The Director

Written for the Daily Flash Fiction Challenge with a word limit of 300.


The prompts: This story must contain the phrase, "a scream echoed through the forest."


The Director

“Cut! Cut! Cut!” The director, Carl, jumped out of his chair and strode bristling onto the set.

“I don’t know what script you’re reading from, but mine says, “A scream echoed through the forest.” Whatever it was that just came out of your mouth, it wasn’t a scream!”

April squeezed out a couple of tears and tried to poise herself so the director couldn’t help but notice her more than ample breasts. She looked up with little girl eyes and pouty lips with a slight quiver that warned him more tears were on the way if he didn’t back off. The fact that her skimpy jungle-girl outfit left nothing to the imagination contributed to her cause.

“I just know I can do better. Can’t we do it again?”

Carl was hormonally outgunned and he knew it. “Alright everyone, take ten and then we will shoot it again.”

Why can’t the agency send me someone with some actual talent? I hate having to deal with these prima donnas.

During the next take, the pair of breasts managed to get out a fairly convincing scream. The rest of the shoot was going smoothly until the gorilla failed to enter at the appropriate prompt. Damn ape knows more words than my ten-year-old son but can’t follow a simple cue. “What seems to be the problem?”

The key grip came down from the tree with, “She says the lighting isn’t right. She also says that it is too far for her to jump down from up there.”

That’s it! I have had enough “Tell KoKo she’s fired.”

Picking up a megaphone, he yelled off to the left, “Send in the stunt monkey.”

word count 280