What Time Warp is about — and why Rock Springs matters
Time Warp is a 2026 documentary that plants itself in Rock Springs, Wyoming, a once-thriving mining town that doesn't exactly advertise itself as a hub of queer performance art, and watches what happens when a determined drag theater company decides to stage a shadow-cast production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show on the occasion of the original film's 50th anniversary. At the center of everything is Kenny Starling — 25 years old, charismatic in the way that makes you wonder how a room ever existed before he walked into it — leading a troupe of performers who are carving out visibility in a community that hasn't always made space for them. The film runs 112 minutes and doesn't waste a frame of it, moving between rehearsal rooms, costume hunts, and the quieter, more vulnerable conversations that tell you who these people actually are when the glitter comes off.
How Time Warp came together — production, premiere, and the Tribeca spotlight
Director Allison Berg brought Time Warp to the Tribeca Festival in 2026, where it screened in the Documentary Competition — a meaningful placement for a film that could easily have been filed under "feel-good regional story" but is doing something considerably sharper. Berg, whose background is in character-driven documentary work, spent what was clearly an extended period embedded with the Starling Company, and that closeness shows. The film doesn't feel surveilled; it feels inhabited.
Production support came through The Film Collaborative's fiscal sponsorship program, which is worth noting because it signals the kind of scrappy, mission-driven infrastructure behind the project — this wasn't a studio documentary with a marketing budget and a pre-sold streaming deal. It was built from the ground up, which gives it a texture that slicker productions often lose. The Starling Company itself, as the film makes clear, operates with similar resourcefulness: costumes are scrounged, rehearsal spaces are negotiated, and every performance is earned rather than assumed.
As of this writing, broad theatrical and streaming rollout details haven't been formally announced — the film is primarily a festival title right now, with its Tribeca world premiere serving as its public debut. Aggregator scores on Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic aren't yet populated, and box-office data doesn't apply in the traditional sense for a documentary at this stage of its release. Movie OTT tracks streaming availability across major platforms as distribution deals are confirmed, so checking the Where-to-Watch widget at the top of this page will give you the most current picture of where you can actually find it.
Why Time Warp stands out from other queer documentary films in 2026
What's striking is how Berg resists the urge to make Time Warp a straightforward triumph narrative. Yes, there's joy here — genuine, infectious, sometimes tearful joy — but the film is equally honest about the weight these performers carry. Local council opposition, national legislative pressure on drag and trans rights, the specific exhaustion of fighting for your right to exist in a place you also happen to love: the documentary holds all of that without letting it crush the energy of the performance story.
Kenny Starling is a genuinely compelling documentary subject. Not because he's performing for the camera — he's clearly not — but because he seems to contain contradictions that Berg is patient enough to let breathe. He's 25 and leading a company, which means he's figuring out leadership in real time, and there are moments in the film where you can see that weight land on him. One rehearsal sequence in particular, where a costume crisis threatens to derail a key number and Starling pivots without missing a beat, tells you more about his character than any interview segment could.
Honestly, the shadow-cast format itself is doing more narrative work here than it might first appear. Rocky Horror has always been about permission — permission to be weird, to be sexual, to take up space in a room full of people who might not understand you. Staging it in Rock Springs, Wyoming, in 2026, isn't nostalgia. It's argument. Berg understands that, and the film is structured to make sure you do too. Movieott.com has been covering the wave of queer-focused documentaries hitting the festival circuit this year, and Time Warp sits near the top of that cohort.
Where to stream Time Warp online
Time Warp is currently available on major OTT services — and the quickest way to confirm exactly which platforms are carrying it right now is to check the Where-to-Watch widget at the top of this page, which Movie OTT updates in real time as distribution agreements are finalized or change. Streaming availability for festival documentaries can shift quickly in the months following a premiere, so a title that's on one platform today may add or move to others as licensing windows open. Movie OTT aggregates availability across the major streaming services so you don't have to check each one manually — a small thing, but genuinely useful when a film like this is in the middle of its rollout phase.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who directed Time Warp (2026)?
Time Warp was directed by Allison Berg, a documentary filmmaker whose work focuses on character-driven stories. The film had its world premiere in the Documentary Competition at the 2026 Tribeca Festival.
Q: Where can I watch Time Warp?
Time Warp is available on major OTT services, though specific platform availability can shift as distribution deals evolve. The Where-to-Watch widget on this Movie OTT page reflects the most current streaming options.
Q: Is Time Warp based on a true story?
Yes — Time Warp is a documentary, meaning it follows real people and real events. Kenny Starling and the Starling Company are an actual drag theater troupe based in Rock Springs, Wyoming, and their shadow-cast production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show is the real event the film documents.
Q: What is the runtime of Time Warp (2026)?
Time Warp runs 112 minutes. It premiered at Tribeca in 2026 and is classified under the Documentary and Music genres.
Q: What is the Starling Company in Time Warp?
The Starling Company is the drag theater troupe led by Kenny Starling in Rock Springs, Wyoming. The group stages a shadow-cast performance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show as the central event of the documentary, using the production to advocate for queer visibility in their community.
Final thoughts on Time Warp — who should watch it
Time Warp isn't just for Rocky Horror devotees, though they'll find plenty to love. It's for anyone who's wondered what it costs to build something beautiful in a place that wasn't built for you. Berg's film is specific — Rock Springs, Wyoming, 2026, one company, one show — and that specificity is exactly what makes it land. Hard to say if it'll cross over to mainstream awards attention, but it deserves the conversation. If you're using Movie OTT to find your next documentary watch, put this one at the top of the list.
