How Omega Runner is democratizing storytelling

It’s no secret that Hollywood is small. For decades, a select group of industry gatekeepers have dictated what and where stories get told. No matter how talented they are, most people will never be able to pitch their ideas to the teams capable of bringing them to life. But even with this knowledge, few really realize how difficult it is to pursue this dream.

Approximately 50,000 scripts are registered with the Writers Guild of America every year, but in 2021, 403 movies they were released in the United States and Canada. That’s a less than one percent chance of turning his script into a movie, with the odds even more unfavorable against members of underrepresented communities.

Now a new approach coined by Media3 is reshaping the way stories are told, from Hollywood to hardcover.

An interactive world-building experience

The brainchild of creative production studio Clubhouse Pictures and Metaversal Venture Studios, the Omega Runner brand focuses on empowering both creators. and fans to help create the stories that live in their universe.

“While they don’t completely relinquish control of the narrative, creators invite audience participation and respond. The goal is to allow those who care most about a project or a story to contribute to this multimedia narrative universe,” he said. Runner co-founder and production executive at Clubhouse Pictures, anderson. “This more decentralized storytelling model generates unprecedented loyalty, as fans are more than just consumers – they are co-creators. “

According to Anderson, creatives really only learn what the reaction to a project will be when they put it in front of an audience for the first time. Including community members in the early creation process improves production and lets creators know if the project is headed in the right direction.

“At Web3, with its vibrant community of builder-minded creatives, people are much more willing to see the potential of a [project]so we bring them in early and get that creative buy-in from our community,” he said in an interview with nft now.

Co-founder, writer and producer of Omega Runner Blaise Hemingway echoed a similar sentiment citing the advantage of anyone creating a narrative world getting a response from the audience as soon as possible.

“In the traditional Hollywood model […] you’ve already spent millions and millions of dollars […] And even when you get thoughts and a response from an audience, there’s not much you can do to push your project forward unless you’re willing to delay and spend millions more,” Hemingway said in an interview with NFT Now. “When you build a narrative universe in partnership with your creative community, your feedback is instant. […] They build together.”

Media3 allows creatives to bypass the traditional gatekeepers and go directly to their audience. From there, they can bring IP to traditional media such as print comics, physical merchandise, and Hollywood-scale content production. Throughout this journey, audiences can meaningfully participate in creation, building a multifaceted community experience.

And Omega Runner is playing this in real time.

From the photos of the clubhouse and metaversal comes Omega Runner, a Web3 multimedia sci-fi project from The Hunger Games co-producer Bryan Unkeless, director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Anderson and Hemingway.

The story takes place in a futuristic world where various rulers and nations compete in a grueling, multi-day race for ultimate control of the planet Omega. The comic series, which includes the first two issues of Runnerit’s just the beginning of the Omega universe.

At the heart of the project is the Omega Runner Character Collection, which is set to launch in March 2023. It consists of high-fidelity 2D digital art collectibles minted on the Ethereum blockchain, with Layer Zero technology giving holders unique experiences. unique in both the digital and physical worlds.

Each NFT acts as an access token to the Omega Runner ecosystem and interactive storytelling experiences for holders in the world of Omega and IRL. Through ownership of the token and intellectual property rights granted through a smart contract, holders can create and promote their character’s digital identity and backstory as they see fit. By making each NFT Runner a unique character, holders can experience true ownership of their digital identity, taking it through a collection of Omega worlds and stories that will be co-created by the Runner community.

Fundamentally different from many other community-driven projects that harness community creativity around a single product, the Omega Runner team is adamant about building a large constellation of creative output that can support and advocate for itself.

“Instead of imagining ‘the creation’ as a single story or work of art (a book, a picture, a game), we should think of ‘the creation’ as an entire universe of stories. The entire brand, full of contradictions and crowds and open to input from anywhere,” Anderson said. “Suddenly, fan fiction becomes owner fiction.”

One of Omega Runner’s defining features is its headline-only “Writers Room” where the community can interact with seasoned writers and directors (both inside and outside the community) to share a comprehensive curriculum on how to build a character and tell a story within the Omega Runner universe.

“The idea is to make our community the best storytelling community on Web3, and as they succeed, their characters and stories will have the chance to become canon that transcends Web3 and goes into comics, games, series, movies. and more,” Hemingway said. “We want to empower our community as much as possible.”

This means leveling the playing field for creatives who want to bring their ideas to life in meaningful ways.

“Now more than ever, it matters less who you know or where you are in the world,” Hemingway said. “If there is a story and a world that you want to bring your unique voice, vision and creativity to, you not only have the access and permission, but also the encouragement of the creators and creative community around you, regardless of whether you are in Los Angeles, Singapore or rural farmland in Africa. Everyone who wants to participate can have a seat in this virtual writer’s room.”

The vast Omega universe

As for the future of the project, the Omega universe can span an unlimited number of stories. While it all starts with the Character Collection Drop, there is much more on the horizon.

The Omega universe is constantly expanding, with anderson saying they have even planned a Runner TV show. But they are in no rush to make it happen. “An animated TV show will take 18 months. A feature would take two years, so it’s important that you believe in it and think it’s a good thing when embarking on a project that will take a not insignificant part of your life to complete.

“I want to see Runner in a cereal box. And to do that, we need people to believe in creativity and believe in execution, and not just hype,” he said.

With Media3, all of this becomes a possibility.