The Glint on Broadway

### **THE GLINT ON BROADWAY**
**A Film/TV Treatment**

**1. Logline**

A grieving cynic discovers a mysterious, raven-shaped key that pulls them into a dangerous shadow world they thought only existed in their missing best friend's fantasies.

**2. Synopsis**

On a bleak winter night in Winnipeg, ALEX (20s), still numb a year after the disappearance of their best friend Manny, discovers an ornate, antique key shaped like a raven in the snow. The object triggers a vivid memory of Manny finding a similar key and rambling about secret societies and hidden worlds—theories Alex had always dismissed. The discovery feels like more than a coincidence, a feeling amplified when Alex’s friend SARAH texts about having found "actual, physical evidence" related to a secret "project" Manny was working on before he vanished. As Alex heads to meet her, the city's mundane details begin to feel like omens, culminating in a cryptic, anonymous text message: "He's not lost. He's hidden. Look closer." This warning, combined with the unnerving sense of being watched, leads Alex to a dark alley where they witness an unnatural, shimmering distortion in the air—the first concrete sign that Manny's fantastical theories might have been terrifyingly real.

**3. Character Breakdown**

* **ALEX (20s):** Cynical, sharp-witted, and grounded in a reality that has felt gray and empty since their best friend disappeared. Their sarcasm is a shield for deep-seated grief and loyalty. Alex is an unwilling protagonist, whose pragmatism is challenged at every turn by the escalating strangeness of the mystery.

* **MANNY (20s, seen in flashback):** A whirlwind of chaotic energy, imagination, and half-baked theories. Manny was the believer to Alex's skeptic, constantly searching for magic in the mundane. His disappearance has left a void, but his memory and his obsessions are the driving force of the narrative.

* **SARAH (20s):** The pragmatic, grounded anchor in Alex's life. Armed with an equally acerbic wit, she is a loyal friend who, despite her own skepticism, is willing to dig into Manny’s strange final days. She is the one who provides the first tangible leads.

**4. Scene Beats**

* **THE GLINT:** EXT. BROADWAY - NIGHT. A wide shot establishes the cold, desolate Winnipeg street. ALEX plods through the snow, lost in thought. A sharp GLINT of light from a snowbank catches their eye, breaking the monochromatic landscape.
* **THE OBJECT:** Alex hesitates, then curiosity wins. They kneel and brush away the snow to reveal a small, tarnished, bronze-like KEY. An extreme close-up reveals its intricate design: the head is a stylized RAVEN with spread wings. It feels ancient and out of place.
* **THE MEMORY (FLASHBACK):** The key triggers a memory. We CUT TO: INT. CURIOCABINET - DAY (ONE YEAR AGO). The shop is dusty and cramped. A younger, more energetic MANNY excitedly shows Alex a similar antique key, calling it a "skeleton key" for secret passages. Alex is dismissive, their playful banter highlighting their skeptic/believer dynamic. Manny pockets his key, obsessed.
* **THE COINCIDENCE:** Back in the PRESENT. Alex clutches the raven key, the cold metal a stark reality. The similarity to Manny's key is too strong to ignore. The weight of his absence hits Alex hard.
* **THE CALL TO ADVENTURE:** Alex’s phone BUZZES. A text from SARAH: "Still alive out there, ice block?" followed by "Found something. You need to see this. Re: Manny’s… project." And finally: "Meet me at The Daily Grind. Don’t be late, I have actual, physical evidence." This gives Alex a clear, urgent goal.
* **THE CITY SPEAKS:** As Alex walks with renewed purpose, the city seems different. The camera lingers on details: a construction site’s rebar like a skeleton. Then, a powerful image: spray-painted on a fence is a stark black RAVEN, its wings spread in the exact same shape as the key. Alex freezes, the coincidence now feeling like a deliberate sign.
* **THE WARNING:** The phone BUZZES again. An UNKNOWN NUMBER. The message is short and chilling: "He’s not lost. He’s hidden. Look closer." Alex stops dead, scanning the empty street. The feeling of being watched becomes palpable. Paranoia sets in.
* **THE SHADOW:** Alex’s gaze is drawn to a dark ALLEYWAY between two derelict buildings. For a split second, a flicker of movement—something dense and fast—is seen at the alley’s edge. It’s gone before Alex can register it.
* **THE SHIMMER (CLIFFHANGER):** Compelled by the text message, Alex cautiously enters the alley. The air is colder, the silence absolute. They scan the dark corners, finding nothing. Just as they are about to turn away, they see it: behind a stack of pallets, the air shimmers and distorts, like heat haze on a summer road, but impossibly present in the freezing cold. It's unnatural, unnerving, and utterly unexplainable. Alex stares, breath catching in their throat, realizing they have just crossed a threshold into a world they never believed existed.

**5. Visual Style**

* **Setting & Palette:** The visual tone is one of stark, urban noir filtered through a supernatural lens. Winnipeg in deep winter provides an oppressive, monochromatic backdrop—a world of desaturated cool blues, stark whites, and grimy greys. This bleakness is punctuated by intense, isolated pops of color: the hopeful yellow of a Tim Hortons sign, the harsh red of neon, and most importantly, the metallic glint of the key.
* **Camera & Lighting:** The cinematography will be grounded and subjective, often using handheld or Steadicam shots to keep us close to Alex’s perspective and growing unease. Streetlamps will cast long, distorted shadows, creating a sense of paranoia. Extreme close-ups will be used on key objects (the key, the phone screen, the raven graffiti) to imbue them with significance. The flashback sequence will contrast sharply with the present, shot with warmer tones, more saturated color, and more energetic camera movement to emphasize Manny’s vibrant life force.
* **Atmosphere:** The overall feel is one of encroaching dread and cold. The tangible, biting cold of the city should be a constant presence, reflected in visible breath and the muffled crunch of snow underfoot. Sound design will be crucial, contrasting the lonely howl of the wind and the ambient city hum with moments of eerie, pointed silence, especially in the final alley scene. The "shimmer" effect will be subtle and optical, avoiding overt CGI to maintain a sense of grounded, unsettling reality.