In just a little over a year since the birth of the web series Riese, Foundation Visual Art & Design grad Ryan Copple has been riding a steep curve to international success — along with a number of other VFS alumni.

Recently, Ryan accompanied the other major players on the Riese team (including Film Production staff member Nicholas Humphries, series Producer and Director) to Los Angeles, where the web series was up for four Streamy Awards.

Riese‘s Director of Photography, Chris Kempinski, took home the award for Best Cinematography, kicking off a chain of exciting developments — from a deal with Syfy, to securing representation with one of the top agencies in Hollywood.

We stole a bit of time from Ryan’s busy schedule to get a recap of all the great news:

Hey, Ryan. It sounds like your recent trip to LA for the Streamy Awards ceremony was packed with good news. Can you start off by describing what this new deal with Syfy means for Riese and what the next steps are in expanding upon this world you’ve co-created?

Ryan: We’re really excited about the relationship with SyFy. They’ve licensed the web content, and have also expressed a strong interest in developing the show for broadcast television. With their backing, a number of other international parties have also expressed interest in the television option as well. Basically, we’re really well positioned to be able to find some option, whether it’s web or television, to keep Riese going.

And now you’re being repped by ICM? How did you get signed?

Ryan: Yes, I’m currently signed with George Ruiz, probably one of the most brilliant men I’ve met, and a true trailblazer in the new media realm. Another one of his clients, Jeff McPherson (Tikibar TV) put us in contact with him. He’d actually had a number of people send him links to our show prior to speaking with him. We had a meeting with him once we arrived in LA, and by the end decided we all wanted to work together.

Are you at all surprised by the growing success of the series, or was this your targeted outcome all along?

Ryan: Honestly, it’s all very surreal. I remember being at Comic-Con last year and thinking, “Wouldn’t it be funny if people actually watched our show?” I wouldn’t have ever expected to accomplish all this in a year. Certainly this was our intended trajectory for Riese, but I’m still amazed we were actually able to do it. I think it’s a testament to the power of new media, and taking distribution into your own hands. There are no gatekeepers anymore. It’s really liberating.

Are there any other projects you’re working on at the moment? What’s on the horizon?

Ryan: We’ve got a number of projects in development, and we’ve been approached by quite a few people to collaborate on their existing properties as well. None are really at a point where I can say much about them, but the success of Riese has definitely opened a lot of doors I never would’ve had access to before. You’ll definitely be seeing a lot more Riese, though.

Click here to visit the Riese blog and keep up to date with all the new developments.