Search Party Outline

Here's the outline for SEARCH PARTY, which is that new show on TBS that no one will stop talking about. 

http://www.zen134237.zen.co.uk/Search_Party_1x01_-_Pilot.pdf

Written by Charles Rogers and Sarah-Violet Bliss

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Script Written by Charles Rogers and Sarah-Violet Bliss

1. WOODS: A search party.
2. SUBWAY STATION: Meet Dory as she struggles to get through the turnstile. Then she sees a sign for a missing woman. “All sound goes quiet as Dory takes in this moment. She knows this woman.”
3. YMCA MEETING ROOM: Dory is in a LEADING WOMEN TO LEAD meeting. She sneaks her phone to post about her missing friend and share the flier. 
4. MEETING ROOM LATER: Dory makes excuses about why she can’t get involved with the program, but she admires the guest speaker, a girl who climbed up from nothing to be a Princeton grad, CAMILA.
5. CAFE: Dory tells friends ELLIOTT and PORTIA about Chantal.
6. COLLEGE FLASHBACKS WITH CAFE VOICE OVER: Dory describes her memories of Chantal, the missing girl.
7. CAFE: They argue about whether or not Dory was really friends with Missing Chantal. Then Dory offers to help Elliott at work and he refuses. 
8. BROWNSTONE: Dory working with GAIL, the annoying woman that she assists.
9. SUBWAY: Dory notices someone with a CHANTAL bag but it’s just a gay man.
10. DORY AND DREW’S PLACE: Dory watches online coverage of Missing Chantal. Drew is annoying.
11. CHARACTER INTRO: Dory and her boyfriend DREW (27) neurotic, particular and a spoon-fed wise-ass, sit on opposite sides of their apartment. 
12. KITCHEN, LATER: Dory and Drew wait by the microwave for food to cook. She says she wants to do the Women Leaders group, he is into himself.
13. BEDROOM: They have weird sex.
14. BATHROOM: They hear a domestic dispute. She is compassionate and she wants to not get involved.
15. LIQUOR STORE: Drew is still a dick. Dory thinks she sees Chantal but it’s a bitchy bitch and Drew gives her an “I told you so” look.
16. ROOF PARTY, DAY:
17. GREAT LINE OF ACTION: Young, hip, vapid social butterflies talk over each other.
18. GREAT TECHNIQUE: “Scenelets” of the party; snippets of conversations. 
19. SCENE LETS: Elliot being into himself. Portia being into herself. Drew being into himself. Elliot and his BF Marc arguing. Dory running into her ex EIRICK and Drew acting like it’s cool. 
20. WOMEN LEAD OFFICE: Dory is rejected b/c her essay show’d no passion. 
21. MID TOWN: Drew tries to console Dory but she’s upset and she yells at him and runs away.
22. YOGA STUDIO: Elliott is very jealous towards Marc in yoga class.
23. APARTMENT HALLWAY: Drew runs into the battered woman. She had a piece of his mail. They have a slight connection.
24. REAL ESTATE OFFICE: Portia’s mom’s office. Portia enters, is told to go in and she can see her mom. Also, the receptionist congratulates her on her acting role. 
25. PORTIA’S MOM’S OFFICE: Turns out everyone thinks Portia is her sister, someone who just got a promotion at a real job, and that’s what she’s being congratulated on.
26. FLUSHING TRAIN STOP: Dory exits the station and walks with determination.
27. EIRICK’S PLACE: Dory arrives. He lets her in.
28. DORY AND DREW’S PLACE: He listens to the abuse next door.
29. EIRICK’S PLACE: Dory and E argue. He doesn’t get why she cares about Chantal and accuses Dory and Dory’s friends of using it for cool points.
30. ABUSED LADY APARTMENT: Drew goes over to try to be nice and she yells at him for assuming what she wants. 
31. FLUSHING: Dory thinks she sees Chantal.
32. CHAPPAQUA WOODS: Someone finds something and screams…
33. FLUSHING: Dory spots Chantal. Runs into a bakery to catch her…
34. WOODS: People gather to check out what the screaming lady found…
35. BAKERY: Chantal kinda runs from Dory. Locks herself in the bathroom.
36. WOODS: The crowd looks at the upsetting thing that was discovered.
37. BAKERY: Dory breaks the lock to the bathroom.
38. BATHROOM: It’s empty. Window open a crack.
39. WOODS: A bloody blouse has been discovered. 
40. ALLEYWAY: Dory looks, but Chantal is nowhere in sight. 

LESSONS LEARNED: It’s okay to take a minute or even a few pages to set up an important relationship. This script spends time with Dory and Drew that isn’t on PLOT but is just on the relationship, and it DOES build the story of “DORY GETS MEGA PISSED AT BF.” Also, let there be a QUESTION or MYSTERY that runs through the pilot. This script had that in common with lots of other scripts we read. Also have PERSPECTIVE in your action. Stuff like calling out the crowd as “vapid social butterflies talking over each other” is great. 

Also Note: 
The main character is active but still a doormat, and that's a tricky line to walk. She TRIES to do things, but when people challenge her, at least in their presence she is over-apolegetic, weak-willed, not very convincing. She doesn't call out the problems with her boyfriend, she just lets them lie. And the bitchy woman in the grocery is another good example of this. Dory is actively looking for Chantal, but then when the bitch confronts her, she really shrinks. Also, the other stories are very unresolved. Just kind of started, escalated, but then left open. The beats with Chantal are also handled well. Seeing her flier - talking about her - thinking she recognizes her - actually recognizing her.