About the Film

Jason Schmid wrote the fist draft of Loaner in 2006. It was 14 pages, and was initially intended to shoot as a shortfilm. Jason brought the 14 page script to Markus Davids, who he had worked with many times before on musicvideos and commercials. Markus read it and said, “Great, write ninety more pages, and let’s shoot a feature”.

The rest of the story is far less simple. For six months, Jason and Markus worked tirelessly, and without help, in preproduction.They did everything themselves; secured free locations, built sets out of scrap wood, bought props onEbay, and plotted out the impossible task of shooting a feature film in 18 days with 33 speaking roles, 22 differentlocations, and 9 picture vehicles. No easy task for a film with a budget, but the amazing truth is, Jason and Markusbegan principle photography in May of 2006 with just fifteen thousand dollars in the bank. But with their exhaustiveplanning, producing skills, a minimal lighting style, and a a lean and mean crew, they were able to bring the film in ontime, and on budget! Jason is quick to add that the success of the shoot was due in large part to the cast and crew –all of whom donated their time and talents to the film.

Loaner was shot in the homes and businesses of the cast, crew, and friend’s of the film. They shot mostly inGlendale CA, with a fe days in San Pedro, Hollywood, and Beverly Hills. With over 22 separate locations, logisticswere a constant challenge. On one very memorable day, they were shooting in a friend’s house in Glendale that wasnewly listed on the market. In the middle of shooting the final gun battle, a real estate agent appeared at the frontdoor of the house.

Jason recalls, "I explained to her that we wereshooting a gun fight scene, and that there was fakeblood all over. She didn't seem to mind, andproceeded to take the prospective buyer and her 8year old daughter on a tour of the house! So wewaited for the inevitable: the 8 year old girl camearound the corner into the dining room only todiscover the entire floor was covered with bloodybodies. Needless to say, they didn't buy the house."

Then came post-production. But where most low-budget indie films tend to fall apart in post, this is where Loanerexcelled. Jason Schmid has over 15 years experience in post production and on Loaner, he put his vast skill set tothe test. Using an exclusive process he developed himself, Jason spent 8 months carefully creating the “look” ofLoaner using his unique blend of Visual Effects Processes. By the end, nearly every single shot in the film had beendigitally enhanced and roto-scoped to create Jason’s vision for Loaner. Jason also created a unique workflow tocreate a full resolution Hi Definition master of the film, employing his own specially designed filtration and up-scalingsystem.

The music in Loaner is another labor of love. Nearlyevery song in the film was donated by the artists andperformers, including the final song “There You Are”which was written and performed by Jason Schmid.The music is a sonic sampling of Los Angelesindependent music, a perfect fit for the film.