The Fire Dragon
A one-minute animated film
Screenplay by
John Hill-Daniel and Leo Hill-Daniel
© 2009 John Hill-Daniel
and Leo Hill-Daniel
07803 605658
Winter. A merry group of hunters wrapped in fur cloaks sit around a crackling fire by a frozen river singing and laughing. The leader carries a small boy in a sling, whose eyes are wide with wonder and enjoyment.
In the distance, the sound of beating wings. The men look around in fear. They see flames in the air. They run to a nearby cave, hung with icicles. They watch the Dragon descend onto their fire, enveloping the burning wood in it’s translucent wings. The dragon looks back with wicked eyes, and breaths flame out towards them. They cower, helpless.
Morning. In the cave, the men huddle together half-frozen, the boy kept warm between them. Suddenly the boy is lifted in the sling as the leader rises to his feet and looks hatefully at the remains of the fire. The boy, unseen, points at the fire, then the river.
Night. The hunters surround the fire, each with a spear jutting out into the night. One of them points to the sky. The dragon is approaching. He swoops down and breaths flame. The men scatter, their burning spears and cloaks falling to the ground behind them.
Day. Smouldering remains of spears and cloaks in the snow. A new fire. The dragon approaches across the frozen river. In the cave, the men wait, holding a weighted net. As the dragon descends, they run out, yelling, and throw the net over the beast. Trapped, the angry dragon breathes plumes of flame, burning the net away.
Night. Cold and miserable the men gather firewood. One sits motionless in the snow. The leader kicks him and he rises to join the others. The boy points to the growing pile of firewood and then to the river. The leader looks at him, and he repeats the motion. The leaders eyes go wide and he calls the men over.
Night. The men watch as the dragon flies overhead and swoops down on a huge fire, built on the ice. As the dragon settles on the flames, the ice melts, cracks and gives way. The fire, dragon and all plunge into fast flowing water. An orange glow, swept under the ice, dies. The smiling leader embraces his son
