This post first appeared on Ren’s Patreon page.
I’m delighted to report that Ren Season Two was awarded Best Costume Design at Die Seriale yesterday. I’ve been attending the festival in Giessen, Germany for the past few days, and the love the series has received from the people I’ve met is really something special.
Ren was up against some tough competition from a wide range of series in all genres, of all lengths and from all over the world. Budgets varied tremendously too. When Season One was doing the festival circuit in 2016-17, most web series were creator-financed or crowdfunded; nowadays many of them have backing from streamers or broadcasters. But our series still stands up, and the award proves that. Congratulations to Suzanne Emerson, and to Miriam Spring Davies whose original costume designs are the foundation Suzanne built on, plus the whole team who helped to make the outfits and dress the cast each day.
Die Seriale had an enjoyable programme of screenings, panel discussions and networking events. I took part in the cinematography panel alongside the talented Jana Laemmerer from the German series Feelings, which deservedly went on to win Best Cinematography. This panel was recorded as a podcast that will be out next month, and I will of course share the link then. I also participated in a Q&A after the screening of Ren (episode 204, “The Heretics’ Market”, followed by the Season Three trailer) and had a table at the digital market where I chatted to a few people interested to learn about our business model (ha!) and get advice. The festival staff and fellow attendees were super friendly and made the whole event an absolute joy. I hope to see some of them again soon at other web festivals.
(By the way, we don’t spend your money on the costs of attending festivals, only on the occasional entry fee.)
The other big event for us recently was MCM Comic Con London. Ten of us from the series, plus friends and loved ones, invaded the con on 24th May to present a cast panel and a crowdfunding workshop. Both received genuine interest from the punters, and a good time was had by all. We filmed the cast panel and it will be released on Patreon this weekend.
And how is the making of the series itself going? Most of the music has now been composed for episode 302, filmed last year, and the colour grading of 304 is nearly done too, which will make Block One visually complete.
Since filming on Block Two wrapped in early May, the directors Alan, Jo and Mark have been busy shaping their episodes with editors Cat and Sophie. Soon it will be time for me to get involved, but for now I’m just another audience member excited for the moment I get to see the new episodes.