Out of Focus

Carmen and Cara just finished grocery shopping and are on their way home. Cara is walking about a meter ahead of Carmen, fully fixated on her camera. Struggling to carry all the items by herself, Carmen asks Cara for some help. Cara with a slight pout on her face, looks back at her sisters and proceeds to walk towards her in order to help her carry the grocery bags. The two then run into a familiar face, Brian, their neighbor who is on his way to the convenience store. After a small talk, the two groups start walking their separate ways when Brian suddenly recalls something. Brian congratulates Carmen for her recent academic achievements while Cara silently watches the exchange from the sideline.

The sisters make it back home a little while later. The family of four then proceeds to organize the groceries. In the middle of said process, Joseph, their father, mentions that he and their mother, Annette plan on displaying Carmen’s academic awards in the living room. Cara proceeds to the bathroom area right as their parents start discussing how they should also put up some of the photos that Cara has taken in her photography hobby.

Several hours passed by. Carmen and Cara are minding their respective business when suddenly Annette enters the living room. Annette opens up the conversation by telling Carmen that she should post her photo receiving her award on social media since their relatives wish to see it. After a little bit of back and forth, Carmen manages to convince Cara to also post some pictures online. And, of course, being the photographer that she is, Cara decides to upload some of her favorite shots that she has personally taken.

It's the day after. Cara's final class just ended, and she is currently at the schoolyard waiting for her friend. She then receives a notification on her phone. Cara receives a notification. She looks at it and sees someone liked her photo. She shows a subtle smile; however, after seeing her sister’s post having over a hundred interactions, her smile quickly disappears.

Annette tells Carmen that she should post her photo receiving her award since their relatives wish to see it. After a little bit of back and forth, the two sisters end up posting their respective photos online.

After school hours. Cara receives a notification. She looks at it and sees someone liked her photo. She shows a subtle smile, however, after seeing her sister’s post having over a hundred interactions, her smile disappears. Cara starts playing with her camera while waiting for her friend. She points out that there’s something wrong, as her camera’s focus feature is acting up. Patricia arrives and the two start conversing. Cara mentions that she, currently, can’t take proper photos as her camera won’t focus. A student approaches the two and cuts into their conversation. The student, mistaking Cara for Carmen, congratulates Cara. Cara shows a slightly complicated expression, but evidently proceeds to correct the misunderstanding. Focus shifts to Patricia. (The other two can still be slightly heard in the background) Patricia tries operating the camera and discovers that there’s no issue with the camera’s focus, Scene 6: Cara enters the living room. She sees some of her sister’s awards scattered on the living room table. She asks her dad, who’s currently in the kitchen, why her sister’s awards are on the table. Her father answers that he will continue putting those up as decorations in a little while. Cara looks up and tunnel visions on her sister’s award, not seeing the rest of the decorations put up. (Show her POV. Only her sister’s awards are clearly visible while the rest are a bit blurry) Scene 7: Cara, in her room, tries to, once again, operate her camera. She points it at different parts of the room, but it still won’t focus. Her mom knocks on the door. She places the camera on her desk. (Zoom in on the display screen of the camera. The camera is actually not out of focus). Her mom asks her if she’s still planning to enter the upcoming photography contest as the registration period is about to end. Cara replies by saying that she’s unsure, but most likely she won’t as she’s not really feeling up to it. Plus, it seems like there’s something wrong with her camera. She resumes what she was doing before. After pointing the camera at her textbooks and other studying materials, the camera finally focused. Countless thoughts enter her head including memories of her sister and her success. After taking a quick glance at her calendar (exam date is circled), it appears that she’s come to a certain conclusion. She sets aside her camera, settles down and starts studying. Scene 8: Static, wide shot of Cara glued to her study area. For the following days, she continues to study excessively, (The time in her clock changes every now and then. Days in her calendar get crossed-out progressively. This shows how it’s approaching the day of exams.) During one of her study sessions, she receives an email from a famous corporation wanting to talk to her after seeing her social media post. She takes a quick glance at her camera, sets aside her phone, and returns back to studying. (BG Sound - Continuous Phone Notification - The sound dies down slowly -> Phone call ring) Scene 9: Test papers were returned earlier today; however, Cara didn’t go to school as she is ill. She answers Patricia’s call and informs her that she’s still under the weather. Patricia informs Cara that her advisor gave her test papers to her sister. Scene 10: Feeling thirsty, Cara slowly leaves her room and walks towards their kitchen. Carmen arrives home and proceeds to talk to Cara. Carmen, happily, tells Cara that she managed to ace all of her exams and that she will be with high honors this quarter. Cara stares at the papers with a seemingly blank expression. Carmen added that they should put up her future certificate besides the photos she took that are now framed up and displayed in the living room. Cara seems to be a bit confused as she doesn’t exactly remember said photos being displayed. Carmen pointed at the living room and stated that the photos have been there for quite some time now. Cara’s vision finally starts to clear out. For the first time, she sees what their current living room arrangement looks like. Cara then receives a notification in her phone. She looks at it and sees that someone liked her post from a while ago. She goes to said post and finds out that it garnered thousands of interactions. Fixing her thoughts and emotions, Cara concluded that a path like her sister’s doesn’t suit her and that she should go back to pursuing her actual dreams. Scene

It’s the day after. Cara is already feeling better and making preparations to leave the house. Her father asks her why she is going out since it’s a Sunday. Cara simply replies by saying that she’s going out to take some photos. Cara exits the house and starts walking down the sidewalk with a big smile on her face, a camera in her hand, and a heavy burden off her chest.