What if you had to go back into the past to fight the future? In the new sci-fi web series thriller OUT OF TIME, created, written and directed by Rodney V. Smith, the show’s protagonist, Chris Allman (played by Steve Kasan, who co-wrote the series with Smith) faces just that question.
When Chris is implanted with a perception-altering-chip in his head by a mysterious tech corporation called Sosumi, he witnesses the death of his girlfriend Sara (Julia MacPherson). After he himself gets killed – we shockingly discover that instead of being dead, he is now trapped in a confusing and random series of moments, both real and unreal, resulting in a fight for his – and Sara’s – life, against the powerful corporation that will stop at nothing to get their technology back.
The series, set to debut sometime this summer, has already filmed its pilot episode (which aired on February 24th), and is currently trying to raise $40,000 on the popular crowd-funding web site IndieGoGo for the production of ten more episodes.
The cast also features April Miranda (as spy/hacker Karina “Kari” Cheng), Catalina Yue as Angie, Robert Nolan as the villainous Dr. Harold Osborn, Katie MacTavish as the equally brilliant scientist Samantha Perry, plus Dulce Felix as Dr. Marianna Sheppard, Shailene Garnett (who also co-directed the show with Smith) as Alice, Paul Nicholls as Detective Thomas Morrow, and Herschel Andoh as Det. Andre Duvel. Dave Dalziel as Hugo, a powerful mercenary hired by Dr. Osborn to keep track of Chris, and to prevent him from saving Sara, and Brian Quintero as Viktor Raminov, one of Hugo’s top associates.
Smith, who worked with many members of the show’s cast on his previous web series DOMINION, and others on several other projects (including a 48-hour film project) cites the long-running sci-fi time travel series DOCTOR WHO as his (as well as Steve’s) inspiration for their web series. According to Smith, he and Kasan developed the series “through lots and lots of notes, scripting and re-writing”, a process that also included the expansion of each of the show’s ten episodes, which were completely re-written and expanded to fit the show’s large storyline.
“It wasn’t just Chris’ story anymore at that point, but the story of the world he lives in and it really follows what he’s doing now that effects what happened to him in the past. And somehow we avoided any major paradoxes,” Smith says.
Aside from the dedicated time and effort to the show’s production, Smith says that the show’s distribution strategy is what sets OUT OF TIME apart from other sci-fi web series. “We’re taking the series directly to the fans in 10 cities across the US and Canada a full six months in advance for the online launch. Nobody has done that before and after we do it, it’s something that they might consider as part of their strategy.”
Smith, who cites directors Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez and legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins among his many influences as a filmmaker, has major ambitions for OUT OF TIME, not only to bring his show to the largest possible audiences, but to create a sci-fi series unlike any of its kind. “It’s a love story for guys, but that level of character and relationship also appeals to women. So while it’s not focusing on the relationship, it is Chris’s commitment to Sara that drives his mission and he will do anything to stop this horrible thing from happening to her. While there are other shows about time travel, there are none like this one.”
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