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David W. Schoner Jr. is an award-winning producer and a cornerstone of New Jersey’s film and television industry.
As Senior Advisor for Film at the New Jersey Motion Picture and Television Commission, following 15 years as Associate Director, he has helped shepherd thousands of productions through the state, from The Sopranos to Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day.
Under his own banner, Great Mustachio Filmworks, he has produced the award-winning films Murder Reincarnated and A Dangerous Place, the kids’ comedy pilot Arthur Futuro, and Tuddy, a series of black-and-white silent micro-shorts created during COVID to keep his collaborators working.
He has since won multiple pitch festivals with TV project Emmett Grey and continues to develop original work, including Bad Manners.
Whether opening doors for productions or championing the stories he believes in,
David’s mission on both sides of the camera has always been the same: keep people working.
Key Takeaways:
- Relationships and chance encounters are portrayed as the main engine of careers in film, with long-term networking and trust mattering as much as talent.
- David Schoner is highlighted as a pivotal “connector” in New Jersey’s film ecosystem—mentoring, making introductions, solving problems for productions, and helping others launch projects while continuing his own creative work.
- The Film Commission role is shown as highly practical and relational: acting as a liaison/mediator between productions and municipalities, using institutional knowledge to anticipate issues, speed permitting, and prevent costly delays.
- Real-world problem solving and tenacity are central to success (e.g., securing Newark City Hall access during a snowstorm/state of emergency for The Dark Knight Rises scout).
- “Film Ready” is positioned as a structural solution to reduce friction across NJ’s many municipalities by standardizing contacts and permitting expectations, making communities more attractive to productions.
- Advice for breaking in emphasizes attitude and reliability over credentials: be enthusiastic, punctual, respectful, observant, and start by getting on-set experience (often as a PA), doing small tasks while learning workflows.
- New Jersey’s production boom is attributed to tax incentives, hands-on support from the Commission, diverse locations, and studio/infrastructure investment (e.g., Netflix Fort Monmouth, Lionsgate Newark, Paramount Bayonne).
- Technology lowers barriers to create, but doesn’t replace human creativity; adaptability to new formats (streaming, micro-content) and continuous learning are framed as essential for longevity.
