MDM Create is a new sister company formed by MDM Props, a leader in art manufacturing, scenic constriction, model making and large and small scale prop-making. Building on the company’s three decades of experience in the world of themed entertainment, MDM Create will offer a new turnkey solution for the industry.
To find out more about the benefits this new division will bring to the wider attractions industry, blooloop spoke to Russell Schofield, director of MDM Props, Eddie Saul, creative director at MDM Create and Cate Kappler, business director at MDM Create.
Introducing MDM Props
MDM began in 1993. Schofield, who started his career in the steel working industry in Sheffield before attending art college and then going on to work at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, explains the company’s origins:
“We started 30 years ago, during the boom time for West End musicals. The first thing we were involved in was Phantom of the Opera, and from there the company just grew and grew.”
From its beginnings in constructing sets for hit musicals, MDM Props quickly expanded into several different sectors, including theme parks and films. As its capabilities continued to grow, the team was also increasingly asked to get involved with the design side of projects.
“We would be given concepts, and we’d have to then flesh things out and make them real. Eventually, the logical step became clear: we should create a new division that can help with the whole process, under one roof.”
The company’s years of experience mean that it can offer a unique perspective, says Schofield:
“A lot of young companies don’t have the experience to make things. As experienced makers, we already understand that there are reasons why certain things can and can’t be done. That’s why we decided to create another part to the company, MDM Create.”
In addition to this, the company also runs Sugar Studios, a studio space available to hire within its London headquarters. Originally created as a space to shoot MDM creations, it includes an infinity studio with green screen and blackout facilities.
A personal company
Eddie Saul is the creative director for the new division. Because of his distinguished career that covers all aspects of the industry, from front of house and operations to design, fabrication, concert and stage design, project management and everything in between, he is the ideal choice to drive MDM Create forward as an exciting new division.
Saul first came to work for MDM Props 15 years ago. He then worked with the City of London on creative projects for Tower Bridge, followed by seven years at Merlin Entertainments, before re-joining the company this year, in order to head up MDM Create.
“What struck me straight away was how personal MDM is,” he says, reflecting on his earlier years with the firm. “It’s more than just words and images. They have the practical skills and the knowledge and the decades of experience to deliver on things.
“When I started with the company, it was based in a small facility in Brixton. Now, it is in the design district in Greenwich, occupying around 50,000 square feet, plus the studio space. It has grown into this behemoth that can take on lots of different jobs of all kinds, but can also still focus on the small things and more precise things that clients need.”
MDM Create are experts in their field
While working for Merlin Entertainments, Saul turned to MDM Props for work on projects like the Bear Grylls Experience.
“I was using MDM because I knew that they understood projects from a practical standpoint. They know exactly what is possible and how to can make it happen. In a way, MDM Create as a company has always been here. People come in with just a simple sketch and the team knows how to bring it to life.
“Now, by making it a formal division, we will have more resources. We will be hiring more people to flesh those ideas out and bring this extra capability that we have out of the shadows and at the forefront of this trio of companies.”
The company’s motto is ‘Anything is possible. Let’s create.’
Explaining this, Saul adds: “We want it to be inclusive. The idea of ‘Let’s create’ is about working with clients. We are bringing them on that journey with us and making sure that we can bring their big idea to life.”
Inside MDM Create’s wide range of services
MDM Create will have many different capabilities under one roof, from master planning, concept development, design detailing, large scale prototyping and building, as well as huge studio spaces for photography and film shoots. But what really makes the company unique is its personal, artisan approach to projects, says Saul.
“MDM Create will have the ability to have eyes on everything. I think that people want to be able to come to somewhere where everything is done under one roof. They want to know they are in a safe pair of hands from beginning to end.
“If they come to MDM Create, we will then be the conduit to working with MDM Props. We’ll liaise with them, which streamlines things and takes the stress out for the client. And we’ll work with Sugar Studios to get the filming and all the AV stuff done as well.
“Within all of that, we deal with the construction, the design, the production, and the budget, as well as making sure that it stays in keeping with their story as well. This approach ensures that things don’t get lost in translation. The more hands a story or a concept passes through, the more it loses context.
“This team has decades of knowledge, and that’s why people will want to come to us. But also, we’re in the centre of London. We’ve got this amazing pool of very talented people that come from all the city’s leading colleges, which then brings a freshness and a new approach.”
Making extraordinary things
This personal touch is evidenced in the team’s answers when we speak about favourite projects over the years. Kappler, who studied Fine Arts at Central Saint Martins and who has been with the company since 2010, says:
“One of my favourite parts of the job is the crucial conversations that you have with a varied set of stakeholders. So, for instance, one day it might be talking to a client about his tugboat, because we’re discussing welding an artist’s island onto his barge, which going to be pulled around the south coast of the UK. Or it might be sitting up in the box talking to the head production designer about whether we can make a prop’s wings flap a bit faster.
“It’s those kinds of interactions and it’s that kind of personable feeling that we’re trying to bring through to MDM Create. At the end of the day, everyone’s ideas are valid and they’re all spectacular in their different ways.
“At the core of it, we get to make extraordinary things. I’ve never fallen out of love or got bored with the company and I’m excited to do the stuff that we create.”
Schofield adds:
“I have worked with some truly extraordinary people here, who we have been able to give opportunities to, and who have come to use from around the world. Nurturing those people over the last thirty years and watching them flourish has been a huge privilege. That is what excites me about the job.”
A strong track record
MDM Props has worked on a huge range of different projects over the years many of which also demonstrate the company’s creative capabilities, showing the strong record that MDM Create will build on, whether it’s sculpting statues of famous icons or creating jaw-dropping themed shows and immersive theme entertainment venues.
“There are thousands of jobs that have come through this place,” says Saul. “For instance, working on the Bear Grylls Adventure for Merlin Entertainments.”
Saul was one of the team at Merlin who designed and delivered the attraction. He says that MDM Props were instrumental in helping him to develop his design ideas and make them into reality. MDM created many of the big showstopping pieces for this project, such as the big Chinook, which has become an iconic photo opportunity, as well as the F&B space.
“That work shows how MDM Create can help to master plan a visitor attraction,” says Saul. “We know how to put everything together. And we do it in such a creative way that it really tells a story for the guests.”
MDM Create projects
The new division has already hit the ground running, with project work under its belt for London’s latest immersive attraction – Tomb Raider: The Live Experience. During this globetrotting immersive journey, visitors help Lara Croft hunt for a valuable artefact, while facing puzzles, exploring an ancient tomb, and escaping a sinking ship. MDM Create worked alongside Little Lion Entertainment, the production company behind the experience.
“Little Lion Entertainment brought a fantastic IP based design concept to us,” explains Saul. “We helped take it to the next phase working up the detailed design, ensuring it was financially viable and making it a functional experience. We supplied animated fly-throughs as well as textured, rendered, and lit 3D models to depict the final product”.
MDM Create has also done some more recent projects for Merlin Entertainments, he adds:
“We redesigned the Madame Tussauds music experience, which opened recently. That showcases projection mapping and loads of new figures. We turned it on its head from being lots of figures in the space to suddenly being a whole festival environment.”
“We’ve also got lots of exciting projects in the pipeline too, which we are looking forward to being able to talk about in the near future.”
What’s next?
While MDM Create is proudly based in inner London, it is a global company that works on projects around the world, from the Middle East and across Europe to America.
“We’re currently looking at the masterplan for an aquarium design in the US, for example,” says Saul. “We’ve already been providing design services globally, and that’s only just going to keep developing.”
“If you can think it, we can do it,” he adds. “We can bring your big idea to life. We want to be that company that people can come to and bounce an idea around, and for them to say, ‘These are the people who can handle my project from concept through to completion.’
“It’s that collaborative, personable approach that makes us who we are.”
To find out more visit MDM Create’s website, here.
