Steve vs The Plank

"Use the attached STEVE VS THE PLANK character sheet as the exact visual reference for Steve throughout. Steve is a Pixar 3D man, late 30s, medium brown messy hair, plain blue t-shirt, dark grey gym shorts, white trainers, average build — not muscular. Bright colorful gym throughout. NO dark frames anywhere.

THE GYM: Bright modern gym. Clean white walls, warm overhead lighting, single blue rectangular mat on the floor center frame. Dumbbells rack and mirror visible in background. Everything fully saturated and energetic. No other people. Just Steve and his phone.

THE PHONE: Slim black smartphone placed flat on the floor screen facing up at the front edge of the mat — directly in front of Steve's face when planking. Screen shows Apple UI circular timer — dark circle background, bright orange ring starting at 12 o'clock running clockwise, bold white numbers centered. Never moves from this position.

TIMER RULE: Orange ring runs clockwise from 12 o'clock. At 00:57 it covers exactly 95% of the circle — tiny gap at top left. At 00:58 it covers exactly 97% — gap slightly smaller. Timer shows 01:00 at start, 00:57 first check, 00:57 second check identical, 00:58 final check. This must be consistent every time the screen appears.

MUSIC: Bright upbeat gym music at start. Drops slightly each time Steve checks the timer. Builds tense and slow as he suffers. Cuts completely to dead silence the moment he sees 00:58. Quiet indifferent gym ambience returns as he lies on the mat.

0:00–0:02 — Wide shot. Steve standing beside the mat, relaxed and confident. Takes phone from pocket, sets timer to 01:00, places it flat on the floor at the front edge of the mat screen facing up. Gets into plank — arms straight, back flat, body straight, face looking down at the phone. Taps screen to start. SOUND: Upbeat gym music. Soft tap. Digital beep.

0:02–0:04 — Medium shot. Steve in plank, good form, completely fine. Glances down at phone. Close-up on screen — 00:57, orange ring 95%, tiny gap top left. Steve's brow furrows very slightly. Looks back forward. Still fine. Probably. SOUND: Calm breathing. Music drops one beat then returns.

0:04–0:07 — Same medium shot. Form deteriorating — arms slightly bent, back beginning to sag, sweat on forehead, breathing heavier. Looks down at phone again. Close-up on screen — 00:57, orange ring 95%, identical to last time. Nothing has changed. Steve stares at it. Left eye twitches once. Looks back forward. SOUND: Heavy breathing. Music drops to near silence on the 00:57 reveal. Steve's quiet disbelieving exhale.

0:07–0:10 — Same medium shot. Steve visibly suffering — arms shaking, back sagging badly, neck straining upward, sweat dripping, shirt damp, face red. Pure agony. Staring at the wall with desperate intensity. SOUND: Heavy labored breathing. Arms trembling. Tense building strings.

0:10–0:12 — Medium shot pulling slightly closer. Steve looks down one final time. Close-up on screen — 00:58, orange ring 97%, gap slightly smaller. It went up. Steve stares at it for two full seconds. Expression moves past frustration, past disbelief, into complete hollow emptiness. Arms still shaking. SOUND: Music cuts completely. Dead silence. One low cello note. Steve's long slow exhale.

0:12–0:15 — Wide shot drops to mat level. Steve's arms give out. He collapses face first onto the mat — full body flat, arms splayed, cheek pressed against the mat. Phone still on the floor directly in front of his face showing 00:58. Steve's one open eye stares at it from two centimetres away. He blinks once. Slowly. Does not get up. SOUND: Soft thud. Silence. Faint upbeat gym music returns at a fraction of the volume, completely indifferent. Fade out.

Camera: wide front gym shot, medium plank shot, close-up phone screen inserts, mat-level wide collapse shot. No other angles. No cutaways. One location only. Bright vivid Pixar colors throughout."