Indie filmmaker Stewart St. John plans to challenge big budget studio films with economical sci fi drama

Writer/Director Stewart St. John's indie sci-fi drama THE NEXT RACE: THE REMOTE VIEWINGS, starring Eric Scott Woods and Baily Chase (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) has wrapped principal photography — and the filmmaker now plans to show Hollywood how to produce a champagne film on a beer budget.

"We're in the editing room now," said St. John, who shot the film on HD using the Sony F900 digital camera, "and the footage looks amazing. The film is meant to be a slice-of-life drama like other indie films, only instead of being set in a small town Somewhere USA, it's played out against a sci-fi background. But still, at its core, the movie is about people, not the latest CGI."

The story revolves around one powerful secret that ties the lives of a rising dictator, an impressionable youth, a guilt-ridden mother, a spiritual channeler, and a blood-thirsty minister who collide on a journey of guilt, prejudice, hope and redemption.

"When you don't have a lot of money, you tend to focus on things like the acting and story," said Todd Fisher, St. John's producing partner and co-owner of the independent production company StewdioMedia Entertainment. "And that can sometimes equal a better film."

Fisher, who also serves as the company's technical guru, has just put the finishing touches on the film's web site. "It hints at the feel and texture Stewart wants to create with the film."

St. John is a 10-year entertainment veteran and interactive media pioneer who created the first online TV series CALIFORNIA HEAVEN (www.californiaheaven.com). He also wrote and produced the hit Disney Channel feature film SEVENTEEN AGAIN starring Tia and Tamara Mowry. He envisions THE NEXT RACE: THE REMOTE VIEWINGS as the prequel to his trilogy of THE NEXT RACE films.

Stewart St. John, Todd Fisher, and Cathy Agcayab Fry, Vice President of Broadcast Video Production & Post Production at the Weinstein Company, are producers of the film. To visit the official web site, go to http://www.thenextrace.com