Kate Madison loves the world of fantasy fiction and draws inspiration from such well-known series as Game of Thrones, fantasy graphic novels and the work of other filmmakers. After the release of Born of Hope in 2009, she imagined a character that set her creative mind thinking. (If you haven’t heard about her multimillion-viewed Born of Hope fan film for LOTR, click here to read my article on it.)
A new fantasy adventure character
Christopher Dane discusses set construction on the back lot of Ren Studios. (Photo: Mythica Entertainment)
“I remember having this image of a girl with markings on her face,” she told Lydia Fallon of the Cambridge News, “which was probably inspired by computer games and various fantasy art and I thought, ‘Well, that could make something quite interesting if she was the only one with this mark,’ and it all kind of sparked from there.”
Madison conceived of a unique fantasy character and her world for a web-based series. She established a new production company, Mythica Entertainment, to handle production of the series. Currently in pre-production, Ren is the story of a young girl in the distant past who receives a mark on her face by an ethereal spirit and then must fight to survive and discover the meaning of it.
Ren will be an action adventure series with memorable characters, a strong female lead, and a plot line that will have viewers longing for the next installment of Ren. Producing a web series instead of a film will allow the story and characters to grow and adapt. Season One will include six ten-minute episodes, with plans to air the first episode over the web at the start of 2015. Madison wants fans of the series to contribute their ideas to shape future episodes.
These are among the many hand-made props for Ren – The Web Series. (Photo: Mythica Entertainment)
The KickStarter Campaign
Madison did not want to repeat the savings-depleting and catch-as-catch-can fundraising she endured during the making of Born of Hope. She decided to take a more practical and, it has proved, successful crowdfunding approach. On July 20, 2013 she launched a fundraising campaign on KickStarter.com to underwrite the initial production of Ren.
Fans could donate money at several levels of involvement and receive gifts and future downloads in return. Larger contributors could actually participate in the production. The goal was £35,000 in thirty days. That goal was surpassed by August 19.
Unlike the characters and story in Born of Hope, her new project Ren is entirely Madison’s own Intellectual Property. As such, she can pursue commercial means of raising additional money for the ongoing production. She has made modest initial efforts in offering items like a Ren mug and unique coins, but clearly the possibilities are wide open. No doubt these will become evident as the series grows in popularity.
Concept art for an action sequence in the marketplace for Ren (Illustration by Max von Vier)
New Production Facilities
With her successful fundraising efforts, Madison then set about finding a building where the majority of Ren production could be accomplished. Costs could be minimized by doing so. Several possible locations had a number of costly downsides. Then she discovered what she needed in Caxton about nine miles from Cambridge.
There was a vacant industrial building with suitable work areas and offices, and outside an ideal area to build the exterior sets. Madison affectionately refers to this as Ren Studios. Ren’s village is now under construction on the back lot, while indoors, costumes are being made, props constructed, and scripts being written.
Several Ren merchandise items are available for fans to purchase from the website, including these handsome coins. (Photo: Mythica Entertainment)
Website, blog and social media: tools for creation
As with Born of Hope, Madison is employing all the tools available on the web to keep fans updated on her latest efforts and the progress being made to build the world of Ren. The dedicated website ( https://www.rentheseries.com/ ) has categories for What is Ren? Recruitment, Meet the Team, News, and Get Involved. Madison has also posted a wish list of items needed for the production of Ren and is particularly open to donations of equipment.
Being in pre-production, Mythica Entertainment is seeking actors for various open roles and other needed production people. New characters will be introduced as the series progresses, and there will be calls to fill these roles as well.
Madison is living the dream of artistic creativity and bringing to life her fantastic ideas for her worldwide fans to watch and enjoy. However, she is not solely self-absorbed in her own projects but keeps the creative juices flowing by attending independent film conferences, fan conventions, performing as a background artist on shows like Downton Abbey and even attending the Cannes Film Festival itself.
Anthony Young
Anthony Young is a graduate of Pratt Institute, fulltime design engineer, published author of 11 nonfiction books, and freelance writer. He lives in Orlando, Florida.