Raphael Rogers’ ambitious short film BEYOND, about a young woman who can beam herself to planets beyond our universe, has been picked up by Universal Pictures’ Syfy Films for a feature-length cinematic release. Rogers, who wrote, directed, produced and edited the $1,000 original is returning to direct and produce the new film. On executive production duties are IAM Entertainment’s Scott Glassgold and Raymond Brothers.
While the short is nothing to write home about, it certainly can’t be said to be weak on concept and scope, as well as visual design (the statue in the sea, for example, is fantastic, accompanying the allusions to civilisations on these distant planets). There are some very interesting ideas in there, but it comes across as a bit messy thanks to its ridiculously ambiguous ending, with the revelation that there is much we don’t know. Until that point there isn’t really anything for the viewer to question and ultimately nothing is explained anyway, so what could be a cool idea is in fact rather frustrating and appears pointless. Whether or not Rogers originally had plans for an explanatory follow-up, the decision to expand the story into a feature is definitely a good one. The film has the potential to be an original mind-, space- and time-bending science-fiction spectacle.
I have embedded the original BEYOND here for you all to have a gander at. What do you think of it? Will it work as a feature film? Let us know your thoughts:
Source: THR
