ABOUT

BIO

Jason Schuler works across disciplines as an educator, stage and film director, performer, designer, and visual artist.  He is a founding member and Artistic Director of the Operating Theater Company, with whom his work has been seen in New York City at: The Brick, Cherry Lane Theater,  
El Cid (LA), Obie Award-Winning Little Theater at Tonic & Dixon Place (12x), Catch Series at Abron’s Arts Center, The Bushwick Starr, Starr Street Space and The Chocolate Factory (7x) and at PS122’s Avant-Garde-Arama (2x). He has produced two variety events in Los Angeles called The Doctor Schüler Medicine Show at El Cid and The Met Theater.

His work has received an Alliance of Resident Theaters/New York Nancy Quinn Fund grant, two ART/NY Creative Space Grants, two Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Swing Spaces grants, a Puffin Foundation grant, and an Artward Bound artist residency from The Field. He was a participant in Creative Capital’s Profession Development Program.

He has an MFA in Performance and Interactive Media Arts from Brooklyn College and a BFA from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where he was a double major in Drama and Film & Television Production.

He lives in Pomona, California with his husband, in-laws, and a puckish but loving cat.

Curriculum Vitae

JASON SCHULER
Pomona, CA

EDUCATION

Master of Fine Arts, Performance & Interactive Media Arts
Brooklyn College, City University of NY

  • Interdisciplinary program blending theatre, interactive media, and technology
  • Teaching Practicum course that included building a course outline, learning objectives, syllabus lesson plans and course defense for a semester long, task-oriented learning experience.
  • Internship with the Under The Radar festival at The Public Theater 

Bachelor of Fine Arts, Drama / Film & Television Production
New York University, Tisch School of the Arts 

  • Physical Acting: Steve Wangh, Catherine Coray, Kevin Kuhlke, Nancy Gabor, Paul Binnerts; Meisner Technique: Terry Knickerbocker; Voice: Jonathan Hart Makwaia; Linklater Voice: Cecil MacKinnen; Self-Scripting: Rosemary Quinn; Six Viewpoints: Mary Overlie; Movement: Paul Langland, Wendell Beavers; Masterclasses with: Anne Bogart, Mabou Mines, and Urban Bushwomen among others. 
  • International Theater Workshop, Amsterdam Netherlands

Physical Acting Intensive with Steve Wangh
Holderness Theater Company 

Studio II Summer Conservatory Acting Program
Chautauqua Institution 

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Adjunct Instructor, Performance and Interactive Media Arts MFA program, Brooklyn College
Dynamic and Interactive Media in Performance I (Fall 2015)
Dynamic and Interactive Media in Performance II (Spring 2016)

Professional Development and Applications Instructor, Educate360/New Horizons (2019 – Present)

Classes in: Communication Strategies, Teamwork & Team Building, Developing Successful Interpersonal Skills, The Art of Effective Presentations, Influencing Without Authority, Implementing Mindfulness, Adobe Creative Suite and Microsoft Office.

  • Facilitated 875+ eight-hour classes serving over 9,500 students.
  • Developed and customized curriculum and interactive training materials.
  • Delivered in-person, virtual and hybrid learning experiences using multimedia elements.

Consultant, Toy Association/Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) Toy Design Dept (2000 – Present)

Workshops in Interview Skills, Creativity for Executives, Photoshop

  • Led professional development workshops for undergraduate students and industry professionals.
  • Authoring speeches and coaching department chair for presentations at Yale University Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, Smithsonian Institution, New York International Toy Fair and other events.
  • Guided faculty in developing actionable learning outcomes, rubrics, and syllabi for major courses.
  • Co-authored accreditation reports for State University of NY.

SELECT THEATER EXPERIENCE

Founding Artistic Director, The Operating Theater Company LLC (2004 to Present)

  • Directed and produced full-length and short-form theater productions Off and Off/Off Broadway in New York City, integrating traditional stagecraft, interactive storytelling, movement, and multimedia.
  • Taught acting/devised performance for students, grades 9-12, Westside Experiment’s Young Actors Lab.
  • Led collaborative rehearsal processes, working with emerging playwrights, actors & designers.
  • Worked with artists and co-producers to implement the creative vision of the theater company.
  • In 2016 OTC completed its most recent full-length theatrical production in New York City.
  • In 2020 the company dissolved its New York State based LLC due to the pandemic.
  • Although our principle members are pursuing personal artistic projects in various cities, we look forward to working together in the future. 

SELECT THEATRE DIRECTION

Full-Length NY Theatre

  • Van Driver! – Operating Theater Company at Cherry Pit Alternative (2006, 2008, 2013)
  • The Oracle – Operating Theater Company at The Brick Theater (2015)
  • Portal of Parallels – IRT Theater’s Westside Experiment (2012)
  • Transatlantica – New York Theater Workshop/Fourth St. Theatre (2010)
  • The Garden of Forked Tongues – Operating Theater Company/Teatro IATI (2009)
  • When It Stands Still – Toy Box Theater Company/Gene Frankel Theater (2008)
  • Murder of the Seas – Pierre-Marc Diennet/FringeNYC Festival/The Jazz Gallery (2008)
  • FLAT! – Operating Theater Company/The Brick Theater (2005)
  • Bloodlines – Women Center Stage Festival/The Culture Project (2002)
  • Savage In Limbo – MuratArt Productions/HERE Arts Center (2000)

Short-Form NY Theatre

  • Van Driver! – Catch Series #4 & #11/Galapagos Art Space (2004, 2005), Little Theater/Dixon Place (2006), Avant-Garde-Arama/Abron’s Arts Center (2013)
  • The Oracle – Catch #45/Abron’s Art Center (2011)
  • Operation 50 – Catch #50/The Chocolate Factory (2012)
  • The Garden of Forked Tongues – Catch #26/Bushwick Starr (2007) Little Theater/Dixon Place (2008), Catch #34/Starr Space (2009)
  • Are you Alive?! – Operating Theater Company/Avant-Garde-Arama/PS122 (2006) Catch #18 (2006) The Phoenix Art Space (2006)
  • The (Molly) Ring(wald) Cycle – Little Theater/Tonic (2001)
  • Nosferatu – Little Theater/Tonic (2001)
  • The Date – HBO/JOAM Productions/The Lamb’s Theater (1999)

Regional Theatre

  • How Are We Feeling Today? – Big C Festival/Golden Bridge, Los Angeles (2004)
  • The Doctor Schüler Medicine Show – El Cid, LA (2003), MET Theater, Los Angeles (2004)

SELECT FILM & MEDIA DIRECTION

Independent Film & Video

  • Pluto – (Music video) Sharon Little (2018)
  • Hirohito – (Short) Operating Theater LLC (2015)
  • Decimus ’11 – (Music video) Decimus (2012)
  • Alien Interloper Performance Automobile Machine – (Short) Doctored Pictures (2011)
  • Collectors – (Documentary short) Affiche Rouge & Doctored Pictures (2007)
  • Van Driver: I Met This Lady One Time – (Short, Co-director) ChannelB4 (2004)
  • Arthur Kill – (Short) Doctored Pictures (2000)
  • Slamhogcity – (Short) Ninjitsu2000 (2000)

Industrial & Promotional

  • National Toy Hall of Fame Induction, Judith Ellis – (Highlight Reel) Toy Association (2013)
  • Birthday Girl – (2nd Unit) Miramax Films Corp. (1999)
  • Dogma – (Cannes Festival Promo) Miramax Films Corp. (1998)
  • Shakespeare in Love – (MiFed Festival Promo) Miramax Films Corp. (1997)
  • Fitting Pretty System – (Infomercial) Prescient Partners LLC (1996)

New and Mixed Media

  • Untitled Consciousness Project – PaJaMa Group/The Clash House, Brooklyn, NY (2015)
  • Metaverses – (augmented reality tour) Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC (2014)

CONFERENCES & PANELS

  • Panelist, “You, Me, and Them: Subjectivity, Reproduction, Otherness, and Beyond” – Performance & Interactive Media Art Symposium, Brooklyn College, NY (2014)
  • Panelist, “Transatlantica: Thanatos and Eros” – Operating Theater Company, NY (2010)
  • Panelist, “Adapt or Perish: Producing in Spite of Tough Times” – Theater Resources Unlimited, NY (2009)
  • Planning Committee Co-Chair, “Entertainment Leadership Conference” – NYU Tisch School of the Arts (2006)
  • Co-curator, “ETW Alumni Reading Series”– NYU, Tisch School of the Arts (2001)

SELECT HONORS & AWARDS

  • Worldwide Excellence in Training – New Horizons, Burbank, CA (2019)
  • Resident Artist – The Brick Theater, Brooklyn, NY (2016)
  • Artist in Residence – Metropolitan Museum of Art Media Lab, NYC (2014)
  • PIMA Department Award – Brooklyn College, NYC (2013) (2014)
  • University Student Senate Graduate Peer Mentoring Scholarship – Brooklyn College (2014)
  • Rose Goldstein Memorial Scholarship for Outstanding Achievement – Brooklyn College (2014)
  • Artward Bound Resident – The Field, Fire Island, NY (2012)
  • Professional Development Program grantee – Creative Capital, NYC (2011)
  • Swing Space Grantee – Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, NYC (2009) (2012)
  • Puffin Foundation Grant (2012)
  • Creative Space Grant – Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York (2012)

AFFILIATIONS

  • Treasurer, Collaborative Media Group, Brooklyn College (2014-15)
  • Treasurer, Community Arts Practice Group, Brooklyn College (2013-14)
  • Member, League of Independent Theatres, member (2012 – Present)
  • Member, The Field, member (2011 – Present)
  • Member, Alliance of Resident Theaters/New York, member (2011 – 2016)
  • Member, Fractured Atlas, member (2005 – Present)

SELECT PRESS

Reviews

Features & Interviews

SELECT PRESS QUOTES

The Present Perfect

“The Present Perfect is a new comedy by writer/director/performer Kourtney Rutherford, who invariably comes up with something fresh, especially in her outings with the equally imaginative Jason Schuler, the show’s co-producer and member of the five-person cast. Kourtney Rutherford and Jason Schuler are two of downtown’s most original and funny multifaceted theater people.”  – Paper Magazine

FLAT!

“…proudly silly and prurient, broadly satirical and filled with sensationalistic gags that would shock your grandmother.” – The New York Times

“Goofy, raunchy, diabolically clever, FLAT is truly Pythonesque.” – Paper Magazine

The Fantastic & Naturally Tragic Ballad of Esmeralda & Mr. Sinclair

“…The performances of Stacy Dawson and Jason Schuler are some of the very best seen at the festival. By turns sweet, ridiculous, noble and twisted, these actors create memorable characters who are genuinely touching and achingly funny.” – Propaganda Magazine

“Most notable are the performances of Jason Schuler and Stacy Dawson, two young actors capable of great depth under Finkle’s meticulous direction.” – Joy Gorman, Development Director, Miramax Films

“Incredibly well acted and mesmerizing…well done, bravo and kudos…I found myself hanging on their every word!”  -Janeane Garofalo, Comedian and Actress

Exposure

“[Jason Schuler is] a charming smart ass, he was both threatening and alluring…” – The Dallas Observer

Tiny Mix Tapes

We must also note the work of video creator Jason Schuler, who gripped the downright filthy, grainy texture of Decimus and figured it into this completely weird and macabre scene that brings to mind the likes of Jan Švankmajer, casting dusky hues and shadow-framed figures in a reverse narrative.

The Dr. Schüler Medicine Show

“…at the El Cid in LA, The Medicine Show was performance art mixed with old-school cabaret, and appears to be a who’s who of young Hollywood up-and-comers.” – The Arcanabulum

“Perhaps the most underground and avante-garde of the neo-vaudevillian performances in Southern California is Dr. Schüler’s Medicine Show.” – Dance Magazine