PRECEDENT
Mockumentary / Political Thriller
written by
CELESTE M ESCALERA
E-mail: [email protected]
COLD OPEN
BLACK.
We hear overlapping audio first: a NEWS ANCHOR, a PROTEST
CHANT, a PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS, a POLICE BULLHORN, all
bleeding together.
On-screen text types in, glitchy:
PRECEDENT
A documentary by DANI MERCER
A beat.
"When rules become optional, so
does belonging."
SMASH CUT TO:
Genres:
["Mockumentary","Political Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
2 -
The Union Dispute: A Fractured California
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) - PRESENT DAY
A basic chair. Harsh LED lighting. A mic dips into frame. No
glamour.
DANI MERCER (V.O.)
I began filming to understand a
question nobody wanted to ask or
answer out loud.
ON SCREEN: DAY 72 - PRESENT DAY
"THE UNION DISPUTE"
DANI MERCER (30s) sits off-camera, audible but unseen.
DANI (O.S.)
When did California decide it
wasn't a state anymore?
A woman sits in frame: composed, controlled.
LOWER THIRD: GOVERNOR ADRIENNE PARK - Governor of California
GOVERNOR PARK
When we realized the rules were no
longer... shared. When one branch
said, "We don't answer to
Congress." And everyone else
just... adjusted.
She looks straight down the lens now.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Precedent is contagious.
CUT HARD TO:
MONTAGE – DAY 1: THE NEW PRESIDENCY (ARCHIVAL / NEWS / PHONE
FOOTAGE)
A) NEWS CLIP – polished studio.
ANCHOR
...an unprecedented expansion of
executive authority.
B) PHONE FOOTAGE – shaky, vertical.
Crowd outside a federal building chanting.
C) WHITE HOUSE PODIUM – crisp seal, flags.
WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY
The President will act with or
without congressional cooperation.
D) CONGRESSIONAL HEARING – gavel slam.
CHAIRPERSON
The executive branch is not a
monarchy.
E) CALIFORNIA CAPITOL – crowd gathered, both flags and
counter-flags.
SUPER: DAY 1
The audio stacks, conflicting.
DANI (V.O.)
At first, it wasn't a breakup. It
was a slow change in language.
People stopped saying "we."
SMASH CUT TO:
Genres:
["Mockumentary","Political Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
3 -
Tension in the Hot Seat
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) - PRESENT DAY
A man in a suit. Smiling in the way people smile when they're
being recorded for history.
LOWER THIRD: SENATOR JAMES HALLOWAY - Majority Leader
HALLOWAY
Secession is not a policy option.
It's a myth people tell themselves when compromise feels like
surrender.
DANI (O.S.)
But the President ignored Congress.
Halloway's smile tightens.
HALLOWAY
That's a separate issue.
DANI (O.S.)
Is it?
He pauses too long.
HALLOWAY
No one gets to set fire to the
house because they don't like the
landlord.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Mockumentary"]
Ratings
Scene
4 -
Divided Decisions
INT. LIVING ROOM – NIGHT (DAY 18) – HANDHELD DOCUMENTARY
FOOTAGE
A couple in their 40s. Cardboard boxes. A map on the wall
with highlighter routes.
ON SCREEN: DAY 18 - "MIGRATION"
MOM (KAREN) tapes a box marked KITCHEN.
DAD (MATT) scrolls his phone: news alerts nonstop.
DANI (V.O.)
Some people protested. Some people
stayed. Some people packed like a
storm was coming.
KAREN
My sister's in Idaho. She says it's
calm.
MATT
It's calm because they're not
arguing with the federal government
every five minutes.
A TEEN (16) walks in RILEY holding a California hoodie like
it's evidence.
RILEY
So we're just... leaving?
Karen doesn't look up. Keeps taping like speed will make it
easier.
KAREN
We're relocating.
Riley's face tightens.
RILEY
Stop calling it that.
Relocating is for jobs.
This is because you're scared.
KAREN
Riley...
RILEY
No. Don't "Riley" me.
You two talk like I'm not even
here, and then you expect me to
just...
(gestures at the boxes)
...be fine with this?
Matt finally looks up.
MATT
We're going somewhere quieter.
RILEY
Quieter doesn't mean safer.
It just means no one has to deal
with what is really happening.
Matt's jaw flexes.
MATT
Look- we believe the President's
trying to fix it.
We do. But this state? This
Governor? They're daring the
country to come down on all of us.
KAREN
And people are getting uglier.
Every day. This could end in civil
war.
Riley laughs-sarcastically.
RILEY
So your solution is to run to a red
state and pretend we weren't here?
MATT
It's not pretending. It's survival.
Riley steps closer. Voice rising.
RILEY
Then say that.
Say, "We're scared."
Say, "We don't trust her."
Say, "We think she's tearing it
apart."
But don't make it sound like it's a
family vacation.
Karen finally snaps the tape down... hard.
KAREN
Go start packing.
Riley doesn't move.
RILEY
Fine. But remember, I'm the only
one who didn't get a vote.
CUT TO:
EXT. DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES – DAY (DAY 22) – PHONE FOOTAGE
MONTAGE
FLASHES:
Protesters with signs: "STAY UNITED" / "LET US GO"
Counter-protesters: "TRAITORS" / "TYRANTS"
A line of riot police. A thrown water bottle.
A woman screaming, crying, laughing at the same time.
A man in a flag cape yelling at a livestream.
DANI (V.O.)
The unrest wasn't one thing. It was
thousands of personal emergencies
occurring in the same street.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Political","Family"]
Ratings
Scene
5 -
Confronting Ideology
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) - PRESENT DAY
A young man in a red political style cap (generic, no real
slogan), stiff posture.
LOWER THIRD: BRAD ROSS - "Union First" Organizer
BRAD
They don't get to take our flag and
rewrite the rules because they
don't like the President.
DANI (O.S.)
But you support the President
ignoring Congress.
Brad blinks...
BRAD
I support strength.
I support winning.
DANI (O.S.)
So... rules don't matter?
Brad leans forward, angry now.
BRAD
Rules matter when the right people
make them.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Mockumentary"]
Ratings
Scene
6 -
Secession: A Governor's Justification
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) - PRESENT DAY
The lighting is too bright. The room is too quiet.
GOVERNOR ADRIENNE PARK adjusts her sleeve like she's buying
herself time.
LOWER THIRD: GOVERNOR ADRIENNE PARK
Governor of California
DANI (O.S.)
Okay. Explain it to someone who's
never said this word out loud.
Seceding. What is it, really?
GOVERNOR PARK
It's leaving. Not "disagreeing."
Not "resisting." Leaving...
She shrugs, almost annoyed at how simple it has to be.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
It's saying, we're not doing this
membership anymore.
DANI (O.S.)
And that's... legal?
The Governor gives a look that says, you know the answer.
GOVERNOR PARK
"Legal" is a word that only works
if everybody agrees it's real.
Right now, we're living in the era
of selective reality.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
So no, I'm not going to sit here
and pretend there's a neat little
constitutional checkout line.
DANI (O.S.)
So why do it?
GOVERNOR PARK
Because the relationship changed.
DANI (O.S.)
That's still vague.
GOVERNOR PARK
Fine. We watched Washington set a
new standard.
She leans forward.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Congress said stop. The President
didn't stop. And then everyone
around him, Cabinet, agencies,
treated that like normal.
She holds Dani's silence.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
So... precedent.
DANI (O.S.)
Your argument is: if he can ignore
Congress, you can too?
GOVERNOR PARK
Not "can." Must.
Quick, sharp.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Because if you accept that rules
only apply downward, you're not in
a union. You're in a hierarchy.
DANI (O.S.)
People are going to hear that and
think you're just mad you lost a
political fight.
GOVERNOR PARK
I'm not mad. I'm tired.
She laughs once.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
I'm tired of pretending we're all
playing the same game when one side
has decided the ref is optional.
DANI (O.S.)
So what, California just walks?
GOVERNOR PARK
If it "just walks," it's chaos. And
I'm not interested in chaos.
She pauses. Picks her words like they're heavy.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
This is... or was supposed to be...
a controlled exit from a system
that stopped being mutual.
DANI (O.S.)
Okay. Effects. If California did
this... what happens to America?
The Governor exhales. Long.
GOVERNOR PARK
It gets smaller.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
And not in a poetic way. In a
measurable way.
She gestures, like she's drawing numbers in the air.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
California's economy is around four
trillion dollars. Recent figures
put it at roughly $4.1 trillion in
2024. If California were a country,
it would rank about fourth in the
world by nominal GDP.
She glances at the camera crew, like: yes, you can fact-check
it.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
People keep saying "fifth." That
headline aged fast.
DANI (O.S.)
So the U.S. loses money.
GOVERNOR PARK
Not just money. Weight.
She sits back.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
California is roughly fourteen
percent of U.S. GDP. That's not a
drop in a bucket. That's a chunk of
the national engine. You remove it
and the car doesn't keep going at
the same speed just because it
wants to.
DANI (O.S.)
But couldn't the rest of the
country adapt?
GOVERNOR PARK
Eventually. Sure. Humans adapt to
anything.
And then, softer:
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
But first there's the price.
Markets don't like uncertainty.
Supply chains don't like borders.
Families don't like being told
their identity is now a
negotiation.
DANI (O.S.)
You said supply chains.
GOVERNOR PARK
Yeah. Ports.
She nods, like it's obvious.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
The LA/Long Beach port complex,
together moves around thirty-one
percent of U.S. containerized
international waterborne trade.
That's not "California bragging."
That's just... how goods get here.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
So picture it. Even a hint of
disruption, and you get hoarding,
shortages, price spikes. And then
politicians yelling at each other
on TV pretending it's about values.
DANI (O.S.)
What about elections? Washington?
GOVERNOR PARK
Oh. It rewires everything.
She speaks faster now, like she's stopped censoring herself.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
California has 52 House seats.
Fifty-four electoral votes. You
take that out and you redraw the
country's political math for a
generation.
She pauses.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
And that's when the other states
start doing their own calculations.
DANI (O.S.)
Dominoes.
GOVERNOR PARK
Dominoes. Or... permission.
She lets that sit there.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Because the real effect isn't just
"California leaves." It's the idea
that leaving is on the table at
all.
DANI (O.S.)
People are moving. We filmed it. U-
Hauls. "Going to red states." And
then on the other side, people are
organizing to stop this.
The Governor nods, once.
GOVERNOR PARK
I know.
Quiet.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
That's what happens when the
identity of the place you live
becomes a street fight. Some people
fight. Some people flee. Some
people profit.
DANI (O.S.)
What do you say to people who think
you're tearing the country apart?
The Governor doesn't answer right away. She looks down, then
up.
GOVERNOR PARK
I say the tearing started when
accountability became optional.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Look... if the President can treat
Congress like a suggestion,
then the message is: power decides
what's real.
She points slightly, not accusatory. Just... stating.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
So we decided to stop begging the
system to respect us. And start
preparing for the system to punish
us.
DANI (O.S.)
Preparing how.
Because the rumors are... currency, international talks,
alliances.
The Governor smiles, but it's subtle.
GOVERNOR PARK
You want me to confirm a
conspiracy?
DANI (O.S.)
I want you to explain the planning.
GOVERNOR PARK
Okay. Here.
She takes a breath.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
If you believe a storm is coming,
you stock water. You don't post
about it. You don't argue with your
neighbor about whether storms are
real. You just... stock pile water.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
So yes, contingencies exist.
Financial contingencies. Supply
contingencies. Communication
contingencies.
She stops herself.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
And no, I'm not listing them.
DANI (O.S.)
How long?
GOVERNOR PARK
How long what?
DANI (O.S.)
How long has California been
planning to do this?
The Governor looks at the clock, then back.
GOVERNOR PARK
When our president started,
violating the constitution, we
decided we have lost control
completely of the oval office and
this might end up being a 10 term
cabinet.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Let's just say, in short- once it
became clear the new presidency
wasn't a phase. Once it became
clear the rules were going to be...
flexible. One-way flexible.
DANI (O.S.)
So you're basically saying: the
President taught you how. "Monkey
see, Monkey do"?
GOVERNOR PARK
I'm saying the President taught
everyone something.
She sits very still now.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
That if the center doesn't hold
itself accountable, the edges stop
holding, too.
DANI (O.S.)
And the endgame?
The Governor's answer comes out simple. Almost sad.
GOVERNOR PARK
A new order.
A beat.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
Not because we wanted one. Because
once you prove the rules are
optional, someone's going to test
that. And then someone else. And
then, you don't have a country.
She looks at Dani, like she's done performing.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
You have negotiations. And borders.
And history, happening live.
CUT TO:
MONTAGE – DAY 27 – NEWS FLASH (ARCHIVAL)
ON SCREEN: DAY 27 "SACRAMENTO DRAWS THE LINE"
Light Flashes.
Governor Park at a podium, microphones everywhere.
GOVERNOR PARK (NEWS AUDIO)
Congress may object. The President
may proceed anyway.
So California will not participate in rules that only enforce
downward.
Breaking News: GOVERNOR: "RULES OPTIONAL IN D.C., NOT
MANDATORY HERE"
Crowd reaction: cheers / boos.
SMASH CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Documentary"]
Ratings
Scene
7 -
Federal Stance Against Secession
INT. WHITE HOUSE BRIEFING ROOM – DAY (DAY 28) – NEWS CLIP
A CABINET MEMBER (DEFENSE) stands at the podium.
LOWER THIRD: SECRETARY OF DEFENSE LYMAN CROSS
CROSS
California remains a state. The
notion that a governor may
unilaterally withdraw is absurd.
Cut to another cabinet member.
LOWER THIRD: ATTORNEY GENERAL SELENE WARD
WARD
Federal property and federal law
will be upheld. Interference will
be treated accordingly.
CUT TO:
THE PRESIDENT, not named. We only hear the tail end of a
speech.
PRESIDENT (NEWS AUDIO)
We will not allow a radical state
government to hold this country
hostage...
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Mockumentary"]
Ratings
Scene
8 -
Fragmented Realities
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) PRESENT DAY
A woman with tired eyes, wearing a county lanyard.
LOWER THIRD: ANIKA DESAI - County Elections Administrator
ANIKA
Everyone thinks government is flags
and speeches. But government is
forms. And every form needs a box
for: What are we?
She laughs once, dry.
ANIKA (CONT'D)
State? Territory? Nation? My
software doesn't have a dropdown
for "We're in a fight."
CUT TO:
MONTAGE – "THE FIGHT"
A) CONGRESS FLOOR – votes on a measure.
ANCHOR (V.O.)
Congress moved to freeze
discretionary funds...
B) CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE – emergency session.
ANCHOR (V.O.) (CONT'D)
California announced it would
withhold certain remittances.
C) COURT STEPS – attorneys swarm cameras.
D) TWEETS/HEADLINES on screen like gunfire:
FEDERAL INJUNCTIONSTATE DEFIES ORDERNATIONAL GUARD
MOBILIZEDCHECKPOINTS "TEMPORARY" SUPPLY TRUCKS DELAYEDRUMORS
OF NEW CURRENCYE)
GAS STATION - fistfight breaks out, broken up fast.
DANI (V.O.)
The country didn't split in half.
It split into routines. Some people
went to work. Some people went to
war online. Some people just...
left.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Documentary","Political","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
9 -
Tensions on the Road
EXT. HIGHWAY – DAY (DAY 44) – HANDHELD DOCUMENTARY FOOTAGE
The family car from earlier: packed. The teen, Riley, films
out the window.
A hand-painted sign on an overpass:
"WELCOME TO FREE AMERICA"
Spray-painted under it:
"WE WERE FREE HERE TOO."
KAREN (O.S.)
Don't film that.
RILEY
Why?
KAREN (O.S.)
Because you're gonna want a job
someday. And posts never completely
disappear on social media.
A beat.
MATT (O.S.)
We're not doing politics in the
car.
Riley swings the camera to the front. Mom. Dad. Too quiet.
RILEY
Because of politics, is why I am
even in this car anyway!
Silence. Just the road noise. A turn signal clicking.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Family","Political"]
Ratings
Scene
10 -
The Secret Year: Unveiling California's Independence Plans
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) - PRESENT DAY
A man in a hoodie, face partially shadowed. Voice altered.
LOWER THIRD: "M" - Former State Finance Consultant
Voice altered
DANI (O.S.)
When did California start planning
for independence?
The man exhales, like he's been waiting months to say it.
"M"
About a year before anyone admitted
it out loud.
DANI (O.S.)
A year?
"M"
The new presidency made people...
imaginative. First it was "just in
case" planning. Then it was
budgeting. Then it was...
infrastructure.
DANI (O.S.)
What kind of infrastructure?
"M"
Money.
CUT TO:
MONTAGE – "THE SECRET YEAR"
Quick flashes, half-seen, plausible deniability:
A warehouse with pallets marked "SECURE PAPER – STATE
CONTRACT"
A meeting room: blurred maps, hands pointing, names redacted.
A prototype coin spinning in someone's palm, no readable
markings.
A private airport hangar: silhouettes shaking hands.
A screen showing translation in real-time: English subtitles
over another language.
DANI (V.O.)
By the time the public learned the
word "secede," some people were
already practicing it.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Mockumentary"]
Ratings
Scene
11 -
Defiance in the Dark
INT. CALIFORNIA CAPITOL – PRIVATE OFFICE – NIGHT (DAY 55) –
OFFLIMITS HANDHELD DOCUMENTARY FOOTAGE
Low light. Governor Park in shirtsleeves, no cameras allowed-
except Dani somehow has a corner angle.
A CHIEF OF STAFF whispers urgently.
CHIEF OF STAFF
They're going to cut the last
federal coordination channels.
Park doesn't react the way a politician would.
GOVERNOR PARK
Then we stop begging for permission
to exist.
CHIEF OF STAFF
If we do this, they'll say we
started it.
Park finally looks up.
GOVERNOR PARK
They started it when they proved
consequences are optional... if
you're powerful enough.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Documentary"]
Ratings
Scene
12 -
Divided Nation: Protests and Reflections
INT. WHITE HOUSE – CABINET ROOM – DAY (DAY 60) – NEWS
REENACTMENT AUDIO OVER B-ROLL
We don't see inside; we see B-roll: White House exterior,
suited officials walking fast.
ANCHOR (V.O.)
Sources say the Cabinet is divided
on whether to negotiate or punish.
Overlay: LEAKED QUOTES (unverified) appear briefly:
"If we let them go, we invite it everywhere."
DANI (V.O.)
Nobody wanted to be the one who
proved what the country really was.
CUT TO:
EXT. MULTIPLE CITIES – NIGHT (DAY 64) – PROTEST FLASHES
San Francisco: quiet march with candles. Sacramento:
barricades, yelling. San Diego: flags, fireworks, sirens.
Rural highway: trucks blocking an exit.
DANI (V.O.)
The fight wasn't just state versus
federal. It was neighbor versus
neighbor.
A flash of a handmade sign: "I'M AMERICAN. I'M JUST TIRED."
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Mockumentary"]
Ratings
Scene
13 -
Reflections on Secession
INT. DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW SETUP – DAY (DAY 72) - PRESENT DAY
DANI (O.S.)
Do you believe California can
leave?
GOVERNOR PARK
I believe the United States taught
the world something it didn't
intend to.
Dani waits.
GOVERNOR PARK (CONT'D)
That the rules only matter when
everyone agrees to pretend they do.
DANI (O.S.)
So what happens now?
Park's answer is quiet. Not triumphant.
GOVERNOR PARK
Now we find out if a country is a
document... or a habit.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Political Thriller","Mockumentary"]
Ratings
Scene
14 -
The Sovereign Transition
EXT. TV WALL / ELECTRONICS STORE – DAY (DAY 73)
A wall of televisions: every channel is the same breaking
banner.
Breaking News: CALIFORNIA ANNOUNCES "SOVEREIGN TRANSITION"
Audio overlaps:
Federal officials calling it illegal. California officials
calling it necessary. Protesters cheering. Protesters
screaming.
Dani's camera catches her own reflection in a TV: she looks
sick.
CUT TO:
BLACK SCREEN – FINAL
Then-faint, distant-RADIO AUDIO. A control room. Breaking
news stacking like falling dominoes.
NEWS AUDIO (OVER BLACK) - Oregon's legislature has called an
emergency session.
NEWS AUDIO #2 - Texas leaders say if the precedent stands,
they will pursue their own.
NEWS AUDIO #3 - A coalition of states is forming an
"interstate sovereignty compact".
NEWS AUDIO #4 - Foreign markets are reacting to reports of a
new regional currency.
A final audio layer, colder:
UNIDENTIFIED VOICE (AUDIO)
It wasn't spontaneous. It was
scheduled.
We hear a paper slide across a table.
UNIDENTIFIED VOICE (AUDIO) (CONT'D)
They've been planning for a year.
NEWS AUDIO (OVER BLACK) - Analysts are calling it... a new
world order.
Then a final line types in:
THIS FILM IS FICTION. THE PRECEDENT IS NOT.
CUT TO BLACK.
END