Where the story began
It Started With a Model Railroad
A miniature desert town became a history, a film, and finally a screenplay spanning generations.
Follow the journeyBuild the world. Then tell its story.
The model came first.
Oasis Palms began as a train layout: a physical world in three dimensions, filled with streets, businesses, people, trains, and traces of lives that seemed to extend beyond the edge of the table.
“Tell the backstory.”
That simple lesson from Disney storytelling changed the project. Instead of treating the layout as scenery, I began asking who built this town, why it existed, and what happened here before the trains arrived.
The journey
One world, built five ways
The Model
A handmade desert world gave Oasis Palms its streets, landmarks, atmosphere, and point of view.
See the layout →The Backstory
A fictional history grew around the town, connecting its people to the Mojave and the eras that shaped it.
Read the history →The Layout Film
A tour of the finished world made friends ask the question that opened the next chapter: “Where is the whole movie?”
Watch the film →The Screenplay
Thirteen illustrated episodes now follow the Smith family and the desert kingdom they build, lose, and remember.
Read the screenplay →The Filmmaker Project
The world is opening to filmmakers who want to interpret its scenes through their own craft and tools.
Join the project →The world in 3D
Take the layout tour
This film captures the physical Oasis Palms—the model that started everything. Look closely and you can see the places, details, and atmosphere that later became part of the story world.
Explore the original world
Go deeper into the model
The next chapter
See what the model became.
Explore the screenplay, then discover the invitation for filmmakers to help bring the Mojave to life.