Writer’s Shop Talk: Jim Garraty’s Graduation Day: From Page to Screen

This scene is drawn from the last chapter set during Jim’s high school years at South Miami High in the novel Reunion: Coda. The narrative unfolds on graduation day at Miami-Dade Community College (South Campus), where Jim stands among a sea of new graduates, symbolizing both an end and a beginning.

While I do not plan to adapt the entire novel into a feature-length screenplay, this exercise aims to explore the feasibility of translating the story into a cinematic format. The goal is to capture the essence of the novel’s significant moments in a visual and engaging way, showcasing the protagonist’s internal and external transitions as he leaves behind his high school experiences and steps into the future.

FADE IN:

EXT. MIAMI-DADE COMMUNITY COLLEGE (SOUTH CAMPUS) PARKING LOT – DAY

TIME: Graduation Day, June 17, 1983

JIM stands in a long line of fresh Cobra graduates, holding his neatly folded graduation outfit under his arm. The final and somewhat tedious step of the commencement ceremony is underway, a dull ending to the solemn ritual they had just gone through.

JIM (V.O.)

Well, at least this line is moving quicker than the ones for Space Mountain at Disney for Grad Nite.

The underclassmen who had played “Pomp and Circumstance” during the ceremony are likely stuffing their instruments into a school bus. No band plays now, and the graduates aren’t queuing up in strict alphabetical order. They just need to return their mortarboard caps and polycrepe gowns to one of the teachers at the correct table.

JIM winces as he thinks about the band members squirming nervously as they endure Mr. Braxton’s harsh comments on their performance.

CUT TO:

EXT. MIAMI-DADE COMMUNITY COLLEGE (SOUTH CAMPUS) PARKING LOT – TEACHER’S TABLE – DAY

A familiar voice calls out.

MRS. DEVARGAS

Next! Come on, Mr. Garraty; you do want to get out of here before we melt in this heat, don’t you?

MRS. DEVARGAS, JIM’s former English 4 (Advanced Placement) teacher, stands behind the table. Her flowing blonde hair and gray eyes give her the look of a California surfer girl.

JIM

(distracted)

Huh? Oh…sorry, Mrs. D.

JIM mutters, lowering his eyes. He hands her the folded gown first, followed by the mortarboard cap.

MRS. DEVARGAS smiles comfortingly as she takes the graduation clothes and adds them to the growing stack on a chair behind the table.

MRS. DEVARGAS

It’s okay, Jim. Graduations are, after all, a bit of a jolt to the system, with all the emotions you must be feeling right now.

JIM (V.O.)

I feel like all the stars and planets in the Milky Way had been placed on my shoulders.

JIM watches her check off his name on her list with a quick flick of her pen.

JIM

And I thought Final Exam Week was bad.

MRS. DEVARGAS

If it’s any consolation, Jim, I’ll let you in on a little secret.

She leans closer to JIM, speaking quietly.

MRS. DEVARGAS

When I graduated from high school – many moons ago – I almost fainted at my commencement ceremony, I was so terrified. Oh, I was happy and excited, too. But…I also knew that my next destination was the University of Florida, in Gainesville…almost 3,000 miles away from Ojai. That’s where I’m from…Ojai, California.

JIM

(impressed)

Wow.

JIM’s eyes widen with awe. MRS. DEVARGAS smiles, seeming to remember her first impression of the  UF campus.

MRS. DEVARGAS

Incredible, right? I’d never been east of the Mississippi until my mom and dad took me there for freshman orientation. I felt a surge of fear; I even considered attending a university closer to home. But…my parents – Dad especially – were so proud that I’d been accepted at UF. And my best friend had also gotten into their nursing program. So I decided to stick it out.

She shrugs, a hint of pride in her voice. MRS. DEVARGAS fixes her gaze on JIM, her gray eyes like twin searchlights probing his very being. With a gentle pat on his shoulder, she leans in again, her voice assuming its familiar “classroom” tone.

MRS. DEVARGAS

Don’t fret, Mr. Garraty. Harvard awaits, and you possess the mettle to thrive, young man. Now, onward. You’re stalling the line.

JIM nods, feeling a surge of reassurance. He steps away from the table, the moment’s weight settling in.

FADE OUT.