniture, no anything – just a crumbled-up piece of paper lying in the center of the room and Cassie sobbing in the corner. Cassie and Laramie have been evicted, and the landlord has stolen everything!  David offers his house as a place to stay and start again – they agree. Shortly after Cassie and Laramie move in, they have a celebration and David gives Laramie and Cassie a gift. To the big surprise of David, Cassie offers a gift in return, a gift from both Cassie and Laramie – his dad’s watch! David is taken aback by the gesture and is tremendously happy. He starts to ask them how they got the watch, but stutters as he tries to find the right words. Laramie exclaims, “See, I’m not the only one who stutters!” They all laugh. We close as we see the three sleeping in their beds; David is snoring loudly, still wearing his watch, Laramie watching something on his phone, and Cassie, in a separate room, is sound asleep – she is dreaming, again – we see her dancing, twirling, and showing off her new dress to her father; but this time, we see his face, beaming with pride. A young Cassie then squeals with excitement and runs to her father, jumping into his arms. “I love you, daddy, Cassie says. David says,” I love you too, Cassie.” As we fade to black, we get a closeup on Cassie as she is smiling in her sleep. There is a sudden flash of light as Cassie, still smiling, suddenly opens her eyes, looks into the camera and says “Thanks Karma,” she winks.¹

¹The image depicted above, inside of the script treatment, reflects an alternate (and initial) movie poster concept.

For information on other movies in development by Yellow Brick Studio / LegacyVision Films click HERE.