JC Schroder talks about his experiences as a Filmmaker

I asked JC Schroder the director of the new film Forever's End about his experiences in Los Angeles trying to build a career. He told me "that as a producer you have to have multiple projects in development in various stages. Just one project will not get it done. The key to this business is making connections". But he is convinced that if you’re serious about your career, you have to start in Los Angeles.

He also told me his faith is important to him. "Finding a good church community is essential". Although he’s not interested in making Christian movies, he believes he can have an impact with people by living his life in a way that honors God. "If your quality of work is good, and you have solid morals, you will get noticed in this business".

He went on to say, “People will notice that you’re different, and the subject of your faith will come up at some point." JC sees himself as a Christian who makes movies. One place where JC has had the opportunity to build relationships is a weekly poker game that he hosts. “Although it’s a no money game, it’s a great place to get to know people who work in this industry”.

He says that it takes a lot of effort to break into this business. "In the first year, I was eating a lot of noodles and did whatever I had to do to get on the set”. In fact, he often worked as an extra making only $60 a day. But again he had an opportunity to meet people and make connections. JC said, “It takes an “all in” approach.” He knows of a number of people who finally made it in this business after suffering many years of hardships—in some cases living in the back seat of their cars and eating one meal a day, if lucky.

JC believes that if you are going to make it in this business, you’re going to have to wear many hats. “Just don’t count on one thing”. Because he served in multiple roles as a PA, an extra, and other jobs, he learned how a set works in Hollywood. He also took acting classes so he could better understand the needs of actors. This has helped him to be a better director because he understands the roles each person has to play in order to have a successful production.

His final advice to those interested in pursuing a career in the entertainment industry - is to realize this is a business first and for most and it will always be about the money. “So in order to be successful, it’s important to understand the business aspect”. I have a feeling JC is going to be successful in his role as a filmmaker because he’s built the relationships, knows how to squeeze a dollar, and understands the necessity of returning a profit to his investors. But, more importantly, he hasn’t forgotten about the importance of finding Christian fellowship.

JC Schroder is a Director and Producer of award-winning independent film, live event, and commercial media productions. He is the key producer and owner of Star Com Productions LLC, a Los Angeles-based production company formed in early 2000. As a continually growing company, Star Com was restructured in 2009 (moving main offices from Cincinnati, Ohio where the company was founded, to Los Angeles, California) and now has three primary divisions: Film & Television, Live Events, and New Media production.


Over the past decade Schroder has produced more than 35 film and television productions (from commercials and music videos to independent short and feature films) as well as written and directed over a dozen more, including PCFMF’s 2008 Gold Medal winner “Freedomland” and PCFMF’s 2009 Gold Medal winner “The End of All Things