Quiet Witness (Proof of Concept)

Based on the true behind-the-scenes story of the Korean Airliner 007 disaster of September 1, 1983 as told by Vicki, a Canadian university student. While Vicki, her sister Emily and their mother eat a late supper, several worried wives phone Vicki's mother wondering where their husbands are. Later, seven Canadian Military Intelligence civilian personnel stumble into their home, grief-stricken, guilt-ridden, so drunk, they unknowingly spill information to Vicki, a hard-of-hearing lip-reader, watching in the shadows of the same room. Investigative journalists speculate: Was something on the airliner or was it a decoy? How many countries listened in? Vicki discovered that night that six countries did listen in, but were all told to 'stand down' and not to intervene. She slowly realizes that we are all pawns of multi-national corporations and our governments whether we know it or not in a vicious chess game of lives and power. This is a small section of a full feature screenplay "Vignettes from a Cold War Child" which is available on request. For fans of tales of 'pulling back the cover' and espionage, "Quiet Witness" is a horrific trip down memory lane told through the lens of a hard-of-hearing young woman whose quiet perception invites the audience into a deeper understanding of the Cold War on the Canadian home front, thus revealing the frightening impact it had on certain Canadian Defence civilian personnel and their families. Note: This is a proof of concept script for the full feature of 'Vignettes from a Cold War Child and is based on a true story from the author's own life. All names are changed to protect the living and the deceased.