Sunday, July 7, 2019

THE CHRISTMAS LANTERN FESTIVAL synopsis

LOGLINE
An angel troubles the waters for a brother and sister on Christmas Eve. 

PITCH
When a magical old bridge breaks on Christmas Eve during a lantern festival on the Rhine River, 10-year-old Jule Schmidt, and her 7-year-old blind brother Killian, descend into freezing water. Since Killian cannot swim, he almost dies except for the divine intervention of the Angel that Troubled the Waters. As the children arrive on the bank of the river with the help of their father, Killian reveals a Christmas miracle took place—he can see for the first time.

SYNOPSIS
Holding hands, 10-year-old Jule Schmidt and her 7-year-old brother named Killian admire glowing Christmas lanterns on the Rhine River. Since birth, he has been blind, and she always tries to see for him, pointing out all the wonderful sights in the world. On this special night, Jule and Killian decide to sit by the bridge, wandering from their parents to a rickety old bridge at a narrow part of the river. Jule likes to make prayers to the angels and has insisted that she has met a large angel by the bridge on the river. She tells Killian that she once met an angel who told her that he would be healed of blindness. She wants to know if Killian has ever seen her—an angel with wings, long golden hair, and a pink dress with a blue flowing jacket.

As Killian sits down on the corner of the bridge, Jule sits beside him, hoping that the angel would appear for Christmas. The brother and sister are so caught up in the excitement that they don’t notice the loose boards on the bridge. When Jule spoke to the angel, she said the angel told her that at certain seasons she descends into the river and stirs up the water, whoever then first, after she stirs up the water, steps into the river is made well from whatever disease is in their body. Killian says he thinks that he shouldn’t get into the river because he cannot swim, and he might drown. With that, a mighty wind blows the lanterns across the river in a squall, and the side of the bridge where Killian and Jule are sitting breaks, and the brother and sister fall into the river. Although Jule kicks as hard as she can, it’s not enough to keep her and her brother afloat in the river. 

While the air begins to run out in each of the children’s lungs, weeping is not an option, and fear fills their bodies. As Jule looks at her brother with remorse, knowing he can’t see her, a bright light shines on them from above the river. Then a loud voice booms throughout the rippling water: “Then the eyes of the blind will be opened.” Suddenly, scales fall from Killian’s eyes into the bottom of the sea, and the angel with long golden hair, and a pink dress with a blue flowing jacket stands before them with their father at her side. She is twice as big as their father. Mr. Schmidt, whose first name is Christoph, grabs both children by the arms, and swims to the surface. Oddly enough, both children feel a second pair of large hands on their forearms from the angel in the pink dress. The crowd of people on the riverbank throw a scarf into the river, which Christoph grabs. The father and his two children are pulled to shore as the angel did more than her share of towing the family to the bank. Killian covers his eyes from the shining lights from the Christmas lanterns, burying his head in his father’s shoulder. Killian reveals that he can see because of the Angel that Troubled the Waters on Christmas Eve.

Copyright 2022 Jennifer Waters

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