The earliest hint I have, for getting in directing was completely high-jacking the family camcorder and filming chase scenes in the garage with matchbox cars (which are surprisingly resistant to charcoal lighter fluid and open flames by the way). Then came, what I would have to assume, common sources of inspiration for a boy in the 90s- MTV music videos, filming skating, and the perfect marriage of the two: Spike Jonze.
I’d be lying if I said I had a distinctive style yet given that this is my first feature. Though finding and establishing your own style is definitely a worthwhile pursuit. I can rattle off a dozen directors that have styles that I would like to be in the same world as but if I had to pick one it would have to be Soderbergh. The reasons are simple. Started off in the indie world. Insane range and breakneck output. He’s an absolute savage in that regard.
Or Something next festival screening dates are
– Friday, October 18 – Bushwick Film Festival – Brooklyn Premiere
– Friday, November 1 – SCAD Savannah Film Festival – Southeast Premiere
Indieactivity: Did you hire a casting director, or do you cast yourself? What criteria goes into your casting?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): We worked with Ruby McCollister whose an casting director and an incredible actor. She was originally set to play the vintage store register worker in the opening scene but she had something come up. She remained a part of the process and helped us on a lot of the smaller roles which were just as important. We were in a pinch to find the UPTOWN MIKE character which I felt was the single most important roll next to the two leads because of his surprise entrance in the third act.
Like imagine if Will Farrell’s character in Wedding Crashers was anything else but Will. Would have be a massive flop. I ended up cold emailing David Zayas’s [DEXTER] manager the script, look book, and a passionate letter. To his manager’s credit he called me 45 minutes later saying, this is the type of role David has been looking for having just come off a Broadway run. It was such a treat working with an absolute pro such as David. So yeah, shoot your shot, y’all.
Without giving anything away, tell us a little bit about the script, and what drew you to it?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): The shooting script was a very tight 67 pages, however it’s almost entirely dialogue. So the whole minute a page thing was sort of irrelevant. There’s almost zero exposition in the script which allowed me plenty of room to really shape the look and feel of the film, major tip of the hat to Jeff Leads Cohen my DP who played a large role in this as well. The conversational and very real feeling dialogue is what initially drew me. I could see the walk and talk type Linklater films as I read it. I’m also horribly dyslexic so the page count felt manageable enough to read in a single sitting.
Who is “OR SOMETHING” for? Who do you think would enjoy it the most?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): I’ll tell you know it’s not for, someone who dislikes a film with two people walking and talking for the majority of the film [laughs]. The audience for this film is for people who enjoy character driven, dialogue heavy stories with New York as a central character. The term mumblecore feels a bit dated at this point but the but there’s definitely a Venn diagram that includes the feeling of that genre with the with the better bits found in Wood Allen and Tom Noonan films. If any of that means anything to you, I bet you’ll enjoy it.
How long did it take to shoot the entire film?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): The answer to this particular question is what has people the most fucked up. We filmed the entire film in 6 days. At that time, we averaged roughly 11 pages per day which, again minimal exposition, its A LOT of dialogue to cover each day. We really had no idea if we were going to be able to get it done. When I brought the project and its shoot dates to my long time AD Florian Gunzenhauser he essentially told me I was crazy. We rehearsed the living hell out of the script so that when Kareem and Mary got on location they were almost entirely off book and ready to shoot the damn thing. It takes a whole gang of MVPs to shoot a no budget indie film in NYC but Florian was an absolute standout. We never even hit OT. There’s a special place in heaven for ADs like Flo.
How long was the post-production process?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): It took nine long months that felt like an eternity. We didn’t have money set aside for post. Huge mistake in retrospect. The time, money, quality matrix is very real. We were incredibly lucky to have Pete Ohs edit the film. He’s a seasoned director who does it all. He’s had directed and edited a number of films that won awards at SXSW already. I can’t speak for Pete but this felt like the last time he would edit something he wasn’t directing. He had the perfect indie sensibilities that really brought the film to life in the edit. You shoot a film three times: when you write it, shoot it and edit it. He was instrumental in part 3.
The film had a lot of talent behind the scenes. Why is diversity important in front of and behind the camera?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): Diversity is super important for me. To not have a diverse crew on both sides of the camera on a New York production (or anywhere for that matter) would be a massive missed oppurtunity. There’s a very diverse pool of such talented people in the indie film scene in New York. Ever single person on the cast and crew brings their own lived experience to the work they do and it absolutely has an impact on what ends up on screen. Similar to the way the location informs what the film will be. Shooting on location in New York just inherently ends up making an impact on the tone and feel and overall vibe of the film. Imagine if Uncut Gems was shot in Scottsdale, Arizona.
What are your goals with “OR SOMETHING”?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): The primary goal was already achieved: Shoot my first micro budget feature length film in New York City with my best friends and be stoked on what we created. Beyond that, the goal is to meet cool people who love the film that want to help bring my second feature to life.
What are you working on right now?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): Developing my second directorial effort with my absolute dominator of a producing partner Dan Blackwell and killer writer Emily Jane Adams. It’s a fucked up elevated genre type film that I can’t wait to watch.
What would you recommend to a new director at the beginning of his/ her journey? Any special courses, workshops, helpful books they can read?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): There’s so much good advice out there on YouTube, on podcasts, in books that wouldn’t necessarily be new to anyone. So here’s a useful piece of advice that I haven’t heard anyone else discuss. Make a list of your favorite directors, find and watch their very first short films, student films, etc and then watch their first features. I had to rent and burn bootleg DVDs from Vidiots 15 years ago to do this but many are now available on YouTube and streaming.
These earlier works will absolutely give you the confidence to go out and shoot your own shit. To fail upwards. No amount of studying films, YouTube videos or reading will ever come close to actually going out and doing the thing. I worked with Nicolas Winding Refn years ago and his advice to me was: “In order to make one good film, you have to make three.” I believe he was referencing the Pusher Trilogy. Which I’d recommend to anyone who hasn’t seen it.
Who is your favorite director? Why?
Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder (JS): A nearly impossible question. Lets do this like the Letterboxd 4 favorites.
- Martin Scorsese
- Ruben Östlund
- Jean-Luc Godard
- David Fincher
- Stanley Kubrick
Tell us what you think of the interview with Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder. What do you think of it? What ideas did you get? Do you have any suggestions? Or did it help you? Let’s have your comments below and/or on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.
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