AI Drama·Cyber x Eastern fantasy·Episode 1 in production

Tidal Echo

A girl who can hear the memory of tides discovers an old god rewriting human dreams through algorithms.

# Eastern fantasy# Cyber sea-city# Coming-of-age

Concept teaser · 30s atmosphere demo16:9 · 4K

Only charged if we hit the goal

Miss the goal and you're refunded in full — no fees.

Creator updates every two weeks

Public logs for storyboarding, sound, edits.

Clear AI-use boundaries

Training assets, generation scope and human contribution are disclosed.

Story

Why this story is worth making

One-line Story

A girl who can hear the memory of tides discovers an old god rewriting human dreams through algorithms.

Synopsis

2049. Rising seas drown the old city again and again. 16-year-old Lin Chaoxi is the last in a line that can hear the old gods whispering in the tide — she thought it was just an illness. Then she decodes a tidal signal looping between underwater stations and realizes a forgotten collective memory — the old god “Hui” — is being rewritten into human dreams by the algorithms running the upper city. She has to choose: become the old god's last translator and carry stories the algorithm has erased back to the tidal zone — or close her ears and live a normal life in the new city. Tidal Echo is a 6-episode AI drama made by a small team combining AI visuals with human-written scripts, performance direction and sound design.

Emotional Hook

If you love the cyber cities of Ghost in the Shell, the Eastern tales of Mushishi, the girl-and-sea of Children of the Sea — Tidal Echo will land. It's a tidal-zone love letter to every viewer who refuses to be tamed by the algorithm.

Creator's Note

Creator's note: why I'm making Tidal Echo

Yan Shen

Director · Writer

““AI shouldn't replace authors. It should lower production costs small teams can't afford, so weirder, more personal, riskier stories can finally get made.””

— Yan Shen, creator's notes

Why I make it

Stories in the short-video era look more and more alike because algorithms reward sameness. I want to use a low-budget AI drama to make stories that are too weird, too personal, too niche to ever get greenlit.

How I make it

AI assists with character concepts, scene atmosphere and storyboard sketches. Script, character arcs, performance direction and sound design are 100% human. Every AI-generated frame is hand-revised and color-graded before it reaches the final cut.

Delivery promise

After funding, we publish a production log every two weeks: character lock, storyboard lock, voice demo, rough cut, episode 1 master. Any delay will be disclosed 2 weeks in advance, with full refund allowed.

Dossier

Project dossier

Synopsis

After a typhoon night, Chaoxi finds she can recite the tidal code from 90s undersea stations word for word. Using it as an index, she uncovers the bargain between the old god Hui and the city's top-level algorithms: every rewritten city dream costs another fragment of collective memory. The 6-episode arc moves through Translation → Resistance → Sacrifice → Awakening.

Plan

How the money is used, and on what timeline

The first season consists of 6 episodes and is expected to be delivered within 12 months. Current progress: The third draft of the storyboard for the first episode, the first draft of the script for the second episode, and the voice acting for the protagonist have been completed.

Timeline

In progress

Episode 1 storyboard v3

Re-cutting the tidal-zone scenes for rhythm.

Funding hit

Lock the full 6-episode budget

The team enters formal production.

+ 6 weeks

Episode 1 storyboard locked

Public storyboard PDF for backers at $500+.

+ 10 weeks

30s teaser

Public teaser — our first promise to viewers.

+ 16 weeks

Episode 1 (12 min) launches

Backers get early access.

Budget breakdown

Voice & Music26%

AI Art22%

Post & Render18%

Platform14%

Team12%

Contingency8%

Risks & Mitigations

Generation consistency

AI characters drift across episodes; we've locked LoRAs and added a hand-fix pass.

Delivery delays

Any stage delayed more than 2 weeks is disclosed in advance and refundable.

Physical merch

Postcards and pins ship within 60 days of episode 1; late shipments earn 2× compensation.

AI rights boundary

All training assets are owned or licensed; full asset list will be published.

Project Participation

Subscribe to Tidal Echo's project participation

Backers subscribe in units to the show's revenue share. After launch,100% of distributable net revenue is split among this round's backers by units. Effective only on goal; full refund if we miss. Quarterly payouts to your ArtForce account after launch.

Round Goal

$500,000

Unit Price

$100

0.02% / unit

Total Units

5,000 units

Remaining Units

5,000 units

$500,000

Backers

Subscribed 0 / 5,000 units (0%)Effective after payment · refund rules apply if goal is missed

How participation is allocated

→ Split among this round's backers by units100%

Each unit corresponds to 0.02% of distributable net revenue. With 5,000 units in this round, backers collectively take 100% of net revenue.

Subscription calculator

Subscription amount ($)

→

You get

1 units

Participation share

0.020%

Low-income scenario

Net revenue

$100

Illustrative distribution

Medium-income scenario

Net revenue

$500

Illustrative distribution

High-income scenario

Net revenue

$1,000

Illustrative distribution

* Scenarios for illustration only; not a revenue promise. The project may be delayed, fail, or earn less than projected.

Subscription tiers

Core benefit is project participation; production logs, badges, credits and chats are extras.

$10,000

PlusRecommended

100 units·0.020% project participation

Extras (non-financial)

Backer badge

Custom amount

≈ 1 units · 0.020% project participation · Round remaining $500,000

Settlement

Settled quarterly, paid within 30 days after each quarter end

$50 minimum distribution, smaller amounts roll over

Period-by-period revenue reports available in your dashboard

Distribution period: while ArtForce holds and commercializes the show's rights

Please confirm you understand the following risks before backing

·This is not a principal-protected product

·The project may be delayed or fail to launch

·Subscription distributions are not guaranteed

·Distributions may be zero

·Project participation in this round is generally non-transferable

·KYC and risk acknowledgement required before subscribing

·The above is subject to compliance design in your actual jurisdiction

Updates

Production logs

2026.05.18Production logs #03

Episode 1 storyboard v3: slowing the tidal-zone rhythm

Tightened the first 4 minutes from 38 shots to 26 — leaving more air for the waves and the girl's breathing.

2026.05.04Production logs #02

Character lock: Chaoxi, Shen Ming, Old god Hui

Visual and voice references locked for the three leads. Cross-episode consistency is mostly solved now that the LoRAs are fixed.

2026.04.10Production logs #01· Init

Co-create launch · creator manifesto

Why I'm making an AI drama that pushes back on algorithmic taming. Full manifesto on the creator blog.

Co-Creators

Push this show to launch — together with the creator

Co-creator discussion, creator Q&A, story votes, identity wall — your voice goes straight to the creator and shapes the project.

Co-creator discussion

Only subscribers or followers can join

Subscribe to this project to unlock the co-creator discussion.

Sea-mist

Founding

Please stretch the tidal sound at the end of episode 3 — give the emotion a pause.

Co-creator wall

Personal amounts and distributions are private

Founding

Backed in first 72

Early

612

Joined at pitch stage

Core feedback

124

Frequent discussion & voting

Secondary market

Opens after launch

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is the AI trained on third-party work?

No. We only use our own illustrations, licensed assets and openly-licensed datasets. The full asset list will be published in episode 1's credits.

What if the project is delayed?

Any stage delayed by more than 2 weeks will be disclosed in advance — and any backer who hasn't consumed their rewards can get a full refund.

Will I be charged if the goal ist`t hit?

No. Charges only happen after the funding goal is reached. If we miss the goal, all payments are auto-refunded in full.

Raised $0 · 0%