The transcript captures a staged adoption interview from the 2019 Atlanta 48‑Hour Film Festival short‑film "Anna," written and performed by Tameka Anderson. The scene opens with a facilitator (Speaker A) introducing the prospective adoptive parents, Lance and Lori Winnington, to a teenage girl, Ana (Anna). The dialogue oscillates between forced politeness, comedic missteps (a clumsy magic‑card trick, repeated lines, and a bizarre suggestion to use salad tongs as protection), and increasingly uncomfortable probing about living arrangements, diet, and pets. The tone shifts dramatically when Anna asks the parents if they have ever killed a child, prompting a stunned reaction and an abrupt exit by one of the facilitators. The piece blends awkward humor with a dark, unsettling moment, commenting on the power imbalance and emotional volatility inherent in foster‑care adoption processes. As a 48‑hour film entry, the script demonstrates rapid character development, tight pacing, and a willingness to juxtapose levity with serious social commentary.
Chapters
You're gonna be talking to Lance and Lori Winnington, okay? We got this. They seem nice. And no, they're not gonna leave you like last time. I promise. Yes, really. You ready? Let's go.
Floor 19.
You ready? Yeah. Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Winnington. All right, today I'm gonna bring in Ana McAvoy for you guys to interview. I'll give you guys the room so you can get to know her and then walk out of here as a family. How's that sound? Yeah. Okay. All right. I'll go grab her. Okay. Mr. and Mrs. Whittington, this is Ana.
Oh, he's just tying his shoe.
Hey, Ana, my name's Lance, and I'm gonna be a, you know, I'm a bit of a magician myself, and I just wanted to, you know, show you a little trick. So this is your card, and if I do like, you know, this and that and flip it like this, then this will be your card. What? Uh, what? Seeing better?
Um, yeah.
Oh, really? Oh, well, um, like, like what?
Look in your shoe.
Check shoe. Check shoe. Check shoe. Okay, I'll humor you. I'll check my shoe. I'll check my shoe. Wait, what? What? Come on, get up.
So, Anna—
It's Anna.
Anna? Um,
so What brings you here today?
Uh, you, of course. We're here to adopt you, hopefully take you home.
Why us?
Us?
Me! Nervous.
Us
too.
Yeah, I saw you drop those cards.
Well, he could be a little clumsy.
A lot of blind birds in my family.
Look at him.
Yeah. Me too. Let's get down to business, huh?
Oh, well, I thought we were supposed to be asking the questions.
So we have a few questions for you guys. Oh no, not yet. Ah, here we are. How many bedrooms do you have?
We have 3. 3 bedrooms.
Uh, one for us, one for you, and one's a workout room.
Yeah, workout room.
Has that always been a workout room? So school, home, or public?
Uh, public. Public, of course, you know.
Meat. Diet.
Vegetarian.
Me too!
Great, great, yeah.
Pets.
Oh, we actually have a dog.
We love dogs. We also love to be protected.
Don't we all love being protected?
What would you use to protect me?
Um, well, I guess I would use those salad tongs there, you know, to bite off those little cucumbers.
Really?
Yeah.
Lori, have you ever had kids?
You don't have to.
No, no.
Oh really? Have you ever killed a child?
What? Wait, hold on. What'd you just— wait, Corey, are you okay? Corey, wait, what did she just say to you?
I can't stay in here.
It's okay. Her other foster mother killed a child. No. Let her go.
Anna, what? Wait, what? What did you just say to her?
