Corina (2024) Movie Script
1
We define transportation
as the series of processes,
meant to move
and communicate.
Moving from point A
to point B.
Point of origin
and destination.
This story is set in Mexico,
in the city of Guadalajara,
an industrial macro-region
that, in the year 2000,
will have a population
of up to 5 million people.
Five million people manage to move
within a finite geographical area,
in adjacent directions,
often opposite,
at risk of killing
each other trying.
This thought haunted her.
How do five million people
walk around,
knowing they could die
on any corner?
Corina suffers from what science
has classified as agoraphobia.
An inexplicable fear
stopping her from crossing,
the small threshold
she's locked herself behind.
Her whole universe is limited
to the Americana neighborhood.
Specifically between
Prisciliano Snchez St. to the north,
Libertad St. to the south,
and Venezuela and Argentina St.,
to the east and west,
respectively.
Only four streets that have
everything she might need.
Her house,
Fer's grocery store,
and the newspaper
she works at.
She might not go out into
the world, but she can picture it.
Her book collection works
as a portal,
to other worlds, landscapes,
and realities.
Especially those by
author Xareni Silverman.
Goodbye, Rene.
Good morning, sweetie.
Morning.
Our Father, I call on Your name
to protect Corina, and I ask You...
Wait a second.
Here it is.
Let me fix you a plate.
No, thanks.
There you go.
Facing the outside world
for the first time,
is usually the tensest moment
of her day.
One, two, three, four...
Corina Rojas was born
twenty-eight years ago,
the daughter of a librarian
and a writer.
Her childhood went by
just like everyone else's.
A christening, her first steps,
pre-school, birthdays.
Birthday parties, eight birthdays.
Regular, conventional birthdays.
Twenty-five, twenty-six,
twenty-seven, twenty-eight,
twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one,
thirty-two, thirty-three,
thirty-four, thirty-five,
thirty-six...
Later things got... a bit tragic.
Forty-two, forty-three,
forty-four, forty-five, forty-six,
forty-seven, forty-eight,
forty-nine, fifty,
fifty-one, fifty-two,
fifty-three...
fifty-six, fifty-seven,
fifty-eight, fifty-nine, sixty,
sixty-one, sixty-two...
Rene never really liked
leaving her home.
And she panicked
after her husband's death,
we can't blame her,
she did the best she could
with what she had and knew.
But fear, just like water,
always ends up seeping in,
and in Rene's case,
it became a flood.
No one really knows
how Rene's world,
shrank into the four walls
of her own home.
Conditioned by her mother's reality,
Corina's world slowly
shrank as well.
One block to the north,
one block to the south,
so Rene wouldn't
lose sight of her.
Her curiosity towards
the world,
was satisfied by the books
her father left for her.
Sixty-three, sixty-four,
sixty-five, sixty-six,
sixty-seven, sixty-eight,
sixty-nine...
FOR SALE
GROCERY STORE
FRUIT SALADS
SANDWICHES
Hello, Corina.
The usual?
The problem with establishing
a routine, is developing,
a natural distaste
towards change.
Corina?
What can I get you today?
Carlos!
We're just branching out,
Corina.
I bought the shop next door.
We did.
We did.
This is Carlos,
he's my cousin,
he's my new partner,
he just got back from the US.
He's a bricklayer.
I'm a construction worker, Fernanda.
He's a bricklayer, and he's getting
used to the store.
If you ever come by and I'm
in the back or went out,
Carlos has a great memory.
Corina always drinks
a medium black coffee,
whole milk, with two packets
of brown sugar.
Got it.
Are you alright, Corina?
We'll finish renovating soon.
Carlos is a really nice guy,
he's kind of noisy,
but he's a nice guy.
We'll get used to this,
you'll see.
Medium black coffee,
whole milk,
with two packets of sugar.
Brown sugar.
Very brown sugar.
"..."
Excuse me?
"..."
"..."
Rene wants a chai tea.
OK, I'll be right over.
Bye!
Is that her?
Yeah.
I see.
Is the lunch meat any good?
That's not for you.
WELCOME TO THE BEST DAY
OF YOUR LIFE
Good morning, Rene!
Busy morning?
Well...
not really, Rene.
There you go.
A chai tea, and this week's
groceries.
God bless you.
Be careful out there.
I will, Rene.
Bye.
Bye.
Corina doesn't work
for a big paper,
but at the Book Publishing
department of a big paper.
For the love of God, Corina,
if you're not going to work
upstairs, check your messages.
Hurry up!
Lili's looking for you.
No, we're out on the 25th,
that's a Friday.
We'll have a press conference,
and it will be available here,
in Guadalajara.
Distribution starts on the 25th,
but it's a rollout by region.
Jalisco gets them
on the 25th and the 26th,
the Central Zone gets it next,
Monday 27th at the latest.
Well, honey, you could've
just asked,
but it's not my problem
you're just assuming things...
I'm glad it sells, but we can't
before the 27th.
The author is a mystery, honey,
she barely responds to our emails.
Here's what we can do,
if you pay for shipping,
I can ship 200 units to you, by plane
on the morning of the 25th.
You'd be selling them
by 5 o'clock.
Deal, let me transfer you
to Sandrita,
she'll take your order.
Yeah. Bye, ciao.
Kisses, bye.
Is Rodrigo here yet, hun?
He's not picking up.
Tell him I need to see him
down here ASAP.
Take those guys' order,
from Chile.
They'll pay for shipping,
by plane. Yes, Lili.
I really need to see Rodrigo, hun.
I'm on it, Liliana.
Don't sit,
I've got six seconds for you,
are you finished?
I don't have time to read it,
give it to Sandrita, she'll take it to Print.
I'll give you the next one
for editing,
I'll definitely read this one,
can you have it by Friday?
Are you sure?
That's tomorrow.
It's Duel of the Mighty Titans.
I think... yeah.
One second please.
I really need Rodrigo, hun.
He's here, Lili.
I'm right here,
where's the fire?
There's no ending.
What are you talking about?
Resonance.
Resonance, the book?
Yes, the book called Resonance.
She just sent us the latest draft
and the ending doesn't work,
it's pretentious,
philosophical, snobbish,
tragic, gory, relentless,
her readers will hate it,
it goes against,
what she's been building
throughout the series, it's suicide.
The character commits suicide?
For us, it would be suicide to publish it.
We need to find her. We've been
sending emails, she won't respond.
She's under contract,
she's expected to deliver
a manuscript,
to the satisfaction of
her publishers, end of story.
You tell her that, see if the wind
carries your message to her town,
and if it does, tell her
to go fuck herself for me.
Let me see it. You have
your own copy, where is it?
Where's Rodrigo's copy, hun?
On his desk, Lili.
I told you.
I told you, she says.
Lili.
I have Silverman on the phone.
Give it to me.
Xareni.
It's Felipa, I see,
how are you?
Yeah, always a pleasure.
Well, just as I mentioned
in my last email...
Did she get the email?
She did?
Great... I see.
I understand that.
Does she even know
who her readers are?
She said that?
No matter how many fucks
she gives, she's under contract,
and she's expected
to fulfill it.
In that case, I don't give
a fuck either.
She's got until Monday,
10:00 AM.
And she better leave
the main character alone,
we've got two books left.
She hung up.
Liliana, I've got a meeting
with the board today. I know.
They're looking for any excuse
to shut down your department.
I know, what can I say?
You read it, you have a copy,
maybe I'm overreacting.
You're still here?
Get out, sweetie.
Thank you, Corina, always
a pleasure chatting with you.
She's not reading it?
She's too busy.
Cheer up, girl.
Ready for your next
assignment?
That'd be...
Duel of the Mighty Titans, I think.
It's down in Design,
go for it.
Gorgeous.
Hi there.
Hey.
I'm here for the CD.
She's here for the CD.
The CD...
Duel of the Mighty Titans.
Corina, we're planning
a small get-together,
with people
from the department.
You have to come,
it's like, six blocks away.
And please bring your mom,
we'd love to meet her.
You're so mean.
Authors are the cornerstone
of literature.
But there are levels to
the social scale of writers.
And Corina has been relegated
to the lowest tier.
Because of her quiet,
introspective personality,
her bosses have never
trusted her very much.
Hey.
Lili says she really
needs that by Friday.
That's tomorrow.
Tomorrow's Friday.
They hired her in Publishing,
out of respect,
to the memory of her father,
who used to work at the paper,
and placed her in the most harmless
department there is.
Style correction for pulp erotica.
I love that one.
The bedroom one, right?
I really like the lighting.
Yeah, me too.
I feel like it's what it needs.
Guys, here's the...
Jorge doesn't love it though.
Why not?
You know how he is.
But it's perfect.
Ever since she moved
to that town,
it's practically impossible
to reach her.
Yeah, last time we saw her
here was like, ten years ago.
As soon as possible, ma'am,
because this is an urgent matter.
Tomorrow?
Excellent, thanks.
One more thing, Ms. Daz,
let's not tell anyone
from the board about this.
Five, six, seven, eight,
nine, ten, eleven...
You go see the supplier,
I'll lock up tonight.
Sure, that's why I have
the truck. Look, it's Corina.
Going home, Corina?
We're getting some pork rind tostadas,
should I get some for you guys?
Well, see you.
Not even for tostadas? Damn.
She won't leave the block.
How can you turn down tostadas?
Pork rind tostadas, no less.
Certainty and stability as opposed
to improvisation and what's new.
What's safe as opposed
to what's yet to be known.
For Corina, rituals and consistency,
signify being in control,
over the different elements
of her systematic life.
Hello, sweetie.
Hi.
Everything alright?
Sure thing, sweetie.
I was about to turn it on,
I swear.
We've got the microwave
though, I thought.
They both do
the same thing.
And microwaves are safer.
But microwave quesadillas
make no sense.
How was your day?
Good.
Quite good?
Very good.
The Design guys congratulated me
on my latest pulp erotica.
We're really good friends.
Corina is also the style corrector
of her own reality.
I'm glad they liked it.
Yeah.
Lili read it
and she really liked it.
She does that a lot.
That's great.
How's Lili?
She's great.
We talked so much today.
She does it all the time.
That's nice.
Yeah, we're both worried Silverman
won't deliver her book in time.
You don't say.
The ending is not ready yet.
You don't say.
Yeah, and...
I had to write her
quite a lengthy email,
she responded right away
and we talked about...
creative freedom,
and authorial integrity,
and how hard it is to insert
your creative will,
into the factors of this market
of comformity and compliance,
to the needs
of a mass audience,
and therefore, to the capitalist
intentions of a publishing house.
That's nice, sweetie.
DUEL OF MIGHTY TITANS
A UNIQUE ROMANCE
BY ALEJANDRO GUERR--
Corina loves happy endings.
Here it is.
Is this the new one?
They should let you
write novels,
after everything you've
written for them.
And I bet your pulp books
sell pretty good.
Everybody likes love stories.
Yeah.
I wonder why they don't.
Stories about passion and lust...
And wild sex...
Rene!
If they let you write novels,
you wouldn't have to go to the office,
you'd be able to work from here,
from home.
Good night, sweetheart.
Good night, Rene.
You want some breakfast?
Good morning, Rene.
Good morning,
can I fix you a plate?
No, thanks.
Rene?
I loved it.
One, two, three,
four, five...
That very first coffee in the morning
is of vital importance.
Hello, Corina.
The usual?
Can you hand me
that hammer?
Please.
Corina?
Can you hand me
the hammer?
And two packets
of brown sugar.
There you go.
Thanks.
Bye, Corina.
If Ms. Liliana already told you
to wait until the 27th,
then you have to wait
until the 27th.
I can't do anything
about that.
My supervisor?
That would be Ms. Liliana.
I'll gladly put her on the phone,
one moment please.
Stay right there,
I'll be right back.
Sorry, I was on a call,
how are you, ma'am?
I'm good, thanks.
Well, I've read the manuscript,
and in short, it's true,
that ending is a mess.
And not just the ending,
she changed her style completely.
Her tone is now harsh,
and gritty.
We've been trying to reach her
since yesterday, but...
The probability of her changing
the ending is next to zero. Why?
Lili, I won't change
a single comma,
this had always been
my plan for the series.
Sincerely, Xareni Silverman.
We'd like to know the risks,
of publishing the book
as it is right now.
Knowing that people won't like it.
Do we know that though?
It's not a bad book, it's just different.
You read it, Liliana.
Does it even make sense
next to Fracture or Sunrise?
Once I finished it, while I was
re-reading the final chapters,
just so I could relive its delicate
but persistent beauty,
I realized 'Fracture' is also a book
about hope.
A feminine story
of such a large soul,
the whole world fits inside of it,
that was about Sunrise.
Yet another luminous success,
in which the triumph of good,
is not only feasible
but absolutely inevitable.
Could you say something like that
about what we just read?
The national and international press
will... Eat us alive.
The readers will start a fire
to burn their copies,
of Resonance.
If people don't like it,
it takes a toll on the company.
In plain Spanish, please.
The paper has been subsidizing
the Publishing department for years.
I know. I can't keep defending
your department,
if the numbers keep
dropping.
The whole department?
Everyone in Narrative.
Until we see some numbers,
we won't know how hard
it will hit you,
but if it ends up
being a total failure,
we would have to transfer some
of your employees to other areas,
but not everyone, Lili.
I'm sorry to question how
you run things around here but,
why are we reading
the ending just now?
That's how she's always
delivered her work.
Why? Because it's Silverman.
So she can screw us.
She's had a spotless record
until now,
I guess that's why
we've tolerated her so far.
It's a famous writer's trick,
the closer you get
to the deadline,
the notes are less thorough,
there are less changes.
They think editors are a bunch
of frustrated writers,
who mess with their narrative,
or change their style,
but all we want
is for their books to sell,
and we've never changed
a comma of any of her books.
Then again, she had never
had her protagonist flayed before.
She... fries her?
Flays her.
She flayed Martirio?
How about that?
The things she's put
her through,
Christ suffered less
on the cross,
than Martirio
in the last ten pages.
There's still an out for us.
What is it?
Silverman's got
great legal insurance.
We're not suing her,
she's a genius.
She's supposed to write
two more books for us,
we can't end
our relationship with her.
Did you clearly inform her
of the new deadline?
Monday, 10:00 AM.
Did you inform her in writing?
No, over the phone.
I talked to Felipa,
her assistant.
That's better, actually.
Were there any witnesses?
Rodrigo was here.
No, Rodrigo won't do.
How are you holding up?
There are two kinds
of people in this world:
those who can't let
a missing tilde go,
and those who can.
The word periodo [period] is,
like many others,
a bi-stressed word,
which means,
it can have two kinds
of prosodic stress, both correct,
not to be confused
with diacritical words,
which change their meaning,
based on whether or not
they carry a tilde.
Once the red pencil
stains the paper,
it's impossible to stop.
Just like blood, when war
has been unleashed.
This period is used
incorrectly.
This dash hinders
the musicality of the phrase.
A semicolon?
Who uses it for something
other than copulative constructions?
And when you least expect it,
you've reached the ending,
and the protagonist indeed dies
a resounding death.
Or is it possible
to change the ending?
Can a red pencil
bring back the dead?
You're the only one
left, miss.
It's Friday.
I'm locking up in five!
It's possible, it's always
possible.
Seventeen, eighteen,
nineteen, twenty,
twenty-one, twenty-two,
twenty-three, twenty-four,
twenty-five, twenty-six,
twenty-seven, twenty-eight...
Yes?
Nothing.
You didn't come downstairs.
Here.
Thanks.
That one looks long...
Is it a novel?
Yes.
Is it yours?
It's Silverman's.
Lili wants me to work
on the ending,
she says it's terrible.
Seriously?
Rene...
Do you think cowards could get
moments of courage?
Coward's a pretty strong word.
How do you call someone
who lacks courage then?
Someone who lives in fear.
Fear is a natural reaction,
it's about survival.
More or less.
But once it becomes permanent,
or one's lifestyle,
that's when it takes over
and turns people into cowards.
Prudence is a virtue of the wise.
It could become excessive though,
what about having...
too much prudence?
Or excessive caution.
I would rather people call me
a living coward, than a brave corpse.
I wasn't talking about you.
You're talking about yourself.
I'm talking about a character,
a fictional one,
who hasn't dared to do much
throughout their history, and finally,
they have to take a risk.
But doing so goes against all logic
that's been built around them.
If a cowardly character
has a single moment of courage,
it means they were never
a coward but,
someone brave, patiently waiting
for the right moment.
You think so?
I think we are so much more,
than the language we use
to describe ourselves.
What would need to happen
for this hypothetical character,
to get out
of their comfort zone?
When did comfort become
such a bad word?
I'm doing just fine.
You know how hard it was
for me to do fine? I know.
I'm sure someone would think
I'm a cowardly character,
but you know what?
That's OK.
I don't think you're
a cowardly character.
Let your character do
whatever it is they have to do.
Don't judge them too harshly,
no matter what choice they make.
Corina couldn't stop. She kept
reading and correcting,
mostly out of the momentum
caused by an inescapable question.
How to give such a tragic story
a happy ending?
Almost finished?
Almost.
May I?
That's nice,
the thing about the neutral
paradise and the roots.
Is that a metaphor?
It's an allegory.
A long string of metaphors.
They're in every inch
of the book.
RESONANCE BY X. SILVERMAN
EDITORIAL CORRECTION BY CORINA ROJAS
Some days, everything seems
to go our way,
everything falls into place
and we get to feel alright,
we get to feel important,
and needed.
IT'S THE BEST THING
I'VE EVER READ
Hello.
OK.
Medium black coffee, whole milk,
and two packets of brown sugar.
What's wrong?
No news on Silverman.
Nothing yet?
Nothing.
Tiny actions can change
the course of history.
Tiny accidents.
Tiny mistakes.
Good morning, Rodrigo.
Morning.
Any news on Silverman?
None.
We need to know what
we're going to do next.
Nothing yet?
Nothing.
Any phone calls?
Nothing.
Any emails?
Nothing.
This just came in, Lili.
It's from Silverman.
You were right, Liliana, my book
was missing a couple of commas,
I profoundly apologize,
how unprofessional of me,
I can't wait to see those
first printed copies.
Hi, Rene.
Good morning, sweetheart.
How's it going?
Sorry to ask you this, honey,
but it's a matter
of life and death.
Could you take this to the paper?
Corina left it here.
And it's so important.
Of course.
Yeah.
Thanks.
Morning.
Who's this for?
Corina Rojas, I guess.
Send Corina in.
Sure thing, Lili.
Corinita?
Corina!
Lili's looking for you.
Can we talk for a moment,
sweetheart?
Hello?
It's quite simple.
Last week you were
standing there,
and you listened
while we made a call.
Remember?
You listened to us asking
Silverman, through Felipa,
to deliver an appropriate ending
by Monday, 10:00 AM.
I just need you to testify,
in case we go to trial.
Corina,
I need you to help us
with this,
you won't affect her,
we're just trying,
to pressure her into
fulfilling her contract.
It's very important.
Think of all the readers,
just like you,
who would be disappointed.
We're a team... aren't we?
She's gone mute!
Do you understand what
Liliana's asking from you?
I have to go to the restroom.
Lili.
What do you need, Corinita?
They're pretty busy.
Could you tell them
I'm willing to help?
It seems like they won't
need you, but I'll tell them.
I even got all made up,
and I walked out into the street,
I really did.
You would've been
so proud of me.
I went back inside when
the garbage truck drove by.
But I figured out a way
to send it to you.
You worked so hard
all weekend,
only to leave it at home.
They're going to fire you
if you don't snap out of it, hun.
I can't always be
taking care of you.
Anyway, no harm done.
I love you.
I'll make you some rice
for dinner.
In the microwave,
but it'll be good.
I can't believe it.
She changed the ending.
She changed the whole thing.
And she saved Martirio.
Did she though?
But why did she send us
that shit about the commas?
What a complex author.
She's a genius.
She's a motherfucking
son of a bitch,
who's going to end up
giving me a stroke,
but she's a genius.
It's the best book
in the series.
For sure. We should send her
a bottle, or some flowers.
Give me that.
That bitch.
Not now, Corina, please. I need
to tell them that's my ending.
Lili told me she's going to read
your work this time.
Heads up, everybody.
I don't know who you prayed to
this weekend, but it worked.
Code red,
this is not a drill.
Turn those presses on,
get everything ready,
we gotta be printing
by 5 o'clock.
We're three days behind,
we gotta catch up.
Thanks, everyone.
Call home and tell them
you won't make it to dinner,
this is the biggest week
of the year,
0 to 60 in three hours.
I trust you, guys.
Let's do it.
You heard her,
0 to 60, you functionally
illiterate people.
Being a person whose world lies
within less than 8 square miles,
it's understandable she's never
had to use any maps,
and has only read
about them.
Corina had to conduct
strenuous research,
on coordinates, streets,
roads, and bus stops.
How to go from point A
to point B.
Point of origin, and destination.
Corina?
Where were you going?
I already told you,
I must find Silverman.
Don't make me call Liliana
and find out the truth.
Why do you ask me, if you're
not going to believe me?
Because you haven't left
the block in years, that's why.
There had been no need.
And there's no need now.
What could be so important
Liliana can't manage?
Liliana doesn't know about it.
I'm going to call her...
No one can know I'm going.
I made a mistake.
A big one.
I have to fix it.
You're not leaving
this house.
Period.
I don't write for Liliana.
I don't write for
the publishing house.
Everything you've read was written
by others, I changed the names.
I'm just a style corrector,
that's all I do.
I've got a suitcase full of
manuscripts I put my name on.
Liliana never asked me
to change Silverman's ending.
That manuscript should've
never left this house,
but you gave it to them,
now they think it's Silverman's.
I have to fix that.
I still don't want you
to go out.
I don't care if you lie,
but please don't go out.
Are you OK?
She needs our help, Carlos.
She needs help in general,
from you, from me,
she doesn't have
any other friends?
C'mon, you owe me.
What's that supposed to mean?
I don't like taking the truck
out on the road.
C'mon, I'll owe you one.
Carlos will take you.
You're in good hands.
Giddy up then, let's do this.
I know how to get to
the second toll booth,
but we're gonna have
to ask around,
'cause I couldn't find
the address they gave you.
Alright.
Hold on, stop.
Shall we?
You want me to go back?
When you leave your house,
what do you do
that helps?
I take a deep breath
and I count my steps.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four...
Four.
Five.
Five.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Nine.
Hold on, I'm on it.
Do you need anything?
Just some air, it will pass.
Lie down for a moment,
it will help.
Everything alright?
The sky.
Are you ready?
You can't see this
in the city.
Who are we going to see
anyway?
Xareni Silverman.
Xareni Silverman?
The Xareni Silverman? Yeah.
I've never read her books,
but Fernanda loves her.
Do you like her?
A lot.
Is she any good?
She's the best.
I had never seen a cow before.
I almost had a heart attack.
The street should be around here,
we should ask anyway.
Let's ask her.
Excuse me, do you know
the way to El Cedro Street?
You see that street
over there?
Well, that's the only street
around here.
Who are you looking for?
Xareni Silverman.
Who?
Silverman?
She's a writer.
Oh, the teacher.
I guess.
Her house is at the end
of the street,
on the right side, not the left,
don't get them mixed up.
Alright, thanks.
Is she expecting you?
No.
Don't go empty-handed then.
I've only got dollars though.
That's alright, young man.
Here.
Excellent, have a nice day.
Are you ready?
Good afternoon, we're here to...
That's fine.
We're looking for Ms. Silverman.
We don't know her real name though.
Are you from the school board?
No, we're...
We need to talk to her.
She's not here.
And you're her...
Felipa, what do you need?
Do you know where we could
find her? It's kind of urgent.
The teacher is not
interested in visitors.
Thanks.
The teacher wasn't home.
I see, I'm sure she's already
on her way to school.
Where's that?
It's really far.
And it's hard to find.
Unless someone goes with you.
The teacher never gets
any visitors.
She's very strange.
She never comes to our parties.
She never throws
any Christmas parties,
or has people over
for coffee.
She goes from her house
to the school, and back again.
She teaches any classes?
Of course, she's a teacher.
She teaches many different things.
It's right over there.
What are you waiting for?
She's in there.
I'll wait for you here.
The Law of the Jungle forbids
every beast to eat Man.
Except under
one circumstance.
When they're killing to show
their children how to kill.
But they must do so outside
the hunting grounds of the pack.
There's a powerful reason
behind this.
Man-killing will definitely bring,
the arrival of other men,
carrying guns.
And then, everybody in
the jungle hurts and suffers.
Lety, darling,
that last sentence,
it's ugly, isn't it?
When you say it,
think of something sad.
Like when those powerful men
come to town and steal our water.
And then... And then,
everybody in the jungle,
hurts and suffers.
Great job.
Thanks for everything, teacher.
You shouldn't have, thank you.
Hello, um,
Ms. Silverman.
We're here from...
The publishing house.
How do you know?
Nobody calls me that,
nobody else knows
where I live,
and I know neither of you.
Was Liliana too busy
to come apologize herself?
No, ma'am, I'm here
on my own accord.
Of my own accord.
Call me Regina.
In six years, no one
from the office,
had bothered coming
all the way here,
so I'm assuming it must be
tremendously important.
Is there a place
where we can talk?
This is my stop.
There you go.
Thank you so much.
Tell your boyfriend
he might come in.
What?
Tell your boyfriend
he might come in.
Or did you come
all the way here,
just to see my version
of The Jungle Book?
We have things
to discuss, don't we?
We brought you
some cream bread.
It's a great day for
the cream bread market.
The book?
Yes.
You took it?
Yes.
And you took it
from the trash can?
And who threw it
in the trash can?
Of course.
Continue.
I started reading it and...
I couldn't put it down.
I'm used to correcting,
I'm an editor.
So I started to correct it.
They were pretty worried about
the ending back at the office,
and once I read it, so was I.
Your books have helped me
cope with the world,
does that make sense?
So the whole thing
became a challenge.
How to give a joyful twist
to such a tragic story.
It can be done,
it can always be done.
I changed some things,
but the essence is there,
I was respectful,
I respected your allegories,
your narrative structure...
Your narrative progression...
No, I get it.
You corrected my novel.
Well, the ending.
Because the ending is what
they're truly worried about.
Let me guess,
Martirio Goicochea lives,
and ends up,
fused in a true love's kiss.
She doesn't end up fused
in a true love's kiss, in fact,
she ends up alone,
but yes.
She lives.
My books must not be corrected.
I'm not saying your ending was bad,
it's very good.
So good, but...
Being pessimistic
is on trend, I think.
But you,
you're not usually pessimistic.
That's what's so different
about your writing.
It's important for people to...
On trend?
You think it's a trend?
You know what happened
to Lety, the girl from rehearsal?
It's better if you don't know.
The world is chock-full
of frivolity and indifference.
Transforming it is so uncomfortable
for most people,
they'd rather ignore that
their lifestyle harms others.
They don't care,
as long as the others,
are faceless beings,
far away, nameless,
from towns in the middle
of nowhere, with no access to water,
let alone access
to a condom.
Or a little bit of justice.
I wanted to know
what would happen,
if the others were
the protagonists,
of everyone's favorite novels.
From the moment I wrote
the first book,
I did so thinking
about that ending.
We must learn how to deal
with the discomfort,
of unhappy endings,
and to survive in them.
I'm not up for
a happy ending.
I'm not in the mood
for another happy ending.
There is something called
artistic integrity,
and that is the only thing
an author has in this world.
At least we tried.
I thought it would work.
What now?
I have to own up
to what I did.
I can't begin to imagine
the consequences of my mistake.
At least five thousand copies,
in the trash.
Assuming they haven't shipped
any of them yet.
Let's just see what happens.
We'll figure something out.
It will be alright,
you'll see.
Sure.
Thanks.
You're almost 400 kilometers
away from your home, by the way.
I know.
You need a ride somewhere?
I'm coming with you.
I need to talk to Liliana.
What's going on
at that publishing house,
that they have an intern tell
their best-selling author,
how to write?
No offense.
Let's get going then.
It's old, but it won't
leave us stranded.
I can't, I'll get carsick.
Do you get carsick?
Me?
I wouldn't expect the young man
to read and drive.
Read.
Don't get your hopes up,
I haven't changed my mind,
it's just...
mere literary curiosity.
'Who is that woman staring
at me?' Martirio wondered.
Incapable of seeing herself
in her own reflection.
A small town girl,
Manuel's daughter,
the one who would run and hide
even from the chickens.
Here she is now, a blank look
on her face, and blood on her clothes,
holding the gun steadily,
tracing her own steps
back to the river,
where she would get rid
of the evidence.
That, of course, if something was
actually going through her mind.
Martirio Goicochea left
the station at 19:45 hours,
and at some point
during that train ride,
that name, and last name,
died for good.
Damn.
Did you write that last bit?
We made it.
That wasn't the worst thing
I've ever read.
Sandrita.
I'm here to talk to Liliana.
Keep one.
As a souvenir.
Regina.
Liliana.
Please explain.
Casteln Ediciones,
good afternoon.
Thank you for conceding,
the new ending is incredible.
Well, I think we need to talk.
Come with me.
Corina, Corina, Corina.
What you did should
get you sued, darling.
Stealing confidential material,
misappropriation of duties,
identity theft,
it's a long list,
terrible stuff.
However...
However!
These are not normal
circumstances.
All the illegal things you did,
resulted in... this.
What Liliana wants is,
to thank you, right?
Yeah... thanks.
I don't understand.
Regina agreed to keep
your version of the book.
We made a deal with her.
It wasn't cheap.
In exchange for her to accept
your version as hers,
and to promise not to sue
the publishing house.
However...
However!
This story cannot leave
this room,
which is why we need you
to sign these.
The company has agreed
to assign you,
a percentage of the sales
of the book.
This is an irrevocable contract,
and its commercial rights period
and validity extend for 99 years.
It's quite a generous offer,
under these circumstances.
Of course it includes an extensive
non-disclosure clause.
And severe penalties
for breaching it.
Are you firing me?
No, we're not, Corina.
Under normal circumstances...
These are not normal circumstances.
You co-wrote a book that's part
of a successful series.
You may keep your job,
as long as you sign these.
I don't want to be
a style corrector anymore.
I want to write.
Write-write?
I want to write-write.
Deal.
Have you been writing long?
For as long
as I can remember.
I'm curious to see what
you're going to write now.
Me too.
Beautiful, isn't it?
This city.
It's huge.
Have a nice day, Corina.
You too, Rodrigo.
See you on Monday.
We define transportation
as the series of processes,
meant to move
and communicate.
Moving from point A
to point B.
Point of origin
and destination.
This story is set in Mexico,
in the city of Guadalajara,
an industrial macro-region
that, in the year 2000,
will have a population
of up to 5 million people.
Five million people manage to move
within a finite geographical area,
in adjacent directions,
often opposite,
at risk of killing
each other trying.
This thought haunted her.
How do five million people
walk around,
knowing they could die
on any corner?
Corina suffers from what science
has classified as agoraphobia.
An inexplicable fear
stopping her from crossing,
the small threshold
she's locked herself behind.
Her whole universe is limited
to the Americana neighborhood.
Specifically between
Prisciliano Snchez St. to the north,
Libertad St. to the south,
and Venezuela and Argentina St.,
to the east and west,
respectively.
Only four streets that have
everything she might need.
Her house,
Fer's grocery store,
and the newspaper
she works at.
She might not go out into
the world, but she can picture it.
Her book collection works
as a portal,
to other worlds, landscapes,
and realities.
Especially those by
author Xareni Silverman.
Goodbye, Rene.
Good morning, sweetie.
Morning.
Our Father, I call on Your name
to protect Corina, and I ask You...
Wait a second.
Here it is.
Let me fix you a plate.
No, thanks.
There you go.
Facing the outside world
for the first time,
is usually the tensest moment
of her day.
One, two, three, four...
Corina Rojas was born
twenty-eight years ago,
the daughter of a librarian
and a writer.
Her childhood went by
just like everyone else's.
A christening, her first steps,
pre-school, birthdays.
Birthday parties, eight birthdays.
Regular, conventional birthdays.
Twenty-five, twenty-six,
twenty-seven, twenty-eight,
twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one,
thirty-two, thirty-three,
thirty-four, thirty-five,
thirty-six...
Later things got... a bit tragic.
Forty-two, forty-three,
forty-four, forty-five, forty-six,
forty-seven, forty-eight,
forty-nine, fifty,
fifty-one, fifty-two,
fifty-three...
fifty-six, fifty-seven,
fifty-eight, fifty-nine, sixty,
sixty-one, sixty-two...
Rene never really liked
leaving her home.
And she panicked
after her husband's death,
we can't blame her,
she did the best she could
with what she had and knew.
But fear, just like water,
always ends up seeping in,
and in Rene's case,
it became a flood.
No one really knows
how Rene's world,
shrank into the four walls
of her own home.
Conditioned by her mother's reality,
Corina's world slowly
shrank as well.
One block to the north,
one block to the south,
so Rene wouldn't
lose sight of her.
Her curiosity towards
the world,
was satisfied by the books
her father left for her.
Sixty-three, sixty-four,
sixty-five, sixty-six,
sixty-seven, sixty-eight,
sixty-nine...
FOR SALE
GROCERY STORE
FRUIT SALADS
SANDWICHES
Hello, Corina.
The usual?
The problem with establishing
a routine, is developing,
a natural distaste
towards change.
Corina?
What can I get you today?
Carlos!
We're just branching out,
Corina.
I bought the shop next door.
We did.
We did.
This is Carlos,
he's my cousin,
he's my new partner,
he just got back from the US.
He's a bricklayer.
I'm a construction worker, Fernanda.
He's a bricklayer, and he's getting
used to the store.
If you ever come by and I'm
in the back or went out,
Carlos has a great memory.
Corina always drinks
a medium black coffee,
whole milk, with two packets
of brown sugar.
Got it.
Are you alright, Corina?
We'll finish renovating soon.
Carlos is a really nice guy,
he's kind of noisy,
but he's a nice guy.
We'll get used to this,
you'll see.
Medium black coffee,
whole milk,
with two packets of sugar.
Brown sugar.
Very brown sugar.
"..."
Excuse me?
"..."
"..."
Rene wants a chai tea.
OK, I'll be right over.
Bye!
Is that her?
Yeah.
I see.
Is the lunch meat any good?
That's not for you.
WELCOME TO THE BEST DAY
OF YOUR LIFE
Good morning, Rene!
Busy morning?
Well...
not really, Rene.
There you go.
A chai tea, and this week's
groceries.
God bless you.
Be careful out there.
I will, Rene.
Bye.
Bye.
Corina doesn't work
for a big paper,
but at the Book Publishing
department of a big paper.
For the love of God, Corina,
if you're not going to work
upstairs, check your messages.
Hurry up!
Lili's looking for you.
No, we're out on the 25th,
that's a Friday.
We'll have a press conference,
and it will be available here,
in Guadalajara.
Distribution starts on the 25th,
but it's a rollout by region.
Jalisco gets them
on the 25th and the 26th,
the Central Zone gets it next,
Monday 27th at the latest.
Well, honey, you could've
just asked,
but it's not my problem
you're just assuming things...
I'm glad it sells, but we can't
before the 27th.
The author is a mystery, honey,
she barely responds to our emails.
Here's what we can do,
if you pay for shipping,
I can ship 200 units to you, by plane
on the morning of the 25th.
You'd be selling them
by 5 o'clock.
Deal, let me transfer you
to Sandrita,
she'll take your order.
Yeah. Bye, ciao.
Kisses, bye.
Is Rodrigo here yet, hun?
He's not picking up.
Tell him I need to see him
down here ASAP.
Take those guys' order,
from Chile.
They'll pay for shipping,
by plane. Yes, Lili.
I really need to see Rodrigo, hun.
I'm on it, Liliana.
Don't sit,
I've got six seconds for you,
are you finished?
I don't have time to read it,
give it to Sandrita, she'll take it to Print.
I'll give you the next one
for editing,
I'll definitely read this one,
can you have it by Friday?
Are you sure?
That's tomorrow.
It's Duel of the Mighty Titans.
I think... yeah.
One second please.
I really need Rodrigo, hun.
He's here, Lili.
I'm right here,
where's the fire?
There's no ending.
What are you talking about?
Resonance.
Resonance, the book?
Yes, the book called Resonance.
She just sent us the latest draft
and the ending doesn't work,
it's pretentious,
philosophical, snobbish,
tragic, gory, relentless,
her readers will hate it,
it goes against,
what she's been building
throughout the series, it's suicide.
The character commits suicide?
For us, it would be suicide to publish it.
We need to find her. We've been
sending emails, she won't respond.
She's under contract,
she's expected to deliver
a manuscript,
to the satisfaction of
her publishers, end of story.
You tell her that, see if the wind
carries your message to her town,
and if it does, tell her
to go fuck herself for me.
Let me see it. You have
your own copy, where is it?
Where's Rodrigo's copy, hun?
On his desk, Lili.
I told you.
I told you, she says.
Lili.
I have Silverman on the phone.
Give it to me.
Xareni.
It's Felipa, I see,
how are you?
Yeah, always a pleasure.
Well, just as I mentioned
in my last email...
Did she get the email?
She did?
Great... I see.
I understand that.
Does she even know
who her readers are?
She said that?
No matter how many fucks
she gives, she's under contract,
and she's expected
to fulfill it.
In that case, I don't give
a fuck either.
She's got until Monday,
10:00 AM.
And she better leave
the main character alone,
we've got two books left.
She hung up.
Liliana, I've got a meeting
with the board today. I know.
They're looking for any excuse
to shut down your department.
I know, what can I say?
You read it, you have a copy,
maybe I'm overreacting.
You're still here?
Get out, sweetie.
Thank you, Corina, always
a pleasure chatting with you.
She's not reading it?
She's too busy.
Cheer up, girl.
Ready for your next
assignment?
That'd be...
Duel of the Mighty Titans, I think.
It's down in Design,
go for it.
Gorgeous.
Hi there.
Hey.
I'm here for the CD.
She's here for the CD.
The CD...
Duel of the Mighty Titans.
Corina, we're planning
a small get-together,
with people
from the department.
You have to come,
it's like, six blocks away.
And please bring your mom,
we'd love to meet her.
You're so mean.
Authors are the cornerstone
of literature.
But there are levels to
the social scale of writers.
And Corina has been relegated
to the lowest tier.
Because of her quiet,
introspective personality,
her bosses have never
trusted her very much.
Hey.
Lili says she really
needs that by Friday.
That's tomorrow.
Tomorrow's Friday.
They hired her in Publishing,
out of respect,
to the memory of her father,
who used to work at the paper,
and placed her in the most harmless
department there is.
Style correction for pulp erotica.
I love that one.
The bedroom one, right?
I really like the lighting.
Yeah, me too.
I feel like it's what it needs.
Guys, here's the...
Jorge doesn't love it though.
Why not?
You know how he is.
But it's perfect.
Ever since she moved
to that town,
it's practically impossible
to reach her.
Yeah, last time we saw her
here was like, ten years ago.
As soon as possible, ma'am,
because this is an urgent matter.
Tomorrow?
Excellent, thanks.
One more thing, Ms. Daz,
let's not tell anyone
from the board about this.
Five, six, seven, eight,
nine, ten, eleven...
You go see the supplier,
I'll lock up tonight.
Sure, that's why I have
the truck. Look, it's Corina.
Going home, Corina?
We're getting some pork rind tostadas,
should I get some for you guys?
Well, see you.
Not even for tostadas? Damn.
She won't leave the block.
How can you turn down tostadas?
Pork rind tostadas, no less.
Certainty and stability as opposed
to improvisation and what's new.
What's safe as opposed
to what's yet to be known.
For Corina, rituals and consistency,
signify being in control,
over the different elements
of her systematic life.
Hello, sweetie.
Hi.
Everything alright?
Sure thing, sweetie.
I was about to turn it on,
I swear.
We've got the microwave
though, I thought.
They both do
the same thing.
And microwaves are safer.
But microwave quesadillas
make no sense.
How was your day?
Good.
Quite good?
Very good.
The Design guys congratulated me
on my latest pulp erotica.
We're really good friends.
Corina is also the style corrector
of her own reality.
I'm glad they liked it.
Yeah.
Lili read it
and she really liked it.
She does that a lot.
That's great.
How's Lili?
She's great.
We talked so much today.
She does it all the time.
That's nice.
Yeah, we're both worried Silverman
won't deliver her book in time.
You don't say.
The ending is not ready yet.
You don't say.
Yeah, and...
I had to write her
quite a lengthy email,
she responded right away
and we talked about...
creative freedom,
and authorial integrity,
and how hard it is to insert
your creative will,
into the factors of this market
of comformity and compliance,
to the needs
of a mass audience,
and therefore, to the capitalist
intentions of a publishing house.
That's nice, sweetie.
DUEL OF MIGHTY TITANS
A UNIQUE ROMANCE
BY ALEJANDRO GUERR--
Corina loves happy endings.
Here it is.
Is this the new one?
They should let you
write novels,
after everything you've
written for them.
And I bet your pulp books
sell pretty good.
Everybody likes love stories.
Yeah.
I wonder why they don't.
Stories about passion and lust...
And wild sex...
Rene!
If they let you write novels,
you wouldn't have to go to the office,
you'd be able to work from here,
from home.
Good night, sweetheart.
Good night, Rene.
You want some breakfast?
Good morning, Rene.
Good morning,
can I fix you a plate?
No, thanks.
Rene?
I loved it.
One, two, three,
four, five...
That very first coffee in the morning
is of vital importance.
Hello, Corina.
The usual?
Can you hand me
that hammer?
Please.
Corina?
Can you hand me
the hammer?
And two packets
of brown sugar.
There you go.
Thanks.
Bye, Corina.
If Ms. Liliana already told you
to wait until the 27th,
then you have to wait
until the 27th.
I can't do anything
about that.
My supervisor?
That would be Ms. Liliana.
I'll gladly put her on the phone,
one moment please.
Stay right there,
I'll be right back.
Sorry, I was on a call,
how are you, ma'am?
I'm good, thanks.
Well, I've read the manuscript,
and in short, it's true,
that ending is a mess.
And not just the ending,
she changed her style completely.
Her tone is now harsh,
and gritty.
We've been trying to reach her
since yesterday, but...
The probability of her changing
the ending is next to zero. Why?
Lili, I won't change
a single comma,
this had always been
my plan for the series.
Sincerely, Xareni Silverman.
We'd like to know the risks,
of publishing the book
as it is right now.
Knowing that people won't like it.
Do we know that though?
It's not a bad book, it's just different.
You read it, Liliana.
Does it even make sense
next to Fracture or Sunrise?
Once I finished it, while I was
re-reading the final chapters,
just so I could relive its delicate
but persistent beauty,
I realized 'Fracture' is also a book
about hope.
A feminine story
of such a large soul,
the whole world fits inside of it,
that was about Sunrise.
Yet another luminous success,
in which the triumph of good,
is not only feasible
but absolutely inevitable.
Could you say something like that
about what we just read?
The national and international press
will... Eat us alive.
The readers will start a fire
to burn their copies,
of Resonance.
If people don't like it,
it takes a toll on the company.
In plain Spanish, please.
The paper has been subsidizing
the Publishing department for years.
I know. I can't keep defending
your department,
if the numbers keep
dropping.
The whole department?
Everyone in Narrative.
Until we see some numbers,
we won't know how hard
it will hit you,
but if it ends up
being a total failure,
we would have to transfer some
of your employees to other areas,
but not everyone, Lili.
I'm sorry to question how
you run things around here but,
why are we reading
the ending just now?
That's how she's always
delivered her work.
Why? Because it's Silverman.
So she can screw us.
She's had a spotless record
until now,
I guess that's why
we've tolerated her so far.
It's a famous writer's trick,
the closer you get
to the deadline,
the notes are less thorough,
there are less changes.
They think editors are a bunch
of frustrated writers,
who mess with their narrative,
or change their style,
but all we want
is for their books to sell,
and we've never changed
a comma of any of her books.
Then again, she had never
had her protagonist flayed before.
She... fries her?
Flays her.
She flayed Martirio?
How about that?
The things she's put
her through,
Christ suffered less
on the cross,
than Martirio
in the last ten pages.
There's still an out for us.
What is it?
Silverman's got
great legal insurance.
We're not suing her,
she's a genius.
She's supposed to write
two more books for us,
we can't end
our relationship with her.
Did you clearly inform her
of the new deadline?
Monday, 10:00 AM.
Did you inform her in writing?
No, over the phone.
I talked to Felipa,
her assistant.
That's better, actually.
Were there any witnesses?
Rodrigo was here.
No, Rodrigo won't do.
How are you holding up?
There are two kinds
of people in this world:
those who can't let
a missing tilde go,
and those who can.
The word periodo [period] is,
like many others,
a bi-stressed word,
which means,
it can have two kinds
of prosodic stress, both correct,
not to be confused
with diacritical words,
which change their meaning,
based on whether or not
they carry a tilde.
Once the red pencil
stains the paper,
it's impossible to stop.
Just like blood, when war
has been unleashed.
This period is used
incorrectly.
This dash hinders
the musicality of the phrase.
A semicolon?
Who uses it for something
other than copulative constructions?
And when you least expect it,
you've reached the ending,
and the protagonist indeed dies
a resounding death.
Or is it possible
to change the ending?
Can a red pencil
bring back the dead?
You're the only one
left, miss.
It's Friday.
I'm locking up in five!
It's possible, it's always
possible.
Seventeen, eighteen,
nineteen, twenty,
twenty-one, twenty-two,
twenty-three, twenty-four,
twenty-five, twenty-six,
twenty-seven, twenty-eight...
Yes?
Nothing.
You didn't come downstairs.
Here.
Thanks.
That one looks long...
Is it a novel?
Yes.
Is it yours?
It's Silverman's.
Lili wants me to work
on the ending,
she says it's terrible.
Seriously?
Rene...
Do you think cowards could get
moments of courage?
Coward's a pretty strong word.
How do you call someone
who lacks courage then?
Someone who lives in fear.
Fear is a natural reaction,
it's about survival.
More or less.
But once it becomes permanent,
or one's lifestyle,
that's when it takes over
and turns people into cowards.
Prudence is a virtue of the wise.
It could become excessive though,
what about having...
too much prudence?
Or excessive caution.
I would rather people call me
a living coward, than a brave corpse.
I wasn't talking about you.
You're talking about yourself.
I'm talking about a character,
a fictional one,
who hasn't dared to do much
throughout their history, and finally,
they have to take a risk.
But doing so goes against all logic
that's been built around them.
If a cowardly character
has a single moment of courage,
it means they were never
a coward but,
someone brave, patiently waiting
for the right moment.
You think so?
I think we are so much more,
than the language we use
to describe ourselves.
What would need to happen
for this hypothetical character,
to get out
of their comfort zone?
When did comfort become
such a bad word?
I'm doing just fine.
You know how hard it was
for me to do fine? I know.
I'm sure someone would think
I'm a cowardly character,
but you know what?
That's OK.
I don't think you're
a cowardly character.
Let your character do
whatever it is they have to do.
Don't judge them too harshly,
no matter what choice they make.
Corina couldn't stop. She kept
reading and correcting,
mostly out of the momentum
caused by an inescapable question.
How to give such a tragic story
a happy ending?
Almost finished?
Almost.
May I?
That's nice,
the thing about the neutral
paradise and the roots.
Is that a metaphor?
It's an allegory.
A long string of metaphors.
They're in every inch
of the book.
RESONANCE BY X. SILVERMAN
EDITORIAL CORRECTION BY CORINA ROJAS
Some days, everything seems
to go our way,
everything falls into place
and we get to feel alright,
we get to feel important,
and needed.
IT'S THE BEST THING
I'VE EVER READ
Hello.
OK.
Medium black coffee, whole milk,
and two packets of brown sugar.
What's wrong?
No news on Silverman.
Nothing yet?
Nothing.
Tiny actions can change
the course of history.
Tiny accidents.
Tiny mistakes.
Good morning, Rodrigo.
Morning.
Any news on Silverman?
None.
We need to know what
we're going to do next.
Nothing yet?
Nothing.
Any phone calls?
Nothing.
Any emails?
Nothing.
This just came in, Lili.
It's from Silverman.
You were right, Liliana, my book
was missing a couple of commas,
I profoundly apologize,
how unprofessional of me,
I can't wait to see those
first printed copies.
Hi, Rene.
Good morning, sweetheart.
How's it going?
Sorry to ask you this, honey,
but it's a matter
of life and death.
Could you take this to the paper?
Corina left it here.
And it's so important.
Of course.
Yeah.
Thanks.
Morning.
Who's this for?
Corina Rojas, I guess.
Send Corina in.
Sure thing, Lili.
Corinita?
Corina!
Lili's looking for you.
Can we talk for a moment,
sweetheart?
Hello?
It's quite simple.
Last week you were
standing there,
and you listened
while we made a call.
Remember?
You listened to us asking
Silverman, through Felipa,
to deliver an appropriate ending
by Monday, 10:00 AM.
I just need you to testify,
in case we go to trial.
Corina,
I need you to help us
with this,
you won't affect her,
we're just trying,
to pressure her into
fulfilling her contract.
It's very important.
Think of all the readers,
just like you,
who would be disappointed.
We're a team... aren't we?
She's gone mute!
Do you understand what
Liliana's asking from you?
I have to go to the restroom.
Lili.
What do you need, Corinita?
They're pretty busy.
Could you tell them
I'm willing to help?
It seems like they won't
need you, but I'll tell them.
I even got all made up,
and I walked out into the street,
I really did.
You would've been
so proud of me.
I went back inside when
the garbage truck drove by.
But I figured out a way
to send it to you.
You worked so hard
all weekend,
only to leave it at home.
They're going to fire you
if you don't snap out of it, hun.
I can't always be
taking care of you.
Anyway, no harm done.
I love you.
I'll make you some rice
for dinner.
In the microwave,
but it'll be good.
I can't believe it.
She changed the ending.
She changed the whole thing.
And she saved Martirio.
Did she though?
But why did she send us
that shit about the commas?
What a complex author.
She's a genius.
She's a motherfucking
son of a bitch,
who's going to end up
giving me a stroke,
but she's a genius.
It's the best book
in the series.
For sure. We should send her
a bottle, or some flowers.
Give me that.
That bitch.
Not now, Corina, please. I need
to tell them that's my ending.
Lili told me she's going to read
your work this time.
Heads up, everybody.
I don't know who you prayed to
this weekend, but it worked.
Code red,
this is not a drill.
Turn those presses on,
get everything ready,
we gotta be printing
by 5 o'clock.
We're three days behind,
we gotta catch up.
Thanks, everyone.
Call home and tell them
you won't make it to dinner,
this is the biggest week
of the year,
0 to 60 in three hours.
I trust you, guys.
Let's do it.
You heard her,
0 to 60, you functionally
illiterate people.
Being a person whose world lies
within less than 8 square miles,
it's understandable she's never
had to use any maps,
and has only read
about them.
Corina had to conduct
strenuous research,
on coordinates, streets,
roads, and bus stops.
How to go from point A
to point B.
Point of origin, and destination.
Corina?
Where were you going?
I already told you,
I must find Silverman.
Don't make me call Liliana
and find out the truth.
Why do you ask me, if you're
not going to believe me?
Because you haven't left
the block in years, that's why.
There had been no need.
And there's no need now.
What could be so important
Liliana can't manage?
Liliana doesn't know about it.
I'm going to call her...
No one can know I'm going.
I made a mistake.
A big one.
I have to fix it.
You're not leaving
this house.
Period.
I don't write for Liliana.
I don't write for
the publishing house.
Everything you've read was written
by others, I changed the names.
I'm just a style corrector,
that's all I do.
I've got a suitcase full of
manuscripts I put my name on.
Liliana never asked me
to change Silverman's ending.
That manuscript should've
never left this house,
but you gave it to them,
now they think it's Silverman's.
I have to fix that.
I still don't want you
to go out.
I don't care if you lie,
but please don't go out.
Are you OK?
She needs our help, Carlos.
She needs help in general,
from you, from me,
she doesn't have
any other friends?
C'mon, you owe me.
What's that supposed to mean?
I don't like taking the truck
out on the road.
C'mon, I'll owe you one.
Carlos will take you.
You're in good hands.
Giddy up then, let's do this.
I know how to get to
the second toll booth,
but we're gonna have
to ask around,
'cause I couldn't find
the address they gave you.
Alright.
Hold on, stop.
Shall we?
You want me to go back?
When you leave your house,
what do you do
that helps?
I take a deep breath
and I count my steps.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four...
Four.
Five.
Five.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Nine.
Hold on, I'm on it.
Do you need anything?
Just some air, it will pass.
Lie down for a moment,
it will help.
Everything alright?
The sky.
Are you ready?
You can't see this
in the city.
Who are we going to see
anyway?
Xareni Silverman.
Xareni Silverman?
The Xareni Silverman? Yeah.
I've never read her books,
but Fernanda loves her.
Do you like her?
A lot.
Is she any good?
She's the best.
I had never seen a cow before.
I almost had a heart attack.
The street should be around here,
we should ask anyway.
Let's ask her.
Excuse me, do you know
the way to El Cedro Street?
You see that street
over there?
Well, that's the only street
around here.
Who are you looking for?
Xareni Silverman.
Who?
Silverman?
She's a writer.
Oh, the teacher.
I guess.
Her house is at the end
of the street,
on the right side, not the left,
don't get them mixed up.
Alright, thanks.
Is she expecting you?
No.
Don't go empty-handed then.
I've only got dollars though.
That's alright, young man.
Here.
Excellent, have a nice day.
Are you ready?
Good afternoon, we're here to...
That's fine.
We're looking for Ms. Silverman.
We don't know her real name though.
Are you from the school board?
No, we're...
We need to talk to her.
She's not here.
And you're her...
Felipa, what do you need?
Do you know where we could
find her? It's kind of urgent.
The teacher is not
interested in visitors.
Thanks.
The teacher wasn't home.
I see, I'm sure she's already
on her way to school.
Where's that?
It's really far.
And it's hard to find.
Unless someone goes with you.
The teacher never gets
any visitors.
She's very strange.
She never comes to our parties.
She never throws
any Christmas parties,
or has people over
for coffee.
She goes from her house
to the school, and back again.
She teaches any classes?
Of course, she's a teacher.
She teaches many different things.
It's right over there.
What are you waiting for?
She's in there.
I'll wait for you here.
The Law of the Jungle forbids
every beast to eat Man.
Except under
one circumstance.
When they're killing to show
their children how to kill.
But they must do so outside
the hunting grounds of the pack.
There's a powerful reason
behind this.
Man-killing will definitely bring,
the arrival of other men,
carrying guns.
And then, everybody in
the jungle hurts and suffers.
Lety, darling,
that last sentence,
it's ugly, isn't it?
When you say it,
think of something sad.
Like when those powerful men
come to town and steal our water.
And then... And then,
everybody in the jungle,
hurts and suffers.
Great job.
Thanks for everything, teacher.
You shouldn't have, thank you.
Hello, um,
Ms. Silverman.
We're here from...
The publishing house.
How do you know?
Nobody calls me that,
nobody else knows
where I live,
and I know neither of you.
Was Liliana too busy
to come apologize herself?
No, ma'am, I'm here
on my own accord.
Of my own accord.
Call me Regina.
In six years, no one
from the office,
had bothered coming
all the way here,
so I'm assuming it must be
tremendously important.
Is there a place
where we can talk?
This is my stop.
There you go.
Thank you so much.
Tell your boyfriend
he might come in.
What?
Tell your boyfriend
he might come in.
Or did you come
all the way here,
just to see my version
of The Jungle Book?
We have things
to discuss, don't we?
We brought you
some cream bread.
It's a great day for
the cream bread market.
The book?
Yes.
You took it?
Yes.
And you took it
from the trash can?
And who threw it
in the trash can?
Of course.
Continue.
I started reading it and...
I couldn't put it down.
I'm used to correcting,
I'm an editor.
So I started to correct it.
They were pretty worried about
the ending back at the office,
and once I read it, so was I.
Your books have helped me
cope with the world,
does that make sense?
So the whole thing
became a challenge.
How to give a joyful twist
to such a tragic story.
It can be done,
it can always be done.
I changed some things,
but the essence is there,
I was respectful,
I respected your allegories,
your narrative structure...
Your narrative progression...
No, I get it.
You corrected my novel.
Well, the ending.
Because the ending is what
they're truly worried about.
Let me guess,
Martirio Goicochea lives,
and ends up,
fused in a true love's kiss.
She doesn't end up fused
in a true love's kiss, in fact,
she ends up alone,
but yes.
She lives.
My books must not be corrected.
I'm not saying your ending was bad,
it's very good.
So good, but...
Being pessimistic
is on trend, I think.
But you,
you're not usually pessimistic.
That's what's so different
about your writing.
It's important for people to...
On trend?
You think it's a trend?
You know what happened
to Lety, the girl from rehearsal?
It's better if you don't know.
The world is chock-full
of frivolity and indifference.
Transforming it is so uncomfortable
for most people,
they'd rather ignore that
their lifestyle harms others.
They don't care,
as long as the others,
are faceless beings,
far away, nameless,
from towns in the middle
of nowhere, with no access to water,
let alone access
to a condom.
Or a little bit of justice.
I wanted to know
what would happen,
if the others were
the protagonists,
of everyone's favorite novels.
From the moment I wrote
the first book,
I did so thinking
about that ending.
We must learn how to deal
with the discomfort,
of unhappy endings,
and to survive in them.
I'm not up for
a happy ending.
I'm not in the mood
for another happy ending.
There is something called
artistic integrity,
and that is the only thing
an author has in this world.
At least we tried.
I thought it would work.
What now?
I have to own up
to what I did.
I can't begin to imagine
the consequences of my mistake.
At least five thousand copies,
in the trash.
Assuming they haven't shipped
any of them yet.
Let's just see what happens.
We'll figure something out.
It will be alright,
you'll see.
Sure.
Thanks.
You're almost 400 kilometers
away from your home, by the way.
I know.
You need a ride somewhere?
I'm coming with you.
I need to talk to Liliana.
What's going on
at that publishing house,
that they have an intern tell
their best-selling author,
how to write?
No offense.
Let's get going then.
It's old, but it won't
leave us stranded.
I can't, I'll get carsick.
Do you get carsick?
Me?
I wouldn't expect the young man
to read and drive.
Read.
Don't get your hopes up,
I haven't changed my mind,
it's just...
mere literary curiosity.
'Who is that woman staring
at me?' Martirio wondered.
Incapable of seeing herself
in her own reflection.
A small town girl,
Manuel's daughter,
the one who would run and hide
even from the chickens.
Here she is now, a blank look
on her face, and blood on her clothes,
holding the gun steadily,
tracing her own steps
back to the river,
where she would get rid
of the evidence.
That, of course, if something was
actually going through her mind.
Martirio Goicochea left
the station at 19:45 hours,
and at some point
during that train ride,
that name, and last name,
died for good.
Damn.
Did you write that last bit?
We made it.
That wasn't the worst thing
I've ever read.
Sandrita.
I'm here to talk to Liliana.
Keep one.
As a souvenir.
Regina.
Liliana.
Please explain.
Casteln Ediciones,
good afternoon.
Thank you for conceding,
the new ending is incredible.
Well, I think we need to talk.
Come with me.
Corina, Corina, Corina.
What you did should
get you sued, darling.
Stealing confidential material,
misappropriation of duties,
identity theft,
it's a long list,
terrible stuff.
However...
However!
These are not normal
circumstances.
All the illegal things you did,
resulted in... this.
What Liliana wants is,
to thank you, right?
Yeah... thanks.
I don't understand.
Regina agreed to keep
your version of the book.
We made a deal with her.
It wasn't cheap.
In exchange for her to accept
your version as hers,
and to promise not to sue
the publishing house.
However...
However!
This story cannot leave
this room,
which is why we need you
to sign these.
The company has agreed
to assign you,
a percentage of the sales
of the book.
This is an irrevocable contract,
and its commercial rights period
and validity extend for 99 years.
It's quite a generous offer,
under these circumstances.
Of course it includes an extensive
non-disclosure clause.
And severe penalties
for breaching it.
Are you firing me?
No, we're not, Corina.
Under normal circumstances...
These are not normal circumstances.
You co-wrote a book that's part
of a successful series.
You may keep your job,
as long as you sign these.
I don't want to be
a style corrector anymore.
I want to write.
Write-write?
I want to write-write.
Deal.
Have you been writing long?
For as long
as I can remember.
I'm curious to see what
you're going to write now.
Me too.
Beautiful, isn't it?
This city.
It's huge.
Have a nice day, Corina.
You too, Rodrigo.
See you on Monday.