A good-hearted but divided young man searches for his story in an on-screen world that has been taken over by bad actors. He rebels against his narrator and enters a thriller to save a damsel in distress only to discover there’s been a script out there with his name on it all along. The problem is how to access it.

SYNOPSIS:

Charlie McBride is a good-natured, easy-going guy who struggles with his confidence. He has a narrator, off screen, whom he works with on how to figure out his story. They conflict because Charlie thinks he could be a hero, and the narrator thinks he’s an everyman. The narrator wants Charlie to be a writer, so his ‘voice’ can be heard. Charlie wants to act in something more exciting that will make a difference to the on-screen world in which he exists.

He meets an anxious but cute young woman, Megan, who is caught up in a thriller but is getting over her head. Charlie decides to help her, despite the fact his narrator warns him he is not qualified for this type of story. He thinks Charlie could be killed-off in no time if he makes the wrong move or says the wrong thing.

Megan’s story is about a miraculous drug that, when taken, transforms the person into a superhuman for an hour. Megan steals the formula to sell it on the black market. The trouble is the formula has serious side-effects that slowly turn the person into a zombie. Roberto Campanelli, Megan’s boss, has ambitions to ship this untested drug all over the world hidden in the manikins that he uses for his clothing company. He will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. Megan stealing the formula disrupts this considerably.

Charlie gets caught up in Megan’s story and eventually takes the mysterious drug himself to become a studly dude named “Chuck” to fight the bad guys. Chuck, however, is also a twerp who is framed for killing a key gang member which further complicates Charlie’s role in this world. But he can’t escape now, even if he wants to. His relationship with his narrator, and hence his ability to get back to his own story, has deteriorated to the point they have to see this through.

Charlie gets caught by Campanelli and his life is in danger so Megan. now having doubts about her own about her story path, decides to go against her own narrative to save Charlie. They escape to the woods together in hopes of pursuing a new story, a love story hopefully, but they don’t get far until both are tracked down and forced back into this thriller.

The plot is to market this drug all over the world, aligned with a clothing brand, so they are filming the commercials with Chuck and Michelle, Megan’s drug-enhanced gorgeous brunette alter ego. The whole production appears to be now taking on the shape of a product placement commercial and things are out of control. The side effects from this drug have taken hold and both Megan and Charlie have little choice but to perform as they are told to stay on screen.

All looks lost as the story goes off the rails and that is when Charlie reconnects with his narrator who has found pieces of a script, possibly by the writer, that tells of Charlie’s original journey, out there. He says his story has been tinkered with and changed. He may be a hero all along, but he needs find his original script somehow. This inspires Charlie to access parts of the ‘real him' and challenge the bad guys with a strength of character he did not know he possessed.

He escapes the clothing store, with Megan, and a destroys the drug. Now he has to figure out how to access the original script to discover who he really is. Thus, their amazing journey begins.

SERIES POTENTIAL

Charlie MacBride, the protagonist, is unique because he has a narrator in the second person, who he talks to. This voice confirms to him the existence of a world behind the fourth wall. The trouble is this character is the same actor, possibly in a sound stage somewhere, so it could be a trick. Neither character fully knows what’s going on, so they argue and debate as they embark on their journey.

The primary antagonists here are the commercial interests behind the scenes who don’t want the characters to break the fourth wall for fear they will undermine the narrative they are happily in control of. They want the characters to be desperate and afraid, so they are more able to be manipulated into telling captivating stories.

It is a ‘meta’ concept that looks at life, and the world we live in, as if it were a big movie on screen. The question, of course, is who is actually in control of the narrative? Some characters believe there is a writer putting words in their mouths. Others believe they create their own opportunities through their own talent and will. Some are convinced their world on screen is a complete bust and no one is watching. Others believe it is utterly real.

The characters on screen are somewhat like the ‘toys’ in “Toy Story” or the fantasy characters in “Shrek”, only believing in their own made-up world with their own limited perspective. For some, the world out there is just weird, so they ignore it completely and play their parts. Others, however, have the agenda of controlling as much of their narrative drive as they can. Others immerse themselves so totally on screen that they become their characters and live in their moments on screen.

It is sort of a metaphor for life – how much one believes it’s real and, in turn, how much it affects their choices. Meanwhile, although it is never acknowledged on screen, conflicting forces behind the fourth wall are battling for control of the plot. There is the writer who has an idealistic vision of the way things should be, and the producer, who is more attune to the costs and potential profits. Who will control the narrative drive - art or commerce.

Commerce is necessary for survival. Art is necessary for direction. Neither work unless the actor is on board. All must work together in harmony for this to succeed.

The premise, therefore, that gives this production legs is “self-knowledge leads to discovering the true path.” The actor must learn and know who he is, to be able to successfully follow the script and overcome the obstacles. The higher the stakes, (the true path) the greater the obstacles (the conflict).