Welcome to Corona Island!

Shooting Stars takes place within the beautiful backdrop of Corona Island, a lush self-governing tropical resort that is far away from the rest of the world. The island has a number of appealing places for tourists, off-duty Actors and Staff, and Agents with free time to visit:

Major Areas:

Studio District: 4-D Studios occupies a large portion of Corona Island to qualify as its own district, and keeps large concrete and metal fences around the edges of the Studio Lot in order to keep the riffraff out. Curiously, despite the fact that they occasionally film waterfront, underwater, etc, scenes, nobody has seen them filming on the waters around Corona Island...

Uptown District: The fabulous Uptown District is home to the rich and nearly-rich, ranging from reasonably sedate yet incredibly expensive houses to incredibly lavish and extravagant mansions. Most upper-class Stars (and their Agents) have homes somewhere within the Uptown District, while those on the lower rungs of the acting ladder are more likely to live in apartments in the Downtown District, or even the Waterfront District if their careers are really at rock bottom.

* Sunview Terrace. The richest of the rich own mansions on beautiful Sunview Terrace, with excellent views of the ocean and of Corona Peak, fences to keep out the riffraff, and their own security to ensure that thieves and troublemakers end up in custody.

* Hellington Estates. This gated community of smaller, yet still distinctly beautiful, homes is home to the reasonably rich and famous. Guarded by the CCSD, with alarms to call the CCPD where necessary, Hellington Estates almost never has serious crime.

* Corona Community Security Department. This company is one of the few operating in Uptown District, and provides security to the homes of Hellington Estates and other upscale community segments.

Airport District: The Airport District is home to Corona Airlines, a small airport that services private planes and runs airline routes to several international destinations (including the United States, China, India, England, France, Germany, and Australia). Most arrivals to Corona Island are via these private aircraft. There are several related businesses that exist within the Airport District to service the rest of the island.

* Bird's Eye Helicopters. Bird's Eye is the only agency licensed to operate helicopters on Corona Island. Officially, this is because Corona Island is subject to frequent tropical storms, making operation by untrained personnel highly dangerous to the island's inhabitants. Unofficially, the popular rumor is that the island's owners don't want anyone to be able to spy on the goings-on of people too easily. Bird's Eye works in concert with local authorities during search-and-rescue operations, particularly around Corona Peak.

* Corona Airlines. This private airline service handles the maintenance and staffing of all inbound or outgoing flights, including of private craft. The official reason for this is, as mentioned above, the frequent tropical storms and wind currents that make travel in this region a particularly dangerous challenge.

Downtown District: The Downtown District is home to Corona Island's thriving commercial center. Many corporations have decided to host offshore branches or headquarters here to avoid pesky legal jurisdictional problems, and branches of several popular retail and service chains have opened to meet the demands of the rich and famous (and those who serve the needs of the rich and famous.) The better apartment buildings and hotels are located in this section of town.

* Glib Beat Offices. The Corona Island branch of Glib Beat operates from this glimmering chrome edifice in downtown Corona. They are technically the closest thing the island has to a news agency, and report on the activities of the island - although they like to focus on 4-D Studios in particular.

* Amos Distributions. This large-scale distributor handles most of the island's incoming and outgoing shipping concerns, and is considered the primary force governing the Waterfront District.

* Garry's. As recently as thirty years ago, Garry's was a small-time store on Corona Island with little business. However, since the Garry who originally founded the company (Garry Helley) sold the company to Japanese investors, the store has prospered, expanding into the

* La Fantastique. A ritzy, high-end boutique to serve the needs of the rich and famous. If they don't have it, they can probably have it ordered and in stock within a week or less if the price is right. La Fantastique focuses mostly on expensive furniture and clothing, but operates a 'finder's service' for other market goods when necessary. All of its products are top-of-the-line and carry a top-of-the-line price.

* Tricolo General Medical Center. Not quite large enough to be considered a hospital, Tricolo General is still sufficient for most medical emergencies, as well as any 'cosmetic surgery' that might need to be done to help preserve an Actor's career.

* Grieson's. This upper-class restaurant caters to the richest of the rich. In most cases, seating is strictly by appointment, with only the most popular customers able to get a seat when they need one. The restaurant is owned by a master chef, Morton Grieson, who is constantly working on new dishes to supplement his menu.

* Clu's Catering. Clu's is a medium-sized outfit that specializes in supplying food to hungry workers on site - whether it's donuts for the EvilMegaCorp board meeting, pizza for a LAN party, or sub sandwiches and veggie platters for second-string Actor gatherings.

* The Golden Lotus. A beautifully decorated Chinese restaurant, reasonably fancy, that also delivers. Rumors that they occasionally have battles of honor with Clu's Catering over the right to deliver food to particular locations are hopefully exaggerated.

* Tony's Pizza. A somewhat greasy pizza joint that is frequented by workers from the Waterfront District. The pizza is actually pretty good, and they do deliver - although almost never to 4-D Studios, for some reason.

* Corona Island Police Department. Corona Island has a small police force, which is usually sufficient to handle most problems. Due to Corona Island's low crime rate, they find themselves breaking up fights or arresting speeding motorists most of the time. They occasionally also assist other entities in conducting searches for lost or missing persons.

* Murray Manor. A reasonably-priced apartment complex with decent monthly rates.

Waterfront District: This area handles the bulk of Corona Island's shipping; large amounts of food and supplies are trucked in to meet the demands of the many businesses that operate on the Island, particularly 4-D Studios itself. There are a large number of privately-owned and company-owned warehouses in this area, that might be used for anything from storage to light industrial work. It is also the section of the island where less 'pretty', but equally necessary, businesses (and the less pleasant apartment buildings) are located.

* Trizo's Body Mods. A car shop specializing in custom modifications. Despite being located in the Waterfront District, it does body work for many of the rich and would-be rich of Corona Island.

* Corona Island Port Authority. The Corona Island Port Authority patrols the waters around Corona Island, to ensure the safety of swimmers and boaters. Most of their duties involve stopping drunken speedboaters or rescuing ships that have run aground on the reefs, as well as conducting searches for lost ships.

* Palm Ridge Apartments. A low-rent series of apartments with little value to speak of.

Corona Peak: The skyline of Corona Island is dominated by a large dormant volcano that attracts mountain climbers looking for a test of their skills. It is also a popular area for camping and hiking, and the beaches around Corona Peak make an excellent swimming and surfing spot.

* Corona Peak Park Authority. The Park Authority is responsible for preserving the beauty and wonder of Corona Peak, and conducts environmental preservation initiatives to a lesser extent throughout the rest of the island. They are also generally responsible for saving campers, hikers, and mountaineers from themselves, and searching for missing persons in conjunction with other local authorities.