Written by Pete Docter Mike Jones Kemp Powers

1 SOULW ritten byPete DocterMike JonesKemp Powers7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 1. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL A BAD MIDDLE SCHOOL BAND PLAYS THE DISNEY LOGO THEME. ONCE IT ( )Alright! Let s try something else. the top. Ready? One, two, MIDDLE SCHOOL BAND GARDNER, a passionate, well-dressed middle-aged man, conducts an off-key middle school band. It s painfully , two, three, four! Stay on the beat! Two, three four--that s a C Sharp, horns!A TROMBONIST loses his trombone end, which lands on the floor with a TRUMPETER uses his horn to vacuum up M&Ms from the , a saxophonist, pretends to play while actually on his Two, three, I see you, Caleb!

2 Startled, Caleb tosses the phone into a neighboring student s (to another student)Rachel, now you!But Rachel lies across a few my sax, Mr. , she forgot her sax! Aaand now-- aaaaall you, Connie. Go for it!Joe then motions to CONNIE, a Chinese American girl holding a trombone. She s his last plays her solo, strong and passionate. Joe smiles. But some of the other kids start giggling, and Connie s confidence (and playing) suddenly Soul Academy Draft 1. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL 7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 2. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL CALEBWay to go!

3 Joe taps his music Hang on, hang on. What are y all laughing at?The kids quiet So Connie got lost in it. That s a good thing!Connie stews in her seat, embarrassed, as Joe addresses the Look, I remember one my dad took me to this jazz club, and that s the last place that I wanted to walks to the piano and starts playing while he explains:JOEBut then I see this guy. And he s playing these chords with fourths on it and then, with the minor. Whooo! Then he adds the inner voices, and it s like he it s like he s singing. And I swear, the next thing I it s like he he floats off the stage.

4 That guy was lost in the music. He was in it, and he took the rest of us with finishes with a beautiful, dreamy flourish. The class is captivated with his I wanted to learn how to talk like that. That s when I knew. I was born to play. (beat)Connie knows what I mean. Right, Connie?CONNIEI m KNOCK on the classroom door Soul Academy Draft 2. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL 7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 3. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL JOE I ll be right back. Practice your SCHOOL HALLWAY - MOMENTS LATERJoe pops into the hall to speak with PRINCIPAL ARROYO as bad scales emanate from the classroom behind ARROYOS orry to interrupt, Mr.

5 Heh, you re doing my ears a STUDENT exits the class doorway behind Joe:CALEBHey!JOENot you, though. You re the student leaves:JOE (whispering)He s Principal What can I do for you, Principal Arroyo?PRINCIPAL ARROYOI wanted to deliver the good news personally!She hands Joe a letter:PRINCIPAL ARROYONo more part-time for you. You re now our full-time band teacher! Job security. Medical insurance. That Soul Academy Draft 3. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL 7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 4. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL PRINCIPAL ARROYOW elcome to the 70 family, Joe.

6 Forces a smile. He reenters the classroom and sadly looks at the wall, covered with photos of jazz LIBBA S TAILOR busy tailor shop bustling with activity. LIBBA, Joe s mother, hems a dress on a CUSTOMER. Libba s assistants, MELBA and lulu , work away at sewing machines. Joe is folding his laundry, all these years, my prayers have been answered! A full-time job!LULUW onderful, wonderful!MELBAW orkin man, comin through!JOEYeah. But mom rolls each piece of clothing and places it in the re going to tell them yes, right?JOEDon t worry Mom, I got a always got a begins poking the customer with pins as she !

7 LIBBAM aybe you need to have a backup plan Soul Academy Draft 4. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL 7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 5. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL CUSTOMEROw-ow! when your plan falls back up plan never We didn t struggle giving you an education so you could be a middle-aged man washing your underwear in my holds up an pair embarrassing underwear from Joe s laundry basket. MELBAMm, Mmm, (at sight of underwear)walkin around with a hole in his * lulu grabs the undies and checks them out, shaking her , but-Joe snatches the underwear and throws them back into his this job, you ll be able to put that dead-end gigging behind you.

8 And Lord knows, we need more teachers in this world. And just think, playing music will finally be your real career!Joe can see this is a losing So, you re going to tell them yes, right?Joe is about to Soul Academy Draft 5. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL 7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 6. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL CUSTOMER(pleading)Please, say instead closes his ! Joe s phone rings. He fishes it out and Hello?CURLEY ( )How you been, Mr. G? Uh, It s Curley. Lamont, Lamont turns away from Libba as she tends to the !

9 Curley! Hey, good to hear your voice, man. Uh listen, you can call me Joe now, Curley. I m not your teacher ( )Okay Mr. Gardner. Hey, look, I m the new drummer in the Dorothea Williams Quartet and we re kicking off our tour with a show at The Half Note Williams?! Are you kidding me? Congratulations, man! Wow, I would die a happy man if I could perform with Dorothea ( )Well, this could be your lucky day!EXT. NEW YORK STREET. SPRINTS DOWN THE STREET, weaving between NEW YORKERS. He comes up to a brick building -- the renowned HALF NOTE jazz Soul Academy Draft 6. 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL 7/17/2020 Soul Academy Draft 7.

10 2020 DISNEY PIXAR - PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL INT. HALF NOTE -- ENTRY catches his breath as he walks down the stairs. Photos of jazz greats line the wall. He gazes at them, taking off his hat in reverence. Deep in the club we hear a jazz band WARMING UP. CURLEY BAKER, a burley drummer in his 20s, meets , there he is! JOEHey, skipping town really put us in a bind, ll m glad you made it. My boy Bishop said he sat in on with you on a set last year in Brooklyn. Said you were you know, for a coffee enter the small club -- a low-lit New York treasure filled with mood and up on stage with her sax is DOROTHEA WILLIAMS, the regal, no-nonsense leader of the Dorothea Williams Quartet.