Cory Hoffman was originally cast as Oren, but dropped out due to personal reasons. He was later replaced by Connor Hughes.
The cast endured many obstacles throughout shooting, including heat exhaustion, spiders the size of a human fist, several cases of dehydration and one concussion. During the scene where Oren is chased by a troll, a tree falls at him and he is supposed to jump out of the way. Connor failed to jump out of the way, however, and is actually hit by the tree, resulting in a lengthy scratch across his back.
This is Stephanie Metzger's first feature film. She not only wrote the script, but she is also director, producer, cinematographer, editor, and playing one of the leads.
The role of Kayne was originally to be split between multiple actors in different age groups. The role was still not casted at the table read, so Frank Meleca filled in. He blew everyone away, proving he could handle the dialogue as well as the multiple roles. Stephanie then re-wrote the role around, then 17 year old, Frank, giving the character a richer and more interesting back story.
The interior of the cave is actually a set that was built in Stephanie's own living room! The same set was used for the interior of Oren's cabin as well as the interior of Kayne's tent.