“Instead I learned that I was the kid who celebrated the different holiday, and very few knew the game,” says Schloss, a Boston-based filmmaker who says the experience helped inspire his Hannuhah-themed horror short “Gimme.”
He wrote the film, which recently won Best Horror Short at Filmquest and was an official selection of the Dances with Films horror program, with producer Aidan Payne. It tells the story of a young girl named Lev (Taylor Pezza) and her grandfather Papa Alan (Paul Kandarian) as they cope with the loss of the girl’s mother around Hannukah. A mysterious dreidel seems like a way to connect with her, but things go badly.
Schloss is also an executive producer of the New England based production company Hot Brick Entertainment. His previous shorts “Katie’s Skin” and “Writer’s Block” have earned him a reputation for skillfully made, uncompromising horror.
“Gimme” has already been picked up by Screambox for distribution in December 2026 — just in time for next Hannukah.
MovieMaker: How did you become a filmmaker?
Steven Schloss: The million dollar question. Truthfully, I think the desire and skillset of being a filmmaker has always been inside me, waiting. When I was little I would beg my dad to take me to Blockbuster a few times a week. Sometimes just to browse the horror aisle to look at the VHS cover art of the movies I wasn’t allowed to watch, yet. Growing up I was more interested in staying inside getting lost in video games, action figures and my evolving VHS/DVD collection than playing outside with other kids.
Unless it was competitive paintball, my first obsession prior to filmmaking that scratched my itch for creative problem solving and collaboration. Classrooms were tough for me, unless it was art class. When I picked up my first mini DV video camera in high school, it felt so natural with the whole run and gun aspect of it. Finally I found something in my education to chase. Somewhat by default, since I really did suck at school. That passion led me to Boston University where I studied film and TV, eventually interning with Richard N. Gladstein the producer of Pulp Fiction, Cider House Rules and The Bourne Identity to name a few. I’ve been using film as a medium to share stories since 2010 and most recently I’m leaning more into the realm of horror.
Paul Kandarian behind the scenes of “Gimme.” Photo by Eric Saltzman
MovieMaker: Where did the idea for “Gimme” originate?
Steven Schloss: When I was 10 I brought a dreidel to school for show and tell. I was expecting the class to at least know what it was and comment on how cool it was but instead I learned that I was the kid who celebrated the different holiday and very few knew the game. I craved a Hanukkah horror movie when I was growing up as the holiday was greatly overshadowed by Christmas. I grew up in a non-religious, yet culturally Jewish family, and I’ve seen less pride in our identity lately, especially as antisemitism rises in the U.S. That’s one of the reasons I made “Gimme,” a film rooted in Jewish culture that anyone can relate to. It’s the movie I wish I was able to watch during Hanukkah at 14.
MovieMaker: Are you surprised there isn’t more Jewish-themed horror?
Steven Schloss: Yes. When Eli Roth’s 2023 Thanksgiving was announced it felt to me like the world just skipped over Hanukkah. That’s when I started to develop this idea. I couldn’t help but ask why: Why isn’t there a carousel of Hanukkah movies on Shudder or Screambox like there is for Christmas? Do we not deserve it? Are there not enough metrics behind the concept to sell studios on?
I wanted to be the one to change that by making something bold, unforgettable and true to the themes of Hanukkah. A sinister dreidel that brings a family closer together through horror fit the bill.
MovieMaker: What was the biggest challenge you faced in making this film?
Steven Schloss: Telling the right story to represent the themes of culture, ritual and family
traditions around Hanukkah. “Gimme” went through two rounds of production. On the first round, the end held no merit. For me it was either reshoot the third act or let the project die, and I couldn’t be happier with my decision to reshoot with the encouragement of fellow collaborators.
Taylor Pezza in “Gimme”
MovieMaker: I know you debated — spoiler alert — whether to have a child character be harmed in this film… why did you make the decision you did?
Steven Schloss: Yes, spoiler alert. I like to see the thing I don’t want to see in horror. That’s part of my attraction to the genre — it’s not safe. Thematically the story is about a dying family tradition so it’s only fitting that it ends with a female first born child. If I were to save the character it would be out of sensitivity and feel like the 2015 film Krampus. This was where I really wanted to be different while still feeling familiar in other areas.
MovieMaker: You also are a freelance cinematographer – how do you balance that with directing films?
Steven Schloss: Yes, that’s my livelihood and main funnel into raising enough money to make my own movies. It’s a lot of bright happy stuff so my escape is evidently in the darkness. Balancing is easy, I make my own schedule and since I’m not with a studio while I’m producing my films there is no deadline, so I really take my time with things. It’s also nice being able to still work in the same medium for my main job and passion.
MovieMaker: What’s next?
Steven Schloss: I hope to see “Gimme” evolve into a feature and believe the world would eat it up with a plate of Latkes and a side of apple sauce. Hold the sour cream, please.
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