“The Portal” by Charles Sterling

‘The Portal’ features a story about the protagonist, Raymond, who is suddenly able to go through his TV screen and into a random movie world. Where he ends up, only fate may decide, whether it be a gruesome island, a dragon age kingdom, an unpleasant horror movie or a relaxing comedy movie. But only one thing was certain, the only way for him to return home, was to first die.

Movies existed as a different universe – they were the created, and us humans, we were the creators. Neither knew that the other existed, except for a few that broke that fourth wall. Those few forced Raymond into an arduous adventure across several movie worlds. Their objective was to bring back five objects that only gods could wield. They needed the protagonist, for he was the only one who could risk his life getting them and end up back in his living room upon death. They trained Raymond to manipulate the fabric of the movie worlds, create things from thin air, such as a cup of coffee to enjoy himself, or a deadly weapon to burst through anything. His imagination was his power.

The plot of The Portal is precarious and every move has a consequence. Many elements of storytelling, archetypes and plots are explored in a giant mash up of all kinds of movie genres.

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