THE FIVE STAGES OF GRIEF
(6 page short comedy in pdf format)

A suburban family goes through the five stages of grief during the pandemic.

Imagine if you will, some of film’s famous comedic families – The Griswolds, The Fockers, and The Simpsons holed up in isolation. Scary thought… but also ripe for comedy gold.

Now we can add to that list with Dave Lambertson’s fictional family in The Five Stages Of Grief as he takes us on a comedic journey of a family in lockdown. Cleverly utilizing a series of emotions – denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance he chronicles one family’s time in isolation to terrific comedic effect.

The story opens on a typical nuclear family – Dad – John, Mom – Jane, and their cute as
can be kids, Annabelle and Tommy.

Jane and the kids are huddled in front of the TV squabbling over what movie to watch when a news flash interrupts family time –

And so begins…

DAY ONE – DENIAL

And the hilarity that ensues from each day forward…

As the family battles the perils of too much togetherness and negotiates the division of chores, shopping, cooking, homeschooling, and a house that rapidly starts to look like a bomb’s hit it, we discover lockdown is not for the faint of heart.

John’s a head-in-the-clouds kind of guy, while Jane has her feet firmly planted on the ground. While John sees lockdown as an opportunity to try his hand at inventing the next big thing (a see-through toaster), he also dreams of finishing (starting would be nice) his screenplay opus. Jane just wants some order through all the chaos. The kids are running wild, Dad’s battling to flatten a curve of a different kind (too much home-baking will do that to you) and there’s all manner of heckling from all sides. It’s not long before all four members of this household start climbing the walls.

The Five Stages Of Grief is a hilarious slice of life comedy about the ups and downs of family-fun in quarantine, or more aptly a cautionary tale that asks the question: how much togetherness is too much? With its clever comedic one-liners, acerbic wit, and touching observations of family life The Five Stages Of Grief will have you laughing out loud.

FILMMAKERS: Don’t deny yourself me-time. With lockdown soon to be a distant memory you’re going to want to re-emerge from self-isolation with a sure-fire crowd pleaser on your hands. Snap this one up and your acceptance speech may well be on the cards.

* The Five Stages of Grief placed firm favourite: Writer’s Choice, Simply Scripts May, 2020 challenge – The Journal Of the Plague Year – stories real and imagined/inspired by the current pandemic.

About the Writer, Dave Lambertson: I took up writing rather late in life having already been retired before I put pen to paper (okay – finger to computer key) for the first time. My favorite genres to read and write are dramedies and romantic comedies. In addition to this short, I have written four features; The Last Statesman (a 2015 PAGE finalist and a Nicholl’s and BlueCat quarterfinalist), The Beginning of The End and The End (a PAGE Semi-Finalist). Taking Stock (a drama) and a new comedy – Screw You Tube. Contact Dave via his website.

Read The Five Stages of Grief (6 page short comedy in pdf format)

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*This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.

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ABOUT THE REVIEWER: L.Chambers has been writing all her life – especially in her head, and on scraps of paper. It’s only in the last few years she began to get serious about screen-writing. Prior to this she worked in the Features Department for ABC TV as a Program Assistant, and trained as a FAD. She currently works as a freelance web-content editor and lives with her husband (also a screenwriter) in Sydney, Australia.