His career hangs by their strings.

Today is the deadline. After three extensions and afflicted with writers block, Tony sits once again at his desk by the window unable to think up the three plot lines he promised his publisher. However, his writers block is left hanging when he looks through his blinds and sees people in their every day interactions. With each person that comes through, inspiration is found as Tony witnesses all of them clearly saying and doing one thing, while between the lines, meaning another. Using his imagination inspired by his love of marionettes, Tony begins to orchestrate the people that he sees, controlling them by their marionette strings to act upon the feelings he senses between the lines of how they present themselves on the outside.