1| 1. INT. OFFICE. AFTERNOON

2/0&1&2| 'STATE EXECUTIONER : STANLEY CULPA' proclaims a nameplate, lying along the front of an office desk, beside a monitor screen and computer keyboard. A frail old man, STANLEY, sits leaning towards the screen from a leather chair, his eyelids sagged in a bored expression.

3| Framed awards for 'Employee of the Month' and '20 Years of Service' hang on the concrete wall behind Stanley's bald head.

4/1&2&3| The old-timer's gaze slowly drifts from the Solitaire game on his screen to the adjacent room, visible through a large glass pane. In the centre of this dim adjoining chamber, an empty electric chair waits, with thick cables running from its base, through the wall of Stanley's office, into his computer.

5/1&2&3| Opposite Stanley, the handle of the iron door leading into the execution chamber rattles. The door slams open, and Stanley straightens up with a jolt. Uniformed prison guards drag a stony-faced man into the chamber and begin strapping him to the electric chair.

6/1&2| Stanley watches the task from his office in silence, until a BEARDED GUARD draws a red curtain closed, covering the glass window between the two rooms. Text flashes on Stanley's monitor screen:

7| INMATE #162315.

8| CRIME: MASS MURDER.

9/1&2| Stanley pushes the 'execute' button on his keyboard without hesitation. Muffled screams echo through Stanley's of fice as the lights flicker for a few brief seconds. Maintaining a poker face, Stanley returns to his game of Solitaire.

10|

11| 2. INT. DINING ROOM. EVENING

12/1&2| Stanley sits alone at the end of a long table in an ornately decorated dining room. Harpsichord music plays softly. A suited BUTLER enters, places a roast dinner before Stanley, and hands him a newspaper. Stanley reads the headlines:

13| CAPITAL PUNISHMENT SUPPORT GROWING IN EFFORT TO REDUCE PRISON OVERCROWDING. PRISONS TO SAVE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ANNUALLY.

14| BUTLER

15| The warden called about another pay rise for you, Sir.

16| Stanley smiles and starts carving his meal.

17|

18| 3. INT. OFFICE. MORNING

19/1&2| Stanley arrives at his office's ebony door, to find the prison guards already waiting in the next room, with an inmate sitting in the electric chair. The prisoner stares Stanley down, tapping an imaginary wristwatch impatiently.

20| BEARDED GUARD

21| (shouting through the glass)

22| Where've you been? They're piling up!

23/1&2| The guard pulls the red curtain closed before Stanley has a chance to reply. Looking slightly shocked, Stanley swiftly executes the inmate for 'TERRORISM'.

24| MONTAGE BEGINS (WITH SHOTS AND SOUND EFFECTS GRADUALLY INCREASING IN SPEED, BECOMING RHYTHMIC)

25| -The guards bring in a new prisoner and strap them down.

26| -The bearded guard pulls the curtain closed.

27| -Stanley glances at the inmate's crime on his screen.

28| -Stanley pushes the 'execute' button.

29| -Muffled screams, lights flickering.

30| -Repeat.

31/0&1&2| (This sequence repeats several times, getting faster and faster, with the new inmates' on-screen crimes appearing in the following order: ARMED ROBBERY, ASSAULT, DRUG TRAFFICKING, FRAUD, TRESPASSING, EXCEEDING THE SPEED LIMIT, GRAFFITI, PUBLIC URINATION, PARKING OFFENCE, CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT A PARKING OFFENCE.)

32| MONTAGE ENDS (ABRUPTLY, WITH THE SOUND OF SCREAMS ECHOING INTO THE NEXT SCENE)

33| CUT TO:

34|

35| 4. INT. LIMOUSINE (DRIVING). MORNING

36/1&2&3| Stanley sits in the back seat of a black limousine, with his head in his hands. He looks up (AS THE SCREAMS FADE AWAY) and peers out the car window at a passing billboard. 'SAVING FOR YOUR RETIREMENT?' it asks, accompanied by a photograph of an old couple sunbathing on a Hawaiian beach. Stanley gapes at the billboard longingly.

37/1&2| Stanley's now-gloved butler, acting as chauffeur in the front seat, smiles at him via the rear-view mirror. Stanley forces a weary smile in return.

38|

39| 5 EXT. ROAD OUTSIDE PRISON. MORNING

40/1&2| The limo pulls up to the roadside opposite the prison. Stanley steps out onto the pavement, grasping a cane. He watches the vehicle drive up to a red traffic light, beside a waiting police car.

41/1&2&3| Stanley looks down the road to the crosswalk, then to the flimsy cane supporting him. Then he looks over to the prison. Stanley grins determinedly and struts across the middle of the road. Reaching the other side, at the gates of the prison, Stanley spots a street sign:

42| JAYWALKING STRICTLY PROHIBITED ON PENALTY OF DEATH.

43/1&2| Stanley glances around worriedly, to notice two police officers emerging from their car, approaching him. Stanley drops his cane and raises his shaking arms above his head.

44| 6. INT. PRISON CORRIDOR. EVENING

45/1&2| Now wearing a bright orange prison jumpsuit, Stanley is being dragged down a narrow corridor in chains, by the same guards that were yesterday his co-workers.

46| BEARDED GUARD

47/0&1&2| You're the last person I'd have expected to endanger lives like that (SHAKING HIS HEAD). We'll be hard-pressed to find a replacement for you. But hey, on the bright side, you won't have to worry about any hard labour, (CHUCKLES) just one last job, and you're good at it. Special warden's orders...

48/1&2&3| A confused expression twitches across Stanley's face. He and the guards arrive outside the ebony door that yesterday led to his office. The bearded guard unlocks the door, and Stanley gasps. The door swings open, revealing that the comfortable leather chair at his desk has been replaced by an electric one.

49|

50| 7. INT. OFFICE. EVENING

51/1&2| A look of horror crosses Stanley's face as the guards shove him into the room and strap him to the chair, leaving his right arm unbound. The monitor screen blinks on, flashing the words:

52| INMATE #162407.

53| CRIME: JAYWALKING.

54| Stanley freezes.

55| BEARDED GUARD

56| (sternly)

57| Go on. Do your job.

58| Stanley slowly hovers his hand above the 'execute' button. He closes his eyes.

59| CUT TO BLACK.