MACOMB TOWNSHIP, MI-- Kaleidoscope Koi Entertainment has just announced actor/filmmaker Erik Steele in the lead role of the forthcoming Aladdin 3477 movie, set to shoot this summer. The live-action feature film is based on the classic Arabian Nights tale, set 1,500 years in the future and is written and directed by renown Artist Matt Busch. The epic sci-fi adventure isn't a musical like Disney’s Aladdin, nor is it animated, but said to look more like Star Wars and set in futuristic Asia. Preliminary filming for background plates have already been shot in India, Thailand, the Kingdom of Cambodia, China, and Switzerland.

Well over 10,000 applicants from around the world submitted to the Aladdin 3477 casting call this past January, with a large percentage of actors hoping to nab the title role. While Busch set out to cast an unknown as everyone's favorite charming thief, Erik Steele has paid his dues working in many aspects of the entertainment industry on both sides of the camera. Busch elaborates, "Erik is one of those creative talents that should have been a household name years ago, so we're incredibly lucky to have him now before the rest of the world discovers this guy. He's a wonderful artist, actor, filmmaker, and even has solid chops as a stand-up comedian."

Fans of Disney's Aladdin might have been expecting an actor with a clone resemblance of the beloved cartoon, but Producer Lin Zy claims that this version has evolved, literally from the past. "We all love the Disney version, but there is no point in trying to duplicate that masterpiece in any way. Our movie takes place in a different time, in different places, with different cultural settings. Most people don't even realize that the original Aladdin story takes place in China, so we're drawing more from the original source material and expanding from there." It would seem that the new generation is ready for a new Aladdin, as the movie's Facebook page has already surpassed 10,000 "likes", impressive for any independent film, let alone one that hasn't even begun principle photography yet.

Though Aladdin 3477 is an independently financed film, the scope of the film is incredibly large. Busch claims that the shift in budget was easy to avoid hiring name actors and instead spend money on equipment, elaborate sets, and hundreds of costumes. That's not to say that the actors in the film don't have street creed. Christi Perovski, who plays opposite Steele in the role of Princess Kamala, can be seen in movies like Drew Barrymore's Whip It and Real Steel with Hugh Jackman. James Polony plays one of Aladdin's accomplices, and previously been in films like Red Dawn and A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas. Sareeya McNally portrays a cyborg aid to the princess, and has already been in movies like Ides of March and Transformers 3.

"At the end of the day, this movie has nothing to do with names." comments Busch. "We're all aiming to make a great movie with a wonderful story that audiences will love. The goal is to create something timeless, so that's where we're putting the focus." Kaleidoscope Koi Entertainment has recently moved into a 4,500 square foot facility in Clinton Township, Michigan, where production offices are set up and construction on sets have already begun. Aladdin 3477 begins shooting this May with an expected release in 2015.

You can find out more about Aladdin 3477 at the official site: www.Aladdin3477.com

The official Aladdin 3477 Facebook page is: www.Facebook.com/Aladdin3477