ACT I – The Pianist with a Secret
Aaron Hale, a struggling pianist in Los Angeles, pretends to be blind to force himself into complete sensory discipline — an artistic experiment inspired by classical legends.He meets Sophie, who believes he is truly blind and helps him land gigs, including a private performance at the home of Arthur Lane, a retired actor.
Aaron arrives to perform… only to discover Arthur's murdered body inside the apartment.But he must continue pretending to be blind as Simi Lane, Arthur's sophisticated but cold wife, and Mano Reed, her police-officer lover, silently attempt to cover up the crime.
This night destroys Aaron's carefully constructed world — he knows everything, but can reveal nothing.
ACT II – Lies, Fear, and the Collapse of Control
Next day, Aaron has to come again to appear innocent in front of Simi but witnesses Simi push the old neighbor Mrs Dalton from the thirteenth floor.
Simi realizes Aaron is not blind.
She pretends to sleep with Aaron to make Sophie jealous and leave Aaron, leaving him truly alone.
Mano, being a cop, blocks Aaron from reporting anything.Aaron is assaulted in his own home and left for dead after being poisoned — but survives, now genuinely blind.
He wakes up in an illegal operating clinic run by Dr. Samuel Brooks, a black-market surgeon who harvests organs with his accomplices:
Murph the taxi driver,
Sasha the tobacco seller.
Aaron avoids being killed only by revealing intimate details he saw before he was blinded — proving he once had sight.
Brooks decides Aaron is worth more alive than dead and shifts into an ally.
ACT III – Moral Collisions and Deadly Escapes
Brooks, Murph, and Sasha blackmail Simi and Mano using Aaron's information.But greed corrupts everything — Murph and Sasha double-cross Aaron and try to kill both him and Simi.
Mano dies accidentally in a botched confrontation.The money involved turns out to be counterfeit.Simi and Aaron engage in a desperate struggle for survival.
In the final chaos:
Simi attempts to escape with Murph's car.A wild collision kills her.Brooks disappears.Aaron survives — now permanently blind.
EPILOGUE – The Ambiguous End
Two years later, Aaron is performing in Europe.Sophie finds him and learns the horrifying truth of what transpired.
But the film ends with a subtle clue — Aaron tapping his cane against a can on the street with suspicious precision.
The audience must decide:Is Aaron truly blind? Or did he regain his sight and choose to hide it again?
CAST:
Aaron Hale- Daniel Heyes (OC)
Sophie- Anne Hathaway
Simi Lane- Cate Blanchett
Mano Reed- Javier Bardem
Dr. Samuel Brooks- Jeffrey Wright
Murphy Kane- Michael Peña
Sasha Quinn- Michelle Rodriguez
Mrs Dalton- Holland Taylor
______
At FunTime Pictures, the huge, rectangular conference room had been arranged into a neat oval of chairs with bottled water on each chair. The pile of shiny-new scripts that were going to be the focus of our discussion sat in the middle of the room like a sacrificial offering and was beautiful right now, but soon it will have been torn apart, underlined, coffee-stained and marked with the frustration we are all going to feel this week.
Harry entered last, and he was still dealing with some remnants of a mild headache. Sparky had awakened him early in the morning, Lisa had yelled at him during breakfast for not getting up earlier, and Maria had made him drink some green liquid which she said would help his liver.
Harry did not know if he was alive or embalmed, but at least he was present.
Daniel Heyes and Javier Bardem were seated together and were both grinning like hyenas just waiting for their cue to pounce.
The moment Harry sat down across from them, Daniel leaned forward with the biggest shit-eating grin imaginable.
"Hey guys," Daniel said loud enough to be heard by every actor in the room, "I heard our fearless director hooked up with a cougar last week!"
Harry nearly choked on his water. "Daniel—"
"It's unfair, you know," Daniel continued, flipping through the script with exaggerated seriousness. "I slept with an older woman once and nobody clapped for me. You do it, and the whole damn industry writes headlines."
Javier tsks, shaking his head with mock disappointment. "Daniel, hermano, this is jealousy. You must understand-Harry is a man of taste. You… are a man of convenience."
Daniel gasped. "You calling me a playboy?!"
"I am calling you consistent."
Harry dragged both hands down his face. "Can we please not—"
"Oh no, we must," Javier insisted. "This is the first time in our lives you have a scandal and we do not. We are obligated to enjoy it."
Anne Hathaway was on the other side of the table attempting unsuccessfully to keep from laughing, whereas Jeffrey Wright was smiling under the cover of his hand and Michelle Rodriguez said "Damn" quietly.
But he cleared his throat and turned to Javier, partly for distraction, partly to prevent more teasing.
"How's your preparation going for No Country For Old Men?" Harry asked.
Immediately Javier became serious and interested again, like his mind switched back on quickly and precisely as if someone put a barrel in place.
"I speak with Cormac once a week," said Javier, "and he's intense, but also generous. He told me Anton Chigurh is not an evil person, but rather a consequence of sin"
Harry nodded. "What's the process to getting physically matched to that?"
"I'm gaining my weight gradually, and Cormac has sent me notes about how to hold myself. He's spoken with Greg about it too... we'll be doing this once this film ends."
Harry's eyebrow shot up. "Did Cormac not like the screenplay anymore? Because he signed off on it."
Javier looked somewhat disgusted. "No, he likes the screenplay; he just wants to make a few... philosophical adjustments."
"Philosophical adjustments?" Harry repeated flatly. "Awesome. Brilliant. Wonderful."
Javier shrugged his shoulders. "It's just Cormac; we should be grateful he doesn't want to write a monologue in it about God killing cattle."
Sighing heavily, Harry replied, "Okay. Let's begin rewriting bits of the screenplay with someone who knows how to write well and whom Cormac will trust. I am too busy to deal with that."
The door opened.
Cate Blanchett walked in- effortlessly composed, wearing dark sunglasses and a soft cream sweater. She was late, unapologetically so.
Cate looked at the room and, her eyes finally resting on Harry - a few seconds too long for him.
Cates' posture straightened up next to him.
Next to Javier and Daniel, Cate sat on one side. They both looked at each other the way two hunters spot blood.
Cate looked toward Harry.
"Hey, how was that night?" was the first thing she said.
Once she said that, it was like a bomb going off in the room.
Anne went bright red; Michelle let out a laugh; Jeffrey had a fit of coughing. Even the guy standing at the door, with a clipboard, nearly dropped it.
"YES! MRS BLANCHETT! OMG!" Daniel slapped his hands on the table.
"I'm so proud of this ensemble cast already!" Javier laughed and wiped a tear from his eye.
Harry's ears were aflame, and he replied to Cate, "Cate, we're at work."
Cate placed her head slightly to one side, "I'm only asking a question."
Daniel leaned to Javier. "Think she will leave her husband and they'll get married?"
Javier whispered loudly, "Only if Harry survives her husband's wrath."
Harry clapped his hands sharply. "WE ARE STARTING. RIGHT NOW. SCRIPT READING."
Cate smirked.
Everyone reluctantly quieted, though the atmosphere hummed with the threat of more teasing.
Harry took a breath, opened his script, and nodded at the room.
"Let's begin."
----
Anne inhaled and began reading her lines, her voice soft but clear. She stumbled twice, nervousness making her tone shaky.
Harry leaned in gently. "Anne- soften the end of that sentence. Sophie isn't certain yet, she's testing him. Try it like you're observing without judgment."
Anne nodded, tried again — and this time, it clicked. Her voice warmed, her eyes softened, and the chemistry between her and Daniel settled like two puzzle pieces finding edges.
Cate's eyebrows lifted slightly as she watched.
Daniel caught it.
Daniel whispered to Javier, "Cate is jealous."
Javier whispered back, "This is going to be a very interesting shoot."
Harry ignored them. Or pretended to.
They moved on.
--
Anne was reading the script when Sophie saw Aaron go for the last time and had a split moment before letting him leave when Daniel had his cane in the ground. There were two taps on the ground with the cane, and it put his foot next to a can that Aaron shouldn't have been able to see.
Cate was closing her script while watching Harry.
Javier raised an eyebrow at Cate and she raised one back.
"Stop flirting with the director," Daniel said, quietly to both of them.
Harry slammed the script shut, "Good job everyone, that was really well done. I will be able to make some good improvements during the shoot when working on the rhythms."
The actors thanked him one at a time, gathered their things and left.
Harry shook hands (smiling) without looking at Cate. As soon as the last person to leave was Gregory and came to shake hands, Harry had a huge sigh of relief.
Gregory was leaning on the table when he said, "Well..."
Harry rubbed his head and said, "It was really good. I was pleasantly surprised at how natural the tension was. And the beats landed correctly... Anne has found her voice. Daniel is going to be a force to be reckoned with. Javier is very intimidating. As for Cate..."
"She's going to steal this movie," Gregory finished for him.
"Something else as well," Harry moaned.
"You'd better get used to it," Gregory laughed. "Now, go rest. In two days we start shooting."
Greg walked out.
Harry remained seated for a moment longer.
But his mind was no longer on performances.
It was on music.
The one piece he hadn't solved yet.The sound that would define Aaron's world.
He needed a composer.