Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jarad Kopciak. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Jarad thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Since the dawn of time – or at least since I was in high school – I’ve been writing and making movies with my friends. Inspired by Tim & Eric, the Lonely Island, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, I would get my buddies together and we’d film anything from fake Family Life Education videos, to rap videos (under the name Team Danger – look it up… Or don’t, actually) to a parody of sports movies called Life with Derrick, where the character Derrick was essentially irrelevant to the story. What I loved most about this period of my life was that we had the ability to let loose and be goofy with each other. A bunch of twerpy goof-balls – palling around, being silly, making each other laugh. It made us who we are and shaped my sense of humor into what it is today. I still hope that’s a good thing…
When I moved out to Los Angeles ten years ago – Holy shit. Has it been ten years? – along with some of my high school friends and a bunch of new friends, we created the production company Kid Cactus with the goal to create absurd, goofy films that pushed the boundaries on genre and what the film medium can do. We decided to commit ourselves to our dream, and make what we wanted to make rather than what would “sell” or be “watched” or be “liked by anyone.” Scratch that, we’re desperate to be liked.
That brings me to the most meaningful project I’ve worked on so far… Our masterpiece, our magnum opus, our chef d’oeuvre (at least so far – wink wink) is our film What Is Art. It’s an anthological absurdist comedy that explores genre and parody, but mostly explores silliness. We worked on it for 5 years and last year, we sold it for distribution! Meaning… actual people can actually watch it (on Tubi for free, or on Apple TV and Fandango at Home Previously Vudu [Yes, that’s the actual name of the streaming service] to rent/buy)! Yeah, I’m shameless.
Not only did it mean so much to us to sell it (obviously money is all we care about, screw friendship) but it proved to us that we could succeed by believing in ourselves and making what we want to make… And also that the last five years of our lives weren’t a waste. So that was nice to know.
With dedication, support from others, and true faith in ourselves and our ideas, we did what we set out to do. And this is only the beginning…

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a writer, actor, producer, and director (in that order) who hails from Virginia, Colorado, and California (in that order). As I’ve moved west, my craft has become more honed and I’ve become more dedicated to it. I co-founded the production company Kid Cactus (we just sold our first feature, What Is Art… Have I said this enough?). I’m also a screenwriter, and my first feature script, Alferd, made it in the Nicholl’s Fellowship last year. Very exciting, and I have more where that came from…
The reason I say all this is not to brag – okay, maybe a little – but honestly, it’s the opposite. I deal with “success” issues all the time. What is success to me and how do I achieve it? After selling our feature and the minor or major success from my screenplay (however you want to look at it), I’ve realized that success is what you make it. I am so proud of myself and my team for sticking to what we love and never compromising (too much) in our art and what we want to create and the stories I want to tell.
I took a risk when I came out to this city of broken dreams – takes a dramatic drag of a cigarette. Instead of going the “usual” route of submitting my writing work to get into writing rooms, or auditioning for roles, I decided to create my own work that resonated with me and my abilities and tastes. It has slowly been turning out in my favor, but I don’t know if I recommend this as the “only” route to all future filmmakers and writers, because, like I said, it’s risky. But at the same time, this industry is risky and without belief in yourself and dedication, you will never achieve success. At the end of the day, success to me is making something I’m proud of with my friends that I want to share with people.
One of these projects I am most proud of is a podcast I co-created called Starring Emma Roberts. During covid lockdown, six other writer friends and I were watching “bad” movies together on Netflix Party (remember that? No? Cool.) to try and not lose our minds, which for me, didn’t work. But boy howdy did I love these get-togethers. As we were watching a particularly big stinker, someone said, “This feels like seven different writers wrote this.” And then someone else said, “We could do that.” Thus, Starring Emma Roberts was born. We use the exquisite corpse format, in which each writer writes 12 pages of a screenplay – but they can only see the 12 pages directly before theirs. It’s silly, wild, and so much fun.
We’ve now recorded 7 different scripts and we are working on our next “season,” with writers on shows like The Amazing World of Gumball, Craig of the Creek, The Neighborhood and more – and our guests just keep getting more exciting and more impressive every week. I’m so proud of this endeavor because this project truly started as just hanging out with friends, doing what we love doing – making jokes – and believe it or not (I still don’t sometimes) people actually want to listen! It’s been such a fun ride and we can’t wait to see where it goes. And if I haven’t been shameless enough, you can listen to Starring Emma Roberts on any podcast platform. Spotify, Apple, anything. Go listen. Okay, I’m done.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I always wanted to be a writer, but when I was 11, my aunt brought me to see the first Lord of the Rings – that changed everything for me. I realized that screenwriting was where my heart beat. That and inside my chest – I’m a slow learner. Lord of the Rings reformed the way I looked at films and how a story can be told.
In high school and college, I gravitated toward classic genre films like The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly and Angel Heart. At this time I also became obsessed with Alfred Hitchcock, so I devoured his films like a bird pecking at Tippi Hedren’s head. Whether or not I agree with everything he says in his movies (and definitely not the things he did while making them), he took risks and defied genre, creating tools that are still used and expanded upon to this day. I also fell in love with Quentin Tarantino and the Coen Brothers and continue to watch their films on repeat.
As I got older and my taste got weirder, I fell in love with recent movies that push the boundaries of what a film can be. Movies like The Lighthouse, Zone of Interest, and most recently I Saw the TV Glow, have really changed how I look at film and writing, what is possible, and what I want to do and create.
Comedy wise, I was introduced to The Princess Bride and The Holy Grail since I could open my eyes, and those movies really shaped how I viewed comedy. That you could be subtle to make people laugh or, on the flip side, be totally absurd in how you tell jokes. And both are equally valid and equally useful in making the world a little brighter.
My friends make fun of my music taste. Friends, am I right? Not only do I pretty much only listen to dance music, but I listen to music ironically, but then listen to it so much that it goes past irony and simply becomes just a song I love.
Speaking of, I also love the Fast & Furious series. Ab. So. Lutely. Love. It started as an ironic love, but now that line has blurred and I can no longer tell what is irony and what is true dedication. Does it matter? The movies sing, and boy are they fun (I recommend Hobbs & Shaw. Brilliant. Also Fast X. Also brilliant.) “Daddy’s gotta go to work.”
Any movie can teach us and make us better at our craft. There’s things to be learned from good and bad movies. Some may even inspire us to make an amazing podcast (go listen to Starring Emma Roberts already!). Tastes, moods, and the art of filmmaking are in constant change. Riding that wave of change is absolutely why I got into this industry.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

There is nothing like a good day of writing. After a long session, leaning back, rubbing my eyes for too long, going on a nice walk, and realizing that I created something that I would want to watch. To me, that is success – and nothing is more rewarding. Okay, maybe getting five holes-in-one at a putt-putt course (Yeah, I did that).
And yes, writing a flawless screenplay like Alferd is rewarding. Of course creating a groundbreaking, genre-bending movie like What Is Art is gratifying (being perfect is awesome, huh?). And sure, I write for myself, I do. But, come on. Let’s be honest. I do this so people will tell me I’m good. Tell me I’m a good boy. Seriously, tell me.
For realsies though, creating something that other people want to watch or read or listen to is an indescribable feeling. Having someone tell me they genuinely liked a piece of art that I created, it feels like flying or watching my baby walk for the first time (I don’t have a baby, but parents out there, am I right? Babies? You get it. Okay. I’m not right. But you feel me).
Thanks for reading, and if you’re reading this for inspiration, remember to keep pushing and keep working on your craft. 30 minutes a day. Make it a routine. Nike it and JUST DO IT!
And remember, watch What Is Art and listen to Starring Emma Roberts. OKAY! I’M DONE FOR REAL! Family.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kidcactusfilms.com
• Instagram: @kidcactuscomedy @starringemmaroberts
• Twitter: @starringemmarob
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@StarringEmmaRoberts
• Other: https://linktr.ee/kidcactus