Jaunt Unveils 2017 Production Slate; PBS To Expand Indie Film Distribution Efforts — Sundance Briefs

Amanda N'Duka

Updated 19 January 2017 at 6:12 pm

Cinematic virtual reality company Jaunt Inc. has released its 2017 production and development slate today as the Sundance Film Festival kicks off. Each conceived to be an original, scripted, multi-episode series, the content deals include The Enlightened Ones, a political sci-fi written and produced by Tye Sheridan, and Luna, an action series directed by The Divergent series helmer Robert Schwentke. The deals are the latest to come since the VR company launched Invisible, the 2016 scripted supernatural drama series created in partnership with director Doug Liman, screenwriter Melisa Wallack, and producer Julina Tatlock, Condé Nast Entertainment, and Samsung. See the list below:

The Lawnmower Man – Revival of a Cult Classic
A new VR series based upon the 1992 cult classic feature THE LAWNMOWER MAN. Partnering with rights holders Jim Howell and Rupert Harvey, Jaunt will develop and produce a reimagination of the film that kick started the VR conversation 25 years ago.

Luna – Action-Thriller Series
A 12-episode sci-fi suspense series created by Adam Cooper & Bill Collage is to be directed by Robert Schwentke (The Divergent Series) Luna follows an ensemble cast navigating an abandoned lunar base which results in them experiencing fear unlike anyone has felt before.

The Enlightened Ones – Political Sci-Fi Series
An episodic VR series written and produced by Tye Sheridan (X-Men: Apocalypse) and Nikola Todorovic of Aether, Inc. the series is set in an alternative present where a device is discovered bringing immortality to the human race. After the general public is given access to this technology, the world’s governments form an organization to control the crisis of overpopulation. Season one follows Enlightened One JL57, an employee at the company, as he is pulled into the underbelly of a resistance movement, discovering that this utopian technology may not be all that it seems.

Bad Trip – Stoner Comedy Series
A six-episode comedy series from writer/director Todd Strauss-Schulson (Harold and Kumar 3D). The series will place the viewer in the hyper-visual and uncomfortable situation of taking various drugs in environments that are less than ideal.

Miss Gloria – Sci-Fi Action-Adventure Series
A multi-episode series from New York Times Bestselling author, Daniel H. Wilson (Robopocalypse). Set in the distant future, the series situates the user in several distinct points of view as a “Robot Hero” tracks down a young girl who has gone missing during an uprising.

PBS is pushing to broaden its theatrical distribution endeavors in an effort to widen support of indie film and filmmaker. The media distributor said that at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, the company is looking to acquire theatrical and non-theatrical rights in hopes of releasing up to six feature-length documentaries a year. To help with in initiative, PBS has brought on executives Erin Owens and Emily Rothschild, previously of Long Shot Factory, as PBS Distribution’s Head of Theatrical Distribution and Director of Theatrical Acquisitions and Marketing, respectively. The duo has previously worked with PBS on theatrical release of Stanley Nelson’s The Black Panthers: Vanguard Of The Revolution prior to its February 2016 broadcast. Currently, Owens and Rothschild are handling the release of Barak Goodman’s Oklahoma City, which will premiere during the festival, followed by a theatrical release February 3, and will air as part of the American Experience series on PBS on February 7.