White Lily by Preston Poulter based on a true story WGA# 1772649 US Copyright Office Registration# 1-2251212651 Preston Poulter 2554 Lincoln Blvd., #780 Venice, CA 90291 214-563-5069 [email protected] BLACK An AIR RAID SIREN whines in darkness. A woman mutters in Polish. SHEETS RUFFLE and BED SPRINGS CREAK as she fumbles for something. A Zippo-style LIGHTER ignites, illuminating LILYA LITVYAK's early twenties face and blonde hair. She lights her cigarette, and CLICKS THE LIGHTER closed. The cigarette's red tip glows bright as she takes a drag. She lowers it and exhales. A second AIR RAID SIREN joins the first. LILYA (tone indicates a curse) B'lyad! More SQUEAKS as Lilya grabs a mechanically powered flashlight, which WHIRRS to life and lights the room when she squeezes the handle. She gets out of bed and fumbles towards the door. EXT. MOSCOW - FRONT OF FORMER MANSION - DAY BREAK The AIR RAID SIREN grows louder outdoors. A former mansion, converted for tenement housing, stands against the early gloom of morning. Lilya opens a door onto the second story balcony and steps out to survey what is happening. SLIPPERS made to look like airplanes cover Lilya's feet. They feature a propeller hand-drawn in black marker, and a straight green wooden "wing" across the top. MOVING UP HER BODY past her ripped and stained pajamas, she holds the flashlight in one hand, cigarette in the other. She smokes BELOMORKANAL cigarettes. A filterless staple of Russian life, each cigarette features cardboard holder. A golden Star of David hangs from her neck. HOLD ON Lilya's tired, impassive face as she smokes. Dark roots and eyebrows betray her blonde hair color. She stands an island of apathy beset by a churning sea of bedlam. A door opens at the base of the old mansion below where a man carrying a young child in his arms, and a woman, flee. 2. LILYA (under breath) Good luck. She looks out to -- EXT. MOSCOW - SKYLINE The bulbous spires of the distant Kremlin are lit by searchlights scanning the early morning sky. Manned anti- aircraft guns dot the scenery. Burnt-out husks and bomb craters pepper the landscape. BACK TO SCENE More neighbors rush out of the front door of the mansion. Lilya drops her cigarette, grinds it under her slipper, and re-enters her tenement. EXT. MOSCOW - PASTRY SHOP - LATER The AIR RAID SIREN continues as Lilya, clearly annoyed, rides her bicycle. She stops at a darkened pastry shop. The "closed" sign (in Russian) on the door does not prevent her from knocking, then entering the store. INT. MOSCOW - PASTRY SHOP - CONTINUOUS Lilya looks past the counter. LILYA Priviet? Viktor? VIKTOR, the shop owner, calls from the back. VIKTOR (O.S.) Air raids never seem to stop you from wanting my coffee and donuts, Lilya. LILYA Coffee more important than life. Viktor, middle-aged, wearing a baker's hat and apron covered in flour, emerges from the back of the shop, holding a lowered shotgun, but brandishing a smile. He grabs her usual pastry then fills her Thermos with coffee. 3. VIKTOR You're lucky I'm the only bastard crazy enough to be baking when others are hiding. LILYA When raid is over, you will have monopoly on fresh pastries. She smiles and clicks her tongue. "TSK TSK" LILYA Your profit seeking endangers the workers, just as Marx foretold. Viktor holds up his hands in mock surrender. VIKTOR Please, don't tell Comrade Stalin. At the mention of her leader's name, Lilya's smile vanishes. She pays Viktor, takes her breakfast, and exits the shop. EXT. MOSCOW - PASTRY SHOP Lilya exits the shop and mounts her bicycle. The SOUND OF THE AIR RAID SIREN is joined by the WHISTLING OF FALLING BOMBS. LILYA Viktor! Run! Lilya rides her bicycle away quickly. BOMBS DETONATE behind her, each closer than the last, sending forth a shock wave of rubble and dust which knocks Lilya to the ground. Dust clouds envelop everything prompting Lilya to cough. She covers her nose and mouth with her hands. Scenes of the street gradually emerge, as the clouds settle. Lilya is covered head-to-toe in brick dust. She picks up her bicycle and moves back towards the -- DEMOLISHED PASTRY SHOP LILYA Viktor? Viktor's bloody baker's hat lies in a pile of rubble. 4. Lilya freezes in horror. Her body shakes with anguish. She closes her eyes as she fights to force her emotions back down into the pit of her stomach. Her eyes open. Devoid of emotion, they peer out from her dust covered face and survey another murdered piece of her life. She mounts her bicycle, and rides away. EXT. MOSCOW - AIR RAID SHELTER - DAY KATYA BUDANOVA, Ukrainian, mid-twenties, emerges from a bomb alongside a man, VLADIMIR and a throng of other Russians. Katya's black hair is cut short. She wears a brown aviator outfit and jacket with no cosmetics. She carries a well-read newspaper and hands it to a random passer by. Vladimir, late teens, wears a Soviet military uniform. They walk towards a rack of unlocked bicycles (theft was punished severely). Katya breaks from him as she takes and mounts her bike. VLADIMIR I shall take you on a proper date while we still hold the city. Expect me tonight by eighteen hundred. KATYA No matter how hard you try, you will never get milk from a bull. VLADIMIR What does that mean? KATYA It means you're wasting your time. Katya gives a conciliatory smile and rides off. EXT. SOVIET AIRFIELD - AFTERNOON Katya parks her bicycle and walks inside the gate. A Po-2 biplane, a two-seater with no guns, a narrow fuselage and Soviet stars on the wings, moves past her as it taxis for takeoff. She sees Lilya covered in brick dust and approaches her. 5. KATYA What happened to you? LILYA Brilliant Nazi Plan. They bombed my coffee shop. B'lyad! KATYA Hold out your arms. Lilya holds out her arms. Katya dusts off Lilya, walking around her as she does so. The human touch feels good to Lilya, who attempts a smile. After Katya finishes, Lilya hands her Thermos to Katya. KATYA Spasibo. Katya's tone and body language indicate that this word means "thank you." KATYA I haven't had coffee in days. Lilya watches as Katya pours coffee into the lid of her flask. Katya savors the smell of it, then drinks. LILYA Keep it. I can't be a bird with that weighing me down. They walk toward the barn. EXT. MOSCOW - SOVIET AIRFIELD - BARN - CONTINUOUS Lilya and Katya enter a repurposed barn that now serves as an aerodrome. Instead of bits and bridles, flight helmet and goggles now hang from hooks, with names painted above each. Katya grabs her named helmet off the hook. KATYA I read in "IZVESTIA" that Stalin is creating three new female air divisions under Marina Raskova. LILYA "There is no news in the truth..." KATYA "...and no truth in the news. I know" 6. EXT. SOVIET AIRFIELD - CONTINUOUS Lilya walks in front of Katya as they exit the barn and move towards two waiting male student pilots, IVAN and PIETER (late teens). Both are pure blooded Russians from well- connected families. KATYA Even so, civilian flight instructors such as ourselves would be the first inducted. LILYA (to the men) You think Stalin will put me in a fighter cockpit? Pieter and Ivan find the notion humorous. IVAN A Polish Jew WOMAN Air Force pilot! PIETER A joke in search of a punchline. Lilya motions to them as she turns to Katya. LILYA You see. KATYA Marx wrote that you can judge the progress of a society-- LILYA We fly or read Communist Manifesto? EXT. LILYA'S Po-2 - MOMENTS LATER Lilya leads Ivan around the biplane going through a pre- flight check. She leans into the engine compartment to check the oil level. Ivan leans in behind her and puts his arm around her waist. Lilya bristles, and guides Ivan back using her elbow. Ivan follows her with his eyes as she climbs into the rear cockpit. She pulls knobs and switches in the cockpit. LILYA Contact! 7. Ivan heaves on the propellor, which ENGAGES THE MOTOR briefly before stalling out. He tries again. Lilya watches in annoyance as Ivan makes more attempts to start the motor, but a look of relaxation and release come over her when the ENGINE ROARS TO LIFE. She closes her eyes and smiles. Lost in her own moment, she takes no notice of Ivan as he climbs into the front cockpit. Lilya taxis the plane onto the runway. EXT. SKY - LILYA'S Po-2 - MINUTES LATER Propwash whips through the front and back open air cockpits of the biplane. The ENGINE NOISE forces the pilots to communicate with a mixture of shouts, lip reading and hand signals. Lilya flies with both hands on the stick. She scans the horizon for any hazards. She sees Katya's biplane flying into the clouds. Katya's irregular maneuver prompts a look of concern from Lilya who scans the horizon. LILYA Stick is yours! IVAN What?! Lilya holds up her hands and keeps them raised. He gets the message and takes control. He flies the plane, then looks and sees -- A Bf-110 NAZI HEAVY FIGHTER -- bearing down on them. The Bf-110 is a large, double-engine fighter with a longer range than most. An Iron Cross adorns the tail. IVAN, panicked, points to the enemy and curses in Russian.