“It’s just another thing the (Covid-19) pandemic took from us—deep, fulfilling, nourishing relationships on the job.”

So wrote veteran American actor, writer, producer and #WBWD Kevin Scott Allen in a guest article published in the Los Angeles Times in early 2021. The article, titled “Wish You Were Here. With Love, Your Work Friend,” was a poignant commentary on the impact the pandemic-enforced lockdowns and social isolation had on himself and his fellow actors.

Explaining to readers how the isolation impacted him personally, Allen, who is best known for his roles in Alias (2001), Prison Break (2005) and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993), said there was a hole in his life the size of the universe.

 

The emotion behind those words is there for all to see in the soon-to-be-released global movie Anno 2020, in which Allen plays the central character of Elijah, a self-styled philosopher who mentors a variety of colorful individuals similarly affected by the lockdowns elsewhere in America and around the world.

Billed as a global kaleidoscope of interconnected characters seeking redemption, forgiveness, and answers amidst the chaos of 2020, the Australian-produced mystery-drama was shot in 17 cities on four continents during the lockdowns on a micro-budget of $6,000.

The film was produced by Sydney-based Gil Ben-Moshe of MoneyShot Productions and helmed by New Zealand-born director James Morcan. Both act in it as well, with Ben-Moshe playing a major role.

The screenplay, which Morcan adapted from his published novel of the same name, immediately resonated with Allen. Speaking from his Los Angeles home this week, the respected actor says it mirrored what was happening in the world then.

“I was absolutely intrigued by the way it was to be filmed and by the fact that it was a truly global production,” he says. “Not to mention the filmmakers’ boldness and enthusiasm. I was so impressed that I jumped at the opportunity to be part of it.”

Allen describes Morcan, for whom Anno 2020 represents his directorial debut, as an actor’s dream for a director.

“James gave me total freedom to find the character’s voice and encouraged me to find my way of conveying the story. He gave me full reign to improvise and create my own dialogue. I felt this character sinking further into my bones with each scene we filmed.”

As for filming during the lockdown while separated from the director, crew and fellow actors, he said it was as weird as hell not having folks running around on set.

“Being simultaneously on set, so to speak, with other actors on other continents via a mobile phone connection will be a lasting memory for me, as will the rapport I quickly established with my terrific onscreen brother Greg Poppleton (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader).

“Filming a desert sequence at magical Whitewater near Palm Springs, California, it was only me, the cameraman and his assistant physically on-site, with the director and producer on mobile phone in Australia. That was a real highlight. It was strangely liberating in that it was more real and I didn’t have to ‘ignore’ dozens of crew members during the takes.”

Allen’s decision to join the Anno 2020 cast proved a good one. The film has enjoyed recent success in film festivals, most notably winning the Titan International Film Festival’s “Best Experimental Film” award in Sydney, Australia, achieving quarter-finalist status in the “Best Film” category at the International British Film Festival 2023 in London and being an official selection in the Symbiotic Film Festival in Ukraine.

Allen is currently filming what he describes as a wonderful Matt McClung-helmed suspense-horror film Menagerie in which he plays a ghost who haunts a hotel after having died early last century.

In addition to having acquired countless credits acting in film, television and theatre over 30 years, Allen is an author whose books include his nonfiction work Conquering the Film and Television Audition and the well-reviewed mystery novel Murder Can Be Fatal, recently published by Film Arts Press. He is currently working on two more novels.

Allen’s biography on Amazon advises readers that he is also a sought-after, on-camera acting teacher and audition coach. His students’ successful auditions have won them starring roles in films and co-star, guest star and series regular on television.

A married man, his “Trivia” page on the international film site IMDb advises, among other surprising revelations, that he went to the same prep school as Ethan Hawke, was schooled in Switzerland, once spoke French better than English, was the very last actor hired/cast in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, won the Best Actor Award at the 2011 Edgemar Short Film Festival for Switchboard and filmed his first television show when he was only 7 years old.

Born in Washington, D.C., Allen grew up in California, Virginia, North Carolina and New Jersey. He was educated at the Hun School of Princeton and at Collège Champittet in Switzerland, where he learned to speak French fluently. He then studied theatre and dramatic arts at California’s University of Redlands.

In 1979, at the Globe Theatre on Broadway, Los Angeles, Allen played Buckingham in Henry VI, Part 2 and Clifford in Henry VI, Part 3. An early television appearance came in the Otherworld episode “The Zone Troopers Build Men.”

Sydney producer Ben-Moshe says working with Allen was one of the highlights for him on the Anno 2020 production.

“Kevin’s resume extends further than the Great Wall of China as this actor has done it all, and when you see firsthand this exquisite talent at work you cannot be anything but in awe of his status as a first-class actor,” says Ben-Moshe.

“Even more impressive than his enviable talent was his attitude on set. He trusted first-time director James Morcan from day one. Kevin’s respectful and humble approach was a lesson to every actor regardless of their experience.”

This wasn’t lost on Morcan who describes Allen as the type of artist filmmakers love to collaborate with.

“Kevin’s able to walk the tightrope of being the sort of actor who completely submerges himself into any character he plays, juxtaposed with having the ability to listen to a director’s perspective and adjust accordingly,” says Morcan.

“Given his career, which dates back to 1970s Hollywood and includes working with titans of the performing arts like Andy Kaufman, I found it inspiring to observe how Kevin masterfully approaches characterization, storytelling and the filmmaking process in general.”

Morcan considers Anno 2020 a vignette film.

“It’s a rare type of movie where there are various plots instead of just one. These are told separately, but they all intersect at the end to ultimately become part of one larger story.”

Anno 2020 boasts an award-winning ensemble of international actors. Other cast members include leading Australian Erin Connor, American veterans Sheila Ball and Chinese-American actress Crystal J. Huang, up-and-coming Californian Jessica Castello (Oildale) and Australian child actress Audrey Nitschke.

Asked whether he would work with Anno 2020’s filmmakers again,  Allen declared,  “In a heartbeat! I felt I had a true partner in [the director] James, not merely a taskmaster. Every scene had a true feeling of creativity, not simply storytelling. It was the same with Gil. Every moment he was on screen I was riveted by his true exploration of the scene and how it affected his character.”

 

Anno 2020 celebrated its world premiere at a red-carpet event in Sydney on April 7. Beyond that, interstate cinematic screenings in Australia-wide are planned, followed by screenings in New Zealand and the U.S., along with online distribution on major streaming platforms.

photo credit: MoneyShot Productions, Kevin Allen Scott.