Industry
The Second Wave
Tesla/Edison's discovery of electricity, Henry Ford's mass assembly line, and the use of petroleum. The world became brighter at night, telegraphic communications connected the oceans, and the production of goods became limitless.
The Second Wave (The Era of Electricity, Steel, and Oil)
Genre: Techno-Industrial Drama
Setting: 1910 Detroit / Steel Mill — The dawn of mass production and electric light.
CHARACTERS
- ARTHUR (40s): An assembly line manager at an automotive plant.
- HELEN (20s): A young woman witnessing electric streetlights turn on for the first time.
SCENE
[EXT. CITY SQUARE / INT. FACTORY - NIGHT]
Sparks fly as steel girders are welded. HELEN stands in a city square as an arc lamp flickers to life, illuminating the dark street in brilliant white light.
"Night has lost its power. We flick a switch, and the sun obeys us."
(Watching cars roll off an assembly line) "Steel built our skeletons, oil pumps our blood, and electricity powers our nerves. We aren't just living in the world anymore—we're manufacturing it."