The film is based on a short story by Philip K. Dick, which first appeared in 1956 in the magazine Fantastic Universe. Dick was a prolific science fiction writer, whose work "I Can Dream It for You Wholesale," was turned into the celebrated film "Total Recall," although the two pieces bear only passing resemblance. His "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" became the Ridley Scott visually stunning "Blade Runner." The 1995 film "Screamers" and 2002 film "Impostor" were also based on his stories. Dick lived most of his life in California, but was born in Chicago in 1928. Over his career, he wrote 36 novels and five short story collections between 1952 and 1982, when he died in Santa Ana, California. In 1962, he won the highest award in the science fiction world for "The Man In The High Castle." Intensely distrustful of government and authority, Dick is known for his interest in the twin subjects of paranoia and delusion. Not surprising, since he suffered from paranoia and went through five marriages. Later in life, Dick claimed to have contact with a force beyond Earth called Zebra. Recently, two films have been done on his life: "The Nervous Breakdown of Philip K. Dick," a 22 minute film produced in 1996 and "The Gospel According to Philip K. Dick," a low budget biography released in 2000 and directed by Mark Steensland.