Hungry Little Shadow
Descriptive Transcript
Video with closed captions here.
A car in a gravel parking lot on a sunny day. The title of the film, Hungry Little Shadow, briefly appears in transparent cursive font. We see a yellow string tied to the windshield wiper, stretching out of frame. Footsteps on gravel. A woman appears, looking at her phone as she walks toward the car. Beep-beep of car unlocking. She sees the string, with a tag attached which says 'Follow me'. She looks around, and decides to follow the string. Dreamy music. She leaves the parking lot and follows the string across a meadow, by a pond, into the trees. She sees another tag which reads 'Keep going'. She goes through a field, and follows the string to a tag attached to a rose. It reads 'Not far now'. She smells the rose, then follows the string up a rocky hill. She sees another tag which says 'Almost there'. The end of the string is tied to a small door in the hillside, with a sign that says 'Ball O' Yarn Bistro, Stories and Sweets. Please Knock'. She knocks.
Transition to a dimly lit, brown velvet space. With a magical sound, the woman appears in the room, surprised. She hears a voice.
(voice offscreen) Welcome to the Ball O' Yarn Bistro. May I take your coat?
Magical sound, her coat disappears.
(voice offscreen) And if I may...?
(voice offscreen) Magical sound, she now wears an old-fashioned fancy dress with matching hat and handbag. That's better. Can I offer you a seat?
Magical sound, a chair appears.
(voice offscreen) Now...a table for one?
Magical sound. A table appears, set for one person.
(voice offscreen) I'll be your server today!
Magical sound, the Server appears, wearing a flowered apron and holding a menu.
Server: I'm also the head chef and the sous chef and the prep cook and the line cook and the dishwasher. And let's not forget the storyteller, that's the very most important part. Because you know our motto here, right? Stories and sweets. You can't have one without the other. So would you like to see the menu?
Customer: Sure.
Server: Great. Well, that is not a problem at all. You are welcome to look at the menu, but, well, as you can see, it's just specials. We specialize in specials here. It's our specialty. So people ask to see the menu, forgive me, but I do tend to laugh just a little bit because it's just Cake of the Day, Pie of the Day, Pastry of the Day Brownie of the day, Sweet Little Cupcake of the Day, and so on. Changing day by day. Any allergens I should know about?
Customer: No.
Server: Great. Okay in that case, may I suggest the tasting menu? A little of this, little of that, a story to match?
Customer: Uh...yeah?
Server: Excellent. So we'll get started with that right away. But first I need your help.I seem to have lost my cat. Well, she's very very small, and she's black from head to toe so she just sort of blends into the shadows sometimes. Actually, that's her name, Shadow. Or Lilu. She actually comes to both. Have you seen her? She's small, as I say, so just check under your chair, or maybe she could be under your sleeves, I don't know. She could be in your handbag, I'm saying. She could be under this doily, possibly. She's very small. She comes to Shadow. Did you try calling out Shadow? Shadow!
The Server and Customer both look for the cat.
Customer: Shadow!
Server: Or Lilu, as I said. Lilu! I tried everywhere basically except here. (she looks in the sugar bowl) Oh, well, I should have done that to begin with. She likes to sleep in the sugar bowl, you see. Alright, here we go. Shadow, wake up!
The Server takes a small spoon and puts it into the sugar dish. It becomes the handle for the puppet of Shadow, a very small cat puppet made of soft black fabric, with orange, glittery eyes and a friendly expression. Shadow purrs.
Shadow: Meow!(purrs and grooming sounds)
Server: Would you like to give her a little scratch behind the ears?
The Customer nods. She scratches Shadow behind the ears.
Shadow: (purrs) Meow!
Server: You enjoyed that, didn't you, Lilu?
Shadow: Mew, mew!
Server: Oh my, so much nice attention for you, little kitty. (to Customer) Sorry. May I offer you a glass of water?
Customer: Mmhmm.
Server: Wonderful. (pouring water) And there you are. (to Shadow) Now, my dear, are you feeling happy? (Shadow purrs) You're in a storytelling mood?
Shadow: Meeee-ow!
Server: Oh good. I think that means yes. Well, that's very good, because today's story happens to be about you and how you came to be in this restaurant.
Shadow: Meow!
Shadow leaps onto the table.
Server: And now, our very first course, the Macaron du jour.
Magical sound, and the first course appears. Two macarons are displayed with small forks topped with wooden mice and wedges of cheese. Alongside are two wooden shakers, shaped like cats. The Customer tastes the macarons.
Server: Now, it is a fact that when Shadow was a little kitten, she didn't have a home. I know, it is not a happy fact. It's not a very nice fact, but it is true. And in fact, when she was born, that very year it was a really hard year for many, many animals. A lot of them went hungry, including the very two cats that were Shadows' parents.Sugar? Spice?
The Server shakes sugar and cinnamon on the macarons from the cat-shaped shakers.
Server: A little of that there... Enjoy.
Shadow's parents watched her sleeping by the river.
The Server puts the shakers on two fingers. They become Shadow's parents.
Mother Cat: Oh, our poor little kitten is skin and bones.
Father Cat: As are we, my dear.
Mother Cat: What shall we do?
Father Cat: I don't think we have much choice. We'll have to leave and look for work or food.
Mother Cat: But what about our kitten?
Father Cat: We'll leave her here, by the river. She's safe, and she has enough to drink, at least.
Mother Cat: And we'll be back soon.
Father Cat: We'll be back very soon.
Server: And so off they went, for a few days, in search of work or food.
The cats disappear.
Server: And poor little Lilu never saw them again. It's not a very happy fact. But it's true. You know despite everything she's been through, little Shadow has always been so happy-go-lucky. You just can't repress her spirit. She's got joie de vivre. See how much it just pops right out of her?
Shadow jumps around the table and into the flower vase.
Server: She loves these flowers.
Shadow: Flowers! (excited purrs)
Server: Oh, and I think it might be time for our little Shadow to go to the riverbank. So, if you wouldn't mind helping me with this part, is that okay?
The Server gets the Customer to hold up a glass of water and shine a flashlight through it, to make a watery spotlight for Shadow. The Server tips the glass water bottle on its side to become the river.
Shadow: My river, my sweet river. Oh, my home. (sighs) I am so hungry. Oh, my tummy is so empty!
Server: When Lilu felt hungry, well, all she did was look up in the sky and if she happened to see a cloud passing overhead, well, she'd just pretend it was made of cheese.
She uses the small wooden cheese skewer and doily to make a cloud of cheese.
Shadow: Oh, that beautiful cheese!
Server: And it would satisfy her a little. When she gets thirsty, our little Shadow has a sip from her river.
Shadow: Slurp, slurp, slurp.
Server: And then when she licks the rest of the water from her paws she likes to pretend that it's made of cream, and that way it almost feels like she's drinking some.And if it so happened that our little Lilu was lucky enough to catch herself a mouse, well, she was the happiest little cat in the whole world!
Shadow sneaks up on a wooden mouse skewer and catches it.
Shadow: A mouse, a mouse, a mouse! I got a mouse, I got a mouse, I got a mouse!
Server: Shadow! Where are your manners? (to Customer, giving back the mouse) Oh, I'm so sorry about that.
Customer: Oh, it's okay.
Server: That is not your mouse, Shadow. (to Customer) Please don't mind her. She gets riled up sometimes.
Customer: Oh, it's fine.
Server: Thank you for being so understanding.
Customer: No problem.
Server: But I suppose it's best if we just move on from here? On to the next course, you're ready.
Customer: Mmhmm.
Server: Great! Okay! May I present to you the Cupcake du jour.
Magical sound, a fancy chocolate cupcake appears.
Server: One day, Shadow saw something special.
Shadow: Whee!
Shadow jumps to the back of the Customer's chair and takes her purse. She puts it on the table and opens it.
Shadow: I think--I think--could it be? Could it be? A real, shiny kitty-coin! Wow!
Shadow has a glittery gold coin with a paw print on it.
Server: And even though she had a whole brand-new shiny kitty-coin for herself did she go and buy herself some food? No, she didn't. You know what she did? She bought herself a beautiful new green ribbon!
Shadow takes the green ribbon out of the menu and trades it for the coin.
Shadow: Whee, whee, whee! Whee whee!Wow!
She drapes the ribbon around her neck.
Server: Shadow would preen her green ribbon, and it really helped distract her from the rumbling of her very empty tummy. "Well", she thought, "even if I don't have any food, I can probably just dream about eating and it'll be nearly as good".
The Server asks the Customer to hold up a corner of the tablecloth.
Server: Would you?
Dreamy music. Transition to a spotlight on the tablecloth. Shadow puppets of a mouse and a fancy cupcake, one after another, moving through Shadow's dream. Fade back to Shadow by the river.
Server: Slowly Shadow grew weaker and thinner. Her paws began to tremble.
Shadow: Oh no!
Server: And not even her beautiful green ribbon could really distract her from the rumbling of her empty belly.
Shadow: Oh...
Server: One day, our Lilu looked up at the sky and she saw a cloud--
The Server gestures to the Customer to make the cloud with the doily.
Server: A cloud, passing overhead. And she said to it...
Shadow: Well, you are just a cloud. You're not made of cheese. I want nothing to do with you! Oh, why is life so hard? Why why why? It's not fair. It's not fair! It's just not fair.
Shadow throws a tantrum and knocks over the salt shaker.
Server: Lilu, you're making a mess.
A drawing of a bird is revealed on one side of the salt shaker.
Server: Oh, but Lilu saw a little bird. Most little birds would run away when they were this close to a cat.
Bird: Cheep, cheep!
The bird pecks at the spilled salt.
Server: But not this one, because it could tell that Lilu was far too tired to hunt.
Bird: Cheep cheep! Cheep cheep!
Server: So, it just stayed there, and Lilu scratched her whiskers and thought.
Shadow: I know! I am going to need to get a job. Yeah! Well, just for a little while so I can get enough food to eat. Yes. It's perfect. It's what a grown-up cat would do.
Server: Now, may I interest you in our next course? It is a sweet herbal tea full of flowers and fresh herbs handpicked by myself this morning.
Magical sounds. A silver tray with a teapot and an assortment of flowers appears. In stop motion, the flowers are transformed into a deep pink tea. The Server places the cup in front of the Customer.
Server: Now, allow me.Please enjoy. Although she was weak, Shadow tidied herself up.
Magical sound. Shadow's ribbon gets tied in a bow.
Server: And then she went down the path, to the very first door she could find.
The silver tray is turned on its side. There's a small door painted on it.
Shadow: Knock-knock-knock, knock-knock. Knock-knock.Hello?
Server: There was no answer. So, Shadow knocked again. Shadow: Knock-knock-knock, knock-knock, knock-knock. Hello?
Server: And with that (magical sound), a rabbit opened up.
The teapot, tea strainer ball, a knife and a fork are transformed into a shiny, anxious rabbit. The Customer puppeteers the rabbit.
Rabbit: What are you doing? You're interrupting my self-care time, don't you know? It's a packed schedule. I've got to start with meditation, herbal tea, aromatherapy. Move on to yoga, do a little whale sound listening. You know what I'm saying?
Shadow: I'm so sorry, no, I didn't know that. But please, Mr. Rabbit sir, I was just wondering might you give me a little job?
Rabbit: A job? Well, what do I need a cat for?
Shadow: Maybe I could scrub your fur. My paws would be perfect for the task.
Server: Well, the rabbit thought about this, and he thought "That sounds like a pretty good idea". And so Lilu sit off to work, and first she scrubbed the rabbit's ears where they felt very itchy. Scrub scrub scrub scrub scrub! And then she polished the fur on his face until it was shiny and sleek. And oh, the rabbit felt so relaxed.
Shadow: I'm so glad to have helped you relax, sir and I'm glad I did a good job. I was wondering, now might please I be paid for the day?
Server: The rabbit said...
Rabbit: Oh, of course, of course, you did excellently my friend. I'll give you a full bag of dried grass. And what's more, a big carrot from the garden!
Shadow: Oh. Well, thank you.
Server: Now, Shadow was being polite, because you see she didn't eat dry grass, or juicy carrots. So Shadow thanked the rabbit all the same.
Shadow: Thank you. Bye-bye, Mr. Rabbit!
Shadow waves at the rabbit and he waves his tail back at her.
Server: And then she set off down the road with her tummy a-rumbling and a-grumbling.
Shadow begins to walk.
Server: Our Cake of the Day (magical sound) Carrot Cake.
A slice of carrot cake appears, decorated with flowers and a tiny carrot with the greens still attached. The Customer takes a bite of the tiny carrot.
Server: And so our Shadow the Cat set off back down the road again on her way to look for work.
Magical sound, and the carrot cake disappears, leaving an empty plate.
Server: Then she saw...
Magical sound, and the plate turns into another door.
Shadow: Another door!Oh, it's very small. Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock.
Server: And it flew open.
The Customer puppeteers an angry badger, made from the teacup, flower vase, and doilies.
Server: Mrs. Badger said "No visitors!" and slammed the door shut in Shadow's face.
Shadow: Oh.
Server: Well, this was very discouraging, and honestly, Shadow wanted to give up then and there. But she didn't really have many choices. So she decided to knock again. She went to the door. Shadow: Knock-knock knock-knock knock-knock.
Server: And it flew open. Mrs. Badger cried "No trespassers!
Shadow: Please Mrs. Badger, might I have a little job? I would work for food or even a dish of milk. The badger sighed theatrically.
Badger: I suppose, since I am a charitable sort of badger that I could find a little light housework for you to do. Well, first you can start with the beds, and then you can move onto the windows and you can sweep and mop and vacuum and wash and dry and fold and you can mow and then weed and compost. And you better not disturb my husband.
Shadow: Yes. I'm happy to do all that and more, madam. Just please, first might I have a little snack? I do my best work when I'm strong and I haven't eaten in days.
Mrs. Badger sighs angrily.
Badger: This is not a charity. My my my my my my my my my my my my my! Ridiculous! You lazy servant girls are all the same.
Server: Lilu adjusted her pretty green ribbon. Then she looked the badger straight in the eyes, and she said...
Shadow: I am not a servant. I am Lilu, Shadow the Cat, and I will not be treated this way!
Server: And then, she left. Mrs. Badger was shocked. She slammed the door shut and went to be cross with her husband. Because, well, she was the kind of creature that if she wasn't in a fight she just didn't feel comfortable. Her poor husband. But that's a story for another day. (laughs) Oh and by the way, it's time for our next course. The Fruit Tart du jour.
Magical sound, and a pastry with strawberries appears on a wooden cutting board made from a slice of tree with the bark still attached. The light has turned green. The board is decorated with fresh raspberries and blueberries. The Customer reaches for a berry. Magical sound, and the food disappears. Magical sound, and the board is tipped on its side in the green light to create the forest.
Server: Lilu found herself in the forest. She was so glad not to be around that awful Badger anymore that she barely cared how hungry she was.
Shadow is lying on some flowers. She is struggling to get up.
Shadow: Oh, I'm so weak now. Oh, water.
Shadow crawls toward the Customer's glass of water, moaning with weakness. When she finally gets there, she tries to drink but tips the glass over instead. The water spills on the Customer.
Server: Oh my goodness. I am so sorry.
Magical sound, and a red cleaning cloth and a clear spray bottle appear on the table. The Server begins to clean up the spill.
Server: I'm going to clean this right up for you.
Ominous bells. The spray bottle and red cloth form the body of a fox. His head is made from the napkin holder and red and white napkin on the table. The Server and the Customer puppeteer the fox together.
Server: In this forest there was also a fox.
Fox: (sniffs) Mmm.
Server: He smelled something.
Fox: A little kitty cat. She looks skinny, really skinny.Needs some fattening up.
Server: And then he decided to wake up the cat.
A hand in a silver glove appears from under the red cloth of the fox's body. He taps Lilu with a finger.
Fox: Tap, tap, tap.
Shadow: Um...hello? (sees fox) Oh!
Fox: Hello there, my little friend. You don't look so good, little one.
Server: Now, if ever a fox calls you 'little one' then you have to know they do not have good intentions, and that's a fact. This fox called our Shadow 'little one' and 'pretty kitty', and 'my darling'. And then he scratched her behind the ears, exactly where she liked it the best.
Shadow purrs.
Fox: How do you feel about a little brunch?
Server: Now, Shadow didn't exactly trust this fox. But she was really hungry. So she said "That sounds delicious". And so he took her by the paw and then off they went together through the forest all the way to the fox's lair.
Scary wolf howls and forest sounds. The green light becomes a dim warm light as we enter the fox's lair. The walls of the cave are drawn on one side of the menu, which is now stretched across the back of the table.
Server: The pastry course.
Magical sound. A basket appears, and the Customer unwraps the napkin in it to reveal several long, thin pastries. The Customer reaches to take one, and they disappear. The napkin beneath them is painted with bones.
Server: The floor to the cave was so littered with bones that it rattled and clattered every time they stepped.
Sound of bones clattering
Fox: It's a bit of a mess in here. Oh, you know how it is.
Server: Well, Lilu didn't know how it was because she'd never had a home to make a mess of. The fox pushed a big pile of bones at her.
Fox: Here. Eat.
The napkin with bones is draped over the upturned pastry basket. The fox pushes it at Lilu.
Server: And so they both nibbled and then they gobbled, they gulped and they chawed, and then when they were very full they sat back and purred with satisfaction.
Shadow: Purr!
Fox: Purr!
Server: Shadow hadn't eaten that well in many months. "Oh, thank you, fox!", she said.
Fox: My pleasure, my little treasure. And now, please, relax. Make yourself at home.
Server: And so Lilu relaxed.
She made herself at home. She began to clean and groom herself. (grooming sounds) And the fox watched her to see if she'd gotten any fatter yet.
Fox: You know, you should stay here with me. I need a roommate.
Shadow: Oh, well, no. No, that's too generous, by far.
Fox: Oh, but I insist.
Server: And then he left, and he closed the door behind him and sealed it with a big clump of earth so that Shadow couldn't--couldn't push through.
The fox leaps behind the lair, and pushes the door shut with his nose. Shadow runs to the door and scratches on it but she can't open it. She slumps, and slowly walks back to the bone pile.
Server: She was trapped. She sat down on the pile of boneswith nothing to do all daybut worry and dream.
Tense dreamscape music. Crossfade to Lilu's dream, depicted with a shadow puppet in a spotlight on the menu. A shadow fox appears, with a bright red tail and red eyes. His jaws snap open, showing sharp teeth. This repeats several times, and then the tail takes over the spotlight and gets larger until everything is red. The dream fades out and Shadow is still lying on the bone pile.
The Server is puppeteering the fox above the menu, looking down on his lair. He has a napkin with a chicken painted on it in his glittery silver hand. He jumps down into the den.
Server: When the fox came back he had a whole chicken, and he pushed it at Shadow and then he said...
Fox: Here you go. Bon Appétit. Hahaha!
Shadow: I'm not hungry, you eat it.
Fox: No no no, I have heartburn. Now eat up. I say you must.
Shadow: I must?
Fox: We need to fatten you up.
Shadow: But why must I eat? Why must I fatten up?
Fox: Because I say so!
Shadow: Oh, you are so mean!
Shadow begins to cry.
Fox: Why, thank you. Now eat.
Shadow: Boo hoo hoo, yum yum yum, boo hoo hoo, yum yum yum, boo hoo hoo!
Fox: Well, I was going to keep this to myself. But since you can't escape, maybe I'll tell you my little plan. You see, my cousin Constance is coming for dinner next week and I thought I could cook her up a delicious cat meat feast! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ho ho ho ho ho!
The Customer looks worried.
Server: Oh, don't worry. I'm sure it's all going to turn out well.
Fox: Aren't you glad that you're with me, little one? You'll never go hungry again, as long as you live.
I must be some kind of hero. Hahahaha! Hahahaha! Ha ha ha ha ha! Haha! Haha! Haha!
The fox's laughter gradually dies down and turns into snores.
Server: Shadow was very afraid, but she also knew there was nothing she could do at this moment. So, she tried to calm her breathing (deep breaths)and then she groomed herself. (grooming sounds) And then she fell asleepand dreamed of food. So much food.
Shadow goes to sleep. The tense dreamscape music returns. One by one, shadow puppets of meats appear in the spotlight on the menu, dancing in the light. First, there's the skeleton of a fish with the head and tail still attached. Then, a roast chicken. A ham, a hot dog, and finally a steak. The dream fades away and Lilu is asleep in the lair. The fox appears again above the den, with another napkin painted with a chicken.
Server: Many hours later, the fox came back with another big juicy chicken and he said...
Fox: Eat up.
Shadow: I just can't. I'm too full, still.
Fox: You will eat when I say!
Server: Even though she was so full, she had to eat.
Shadow: (sadly) Yum, yum.
Server: And then she ate.
Shadow: Yum, yum.
Server: And she kept on eating.
Shadow: Yum, yum.
Server: Until it was all gone and there was nothing left but a pile of greasy bones.
The chicken disappears.
Shadow: (feeling sick) Oh.
Server: She lay back. She stroked her sore tummy.
Shadow: Oh, what a tummyache!
Server: And then finally she fell asleep and dreamt more terrible dreams.
Tense dreamscape music returns again. The fox appears with his mouth open, shaking angrily. Then the meats appear, all tangled together in a jumble. More and more meats are layered on top of each other. The fox opens his angry mouth again and again. The dream fades back to Shadow asleep in the den.
Server: When she woke up the next morning, Shadow didn't know where she was. Then she remembered she was a prisoner and she felt furious.
Shadow gets up with difficulty. Her belly is huge from eating so much.
Shadow: No! Oh, no no no no!
Shadow goes to the door.
Server: And she began to scratch at the door with all her might. But it would not give, no matter how hard she tried.
Shadow groans.
Server: And then, she decided she would call out at the top of her voice until someone heard her.
Shadow: Meow! Meow! Can you hear me? Anyone? Can you hear me? I'm in the fox's den! It's Shadow, Shadow the cat! I'm trapped!
Server: Can anyone hear her? Can anyone help?
The Customer tries to figure out how to help Shadow. She picks up the pepper grinder and some flowers.
Shadow: (faintly) Help! Help! Help! Help!
Magical sound, and the pepper grinder and flowers transform into a dog, puppeteered by the Cuustomer.
Server: Just as she was about to give up, a little dog happen to pass by.
Dog: Ruff, ruff! What's that?
Shadow: Help!
Server: And before they knew it, the brave little dog had found the fox's lair and was burrowing through the thick layers of dirt that blocked the door, until finally, they burst through.
Dog: Hello!(sniffs) I smell fox.
When they see each other, Shadow and Dog both yelp.
Dog: Who are you?
Shadow: I am Shadow the cat. The fox isn't here right now because he's gone to look for some more meat to fatten me up. He wants to eat me.
Dog: Good thing I was passing by! Get out of here, quick. I'll deal with the fox.
Sound of heroic trumpets.
Shadow: Oh, you're a hero, brave dog.
Dog: Oh, anyone would do the same.
Server: And so, Shadow kissed the dog on the cheek.
Shadow kisses the dog on the cheek, and they sigh with happiness.
Server: And then she fled away, far far away, into the forest into a field on the other side where she found a meadow full of flowers.
Shadow climbs up the Customer and lands on top of her hat, which is decorated with small flowers along the front.
Servant: She felt a little calmer then. She lay down. Looked at the sky and told her new friends, the flowers, her troubles. They nodded calmly in the wind and comforted her.
Sound of a gentle wind. The Customer nods her head gently to comfort Shadow.
Server: In the meantime, the fox came back, with a big goose that he had gotten to feed to Lilu.
The fox appears above the lair. He has a napkin painted with a goose.
Server: And then he saw that the door to his lair was already open, and he was furious.
Fox: Impossible!
Server: He plunged into the den looking for the intruder.
Fox: Show yourself! Dog: Ruff! Ruff! Ruff!
Heroic trumpet.
Fox: Where is the kitty?
Dog: She left!
Fox: You stole my meal. You stupid dog!
Dog: She's not your meal. She's herself, Shadow the Cat.
Server: And with that, a horrible battle began.
Battle music, growls and barks. A stylized fight begins, with the fox and the dog frightening each other by making noise.
Server: It went on through the day and into the night.
The dog bites the fox on his finger.
Fox: Ow! Aah! Owie! Ow! Ow!
The fox collapses and the dog stands on top of him.
Fox: Ow, no! Stop! Ow!
Dog: Ruff! Ruff!
Server: Until it became clear that the little dog had finally won.
Dog: Awoo!
Triumphant music.
Dog: Ruff, ruff! Awoo!
Fox: Owie.
Dog: Ruff! Ruff! Awoo!
Fade to black. The green light returns, and the table becomes the forest again.
Server: And so, a battered, tattered, beaten, bitten, broken fox slunk off into the forest where he squeaked with fear.
Fox: Squeak, squeak.
Server: And he sobbed with hunger.
Fox: Oh, sob, sob!I am so sorry for what I've done. I wish I could apologize to that little cat. But alas, I shall just have to live with my actions and try and be a better fox in the future. I'm gonna move away to a new forest and try and be a brand new creature. I will pick up better habits. Maybe try some...some salads, yeah! Some quinoa, or whole grain breads. I could be a wonderful companion for someone. Anyone? Anyone? Anyone need a new roommate?
Eeerie sound. The fox exits.
Server: And so the fox moved to a whole new forest and began a whole new life.
Magical sound, the light changes from green to bright warm light.
Server: Our final course--the perfect bite.
A small wooden board appears, holding one chocolate, topped with a tiny yellow flower. The Customer eats the chocolate with pleasure.
Server: And as for the brave little dog for the rest of their life, they were so proud of that day that they rescued little Lilu. Even when they were a very old dog, they would still boast.
Dog: What's a fox to me? I can scare foxes any day! (heroic trumpet) Ruff, ruff!
Server: And as for Shadow, for the rest of her life, she always had enough to eat.
Shadow: Mmhmm.
Server: Not too much and not too little.
The Server takes off her apron and puts it on the table. She pulls the green ribbon out of it, and drapes it around her neck. Shadow sits on the apron and begins to tell stories.
Server: She started to tell the story of her rescue to anyone who'd listen. And when she got tired of that story, well, she told other ones. And pretty soon, she was known as one of the very best storytellers in the forest and she began to earn kitty-coins for her tales.
A kitty-coin appears in Shadow's paws.
Server: And when she had enough coins, she opened up her very own restaurant where she sold delicious desserts, and gave them away to anyone who was hungry.
The Server's apron becomes the backdrop of a tiny restaurant. The sugar bowl is a table, with a doily tablecloth. The little dog sits on the salt shaker as a chair. There is a tiny cup and a tiny plate in front of them, as well as a tiny menu. Shadow enters, wearing a tiny flowered apron, holding a silver tray with three perfect tiny cupcakes topped with cherries.
Shadow: Oh, here we are!I made your favorite today. Cupcakes!
Dog: (happy sigh) Aah!
The Server ties the green ribbon into a bow around her own neck.
Server: Shadow never got rid of her green silk ribbon although she could have bought many more pretty things for herself. But why bother, when the ribbon made her so happy?
Shadow and the little dog enjoy each other's company.
Server: And for the rest of her life, Shadow dined on sweets and on treats but she could bear no more meats. I'm pretty sure you'd feel the same way if you'd been through what she'd been through, too. And now, I'm afraid our time together has come to an end for today. I do hope that this experience was a memorable one for you.
Customer: Oh, yes.
The Customer gets her purse and opens it to pay.
Server: Oh, no, there's no need for that. No, for friend like you, it's on the house.
Customer: Thank you.
Server: Spread the word. Let other good souls know how to find us, and where we are. Everyone's welcome. It's pay-what-you-can, eat-what-you-like, and kids of all kinds dine for free. Even human ones.And if you need a safe place or a friendly ear, I'm here. No questions asked.And that's a fact.
Shadow appears in closeup. The Server's face appears on top of Lilu's, in a double exposure. They both look at the camera, smiling, wearing their green ribbons. Fade to black.
Fade up on the outside of the restaurant, but there is no sign on the door now. A reprise of the music from the beginning of the film. The Customer appears, dressed in her own clothes again. She looks around, and touches the door where it once read 'Ball O' Yarn Bistro'. She thinks about what happened, and smiles to herself. Footsteps on gravel as she walks away. Fade to black. End.
Credits roll.
Written, directed and produced by Sara Tilley
Inspired by a Slovenian folktale
Featuring Sara Tilley as The Server and Andrea McGuire as The Customer
Voices
Sara Tilley - Lilu/Shadow, Shadow's Parents, Rabbit, Badger, Fox
Andrea McGuire - Dog
Puppeteering
Sara Tilley - Lilu/Shadow, Shadow's Parents, Fox, Shadow Puppets
Andrea McGuire - Rabbit, Badger, Dog, Fox
Director of Photography - Andrea McGuire
Puppet, Costume and Production Design - Sara Tilley
Sound Design - Andrea McGuire
Editor - Sara Tilley
Sound Editor - Andrea McGuire
Camera - Andrea McGuire
Second Camera - Sara Tilley
Desserts - Rocket Bakery, Belbin's Grocery, The Battery Cafe, The Newfoundland Chocolate Company
Food Stylist - Sara Tilley
Puppet Design Mentor - Darka Erdjeli
Featuring songs from the album Make Your Own Kind of Muzak, recorded for the RPM Challenge by Rhubarb Jones (Andrea McGuire), available on Bandcamp
as well as Music Box Ambience #1 (Trinkets) and Creepy/Strange Music Loop by Sirkoto51
Special Thanks to
Canada Council for the Arts/CBC Digital Originals fund
Elling Lien
Nickel Film Festival
RPM Challenge
ACTRA COVID-19 Response Initiative
Darka Erdjeli
Bojana Dimitrovski
Jamie Skidmore
Arlo, Minnie, Dexter, Mouschi, Brud, and all the other cats we've known, especially Lilu