Next month SBS 2 launches new six-part Australian series Unplanned America, which follows Aussie mates Gonzo, Nick and Parv as they throw out the travel books and backpacker guides and hit the highways to explore some of the country’s lesser seen subcultures .
The trio drive approximately 35,000km, cross more than 35 states and find themselves in a host of unlikely scenarios. They immerse themselves in the worlds they stumble across, exploring the LA porn scene, rolling with Chicago’s up and coming underground rappers, and living with drifters in the Californian desert.
Whether going on night patrol with real life superheroes in Seattle to exploring the crumbling metropolis of Detroit, changing the ice on a cryogenically frozen corpse in a Colorado mountain hut or uncovering New York’s gay underground ballroom scene, travelling without a plan has never been so enlightening.
In conjunction with the launch of the series on TV, SBS Online have commissioned a shareable, highly addictive, hilarious and nostalgic side-scrolling online video game adapted from the boys’ adventures in the series. The three-level retro platform game is being developed by Bitrave and will be available at the SBS website in the coming weeks.
SBS Chief Digital Officer Marshall Heald said:
“SBS Online has a strong track record of creating and commissioning unique, shareable, and engaging online content. I’m thrilled that we have been able to develop Unplanned America into a truly multiplatform experience that we know the core SBS 2 audience of 16-39 year olds will interact with. This game is classically retro, innovative and perfectly ties in to the sub-cultures explored in the series.”
Unplanned America is no ordinary travel series. The boys packed their bags and trusty camera and headed off on a shoestring budget, funded by themselves. As the journey progressed, finances were stretched and the team turned to crowd-funding website Pozible to raise money to complete the production. From 125 personal investors the team raised $9,000 just in time to have their car engine replaced and continued filming the series.
Episode One – Monday May 12, 9.30pm on SBS 2
Gonzo, Nick and Parv make their way to Seattle where they go on street patrol with Phoenix Jones and his rag-tag crew of real life crime fighters, known as the Rain City Superheroes, to learn the motivations behind the masked vigilantes’ much ridiculed actions. Later the guys pay a visit to the Real Doll factory in Southern California, where frighteningly life-like sex dolls are made to order for discerning customers.
Episode Two – Monday May 12, 10pm on SBS 2
Gonzo, Nick and Parv head to Southern Illinois to attend the lawless Gathering of the Juggalos a music festival for fans of horror-core hip-hop group Insane Clown Posse. The fans, known as Juggalos and classified as a gang by the FBI, wear clown make-up, dress in horror-themed outfits, carry weapons and trade prescription drugs, but the crew realise that there’s much more than meets the eye when it comes to the “Juggalo Family”. From the Gathering the boys head east to New York City to dive headfirst into the gay, African-American/Latina underground ballroom dance scene. These intense dance battles and Zoolander-esque “walk-offs” are like nothing they have ever witnessed. They quickly learn that these aren’t your regular dance crews, but more surrogate families for ostracised youth.
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