cinematic stock 13m 4 scenes

I Discovered My Coworker Had Been Living In Our Office For 3 Months

Grounded, first-person, slow-build unease

Timeline

Scene-by-scene

Scene 01 hook
18s

Photo: Cara Denison

I've been working at the same architecture firm for six years. Two weeks ago, I found out that one of my coworkers — someone I ate lunch with every day — had been secretly living in our office for three months. And when I finally figured it out, what he did next made me realize I had been in danger the whole time.

Empty modern architecture office at night, desk lamps still on, cinematic wide shot

Low ambient hum, faint keyboard clicks fading in
Scene 02 setup
45s

Photo: Karl Solano

My name isn't important, but I'll call myself Alex. I work at a mid-sized architecture firm in Chicago. Sixty employees. Open floor plan. Small kitchen with a nice espresso machine. Nothing about the office is unusual — which is what made this whole thing so hard to notice.

Chicago skyline at dawn with morning golden light reflecting on skyscrapers

Ambient morning city sounds, slowly fading to office silence
Scene 03 setup
40s

Photo: Vitaly Gariev

The coworker I'll call David joined about two years ago. Quiet guy. Good at his job. Kept to himself but wasn't weird about it. The kind of person who says hi, does the work, leaves at six. Or so I thought.

Silhouette of man in business casual working late at desk, monitor glow on face

Single piano note held
Scene 04 escalation
55s

Photo: Elizabeth Iris

It started with small things. He was always the first one there in the morning — like, before the cleaners left. And he was always the last one to leave. But the real red flag came from our office manager. She noticed the espresso machine was going through beans twice as fast as normal. Nobody could figure out why.

Close-up of espresso machine, coffee beans, and receipt in quiet office kitchen

Espresso machine hiss, then cutoff to silence

Canonical workplace-Reddit-story format. Opens with a specific stake, moves through slow-build discovery, escalates to confrontation, resolves with a twist. This is the template most high-performing workplace-story channels use.

What the template does well

Specific hook. Six years, Chicago, architecture firm, sixty employees. Specificity establishes credibility instantly.
Escalating detail. Each scene reveals one new anomaly (espresso beans, timing, keycard logs). The pattern builds without heavy-handed cues.
Reserved reveal. The scary moment is held for scene 8. Earlier reveals would leak tension.

What to change per channel

Setting. The template works for any professional workplace. Adjust the three establishing details in scenes 2–3.
Twist depth. Some audiences prefer a definitive resolution; others prefer ambiguity. The template ships with the ambiguous ending; scene 12 has an alternate “resolved” script inline.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is this a real Reddit story?

This template is a canonical retelling optimized for pacing and retention. When you use it, either verify a real source thread or make clear it's a dramatized composite. Do not present fictional stories as true.

How long is the finished video?

13 minutes at default pacing. Compress to 8 or extend to 20 in the editor. The narrative arc holds up at both ends.

What voice preset works best?

A neutral male voice at 1.0× speed, low pitch, minimal inflection. The story does the work — over-acted delivery under-performs.

Can I change the setting?

Yes. The template's structure works with any workplace — restaurant, hospital, retail, school. Swap Alex's profession and adjust the visual prompts.