31 Seconds

In a dystopian society, 31 seconds can determine life or death. In this world, everyone must remain on camera. If their camera goes off, the countdown begins, and they have 31 seconds before their breathing stops.

Saoirse Wells (17) lives off the grid with her father, Roy (48). Roy’s goal in life is to keep his daughter alive. This drives every one of his behaviors and since her mother’s death, the drive has been colder and harder. While they live on their farm, that world still rules them. If the battery on their cameras should die, they have 31 seconds before a passive strangulation takes place: the body will not act when the mind tells it to breathe.

From her world, Saoirse sees only one set of lights from her bedroom window – those of a giant power substation. The lines extended their glow all the way into the city. Of course, the lights pulled at her teenage pique. She thought frequently of following them into the eerie night and into what her father described as a “dangerous and decadent” society on the other end.

The disruption in their worlds comes one day when a young boy, Thorne, arrives at the hidden property. On the condition that he show Roy how he found their house, he is allowed to stay for one night. The boy tells Saoirse what about the decimation of the poor neighborhoods in the center of the city. He describes the increasing power outages that are radiating outward. He speaks of the Collective, the frontier, renegades, and rebellion. With conviction, he announces that very soon nobody will be safe. That is why he is running.

He is gone in the morning. As much as Roy wants to secure and seclude, the outside has come in and his teenage daughter is impacted. After fighting with her father, Saoirse follows Thorne’s trail. Their interaction leads her to an incredible discovery: she was not born in a hospital, so she was not “vaccinated” by the system. In fact, she is one of the very few people immune to it. This means she can be off camera.

This revelation is also discovered by the system and the collective. This means she is a threat and threats must be eliminated. Saoirse realizes she is a target that must be hunted and destroyed. The Collective sends its 5 most dangerous specimens to do just that.

Saoirse returns to her father to find blood. The battle has just begun. Saoirse must now survive. She and Thorne head to the border where she would be able to escape. They are pursued every step of the way. When it comes to actually leaving, Saoirse understands that hiding and running away will not stop them. Only she can face the danger determined to hunt her and humanity to extinction.

In a moment, it seems, she grows up, embraces her birth, and determines to fight.