{"id":1185784,"date":"2025-12-18T12:51:35","date_gmt":"2025-12-18T20:51:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/?p=1185784"},"modified":"2025-12-18T15:39:52","modified_gmt":"2025-12-18T23:39:52","slug":"steven-schloss-gimme-hannukah-horror","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/steven-schloss-gimme-hannukah-horror\/","title":{"rendered":"Steven Schloss Unleashes Hannukah Horror With ‘Gimme’"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Steven Schloss brought a dreidel to school for show and tell at age 10, he expected his classmates to think it was cool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“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.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schloss is also an executive producer of the New England based production company Hot Brick Entertainment<\/a>. His previous shorts \u201cKatie\u2019s Skin\u201d and \u201cWriter\u2019s Block\u201d have earned him a reputation for skillfully made, uncompromising horror. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Gimme” has already been picked up by Screambox<\/a> for distribution in December 2026 \u2014 just in time for next Hannukah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We talked with Steve Schloss about the audience for Jewish horror, not settling for the easy version of “Gimme,” and how if you do the thing you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss on Making ‘Gimme’<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Steven Schloss photographed by Johnny Call
<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker: <\/em><\/strong> How did you become a filmmaker?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss: <\/strong>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\u2019t 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<\/em> and The Bourne Identity<\/em> to name a few. I\u2019ve been using film as a medium to share stories since 2010 and most recently I\u2019m leaning more into the realm of horror.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gimme
Paul Kandarian behind the scenes of “Gimme.” Photo by Eric Saltzman<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker: <\/em><\/strong>Where did the idea for “Gimme” originate?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss: <\/strong> 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\u2019ve seen less pride in our identity lately, especially as antisemitism rises in the U.S. That\u2019s one of the reasons I made “Gimme,” a film rooted in Jewish culture that anyone can relate to. It\u2019s the movie I wish I was able to watch during Hanukkah at 14.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker:<\/em><\/strong> Are you surprised there isn\u2019t more Jewish-themed horror?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss: <\/strong>Yes. When Eli Roth\u2019s 2023 Thanksgiving<\/a><\/em> was announced it felt to me like the world just skipped over Hanukkah. That\u2019s when I started to develop this idea. I couldn\u2019t help but ask why: Why isn\u2019t 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?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker: <\/strong><\/em>What was the biggest challenge you faced in making this film?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss:<\/strong> 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Taylor Pezza in “Gimme”<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker:<\/strong><\/em> I know you debated \u2014 spoiler alert<\/strong> \u2014 whether to have a child character be harmed in this film\u2026 why did you make the decision you did?

Steven Schloss:<\/strong> Yes, spoiler alert. <\/strong>I like to see the thing I don\u2019t want to see in horror. That\u2019s part of my attraction to the genre \u2014 it\u2019s not safe. Thematically the story is about a dying family tradition so it\u2019s 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<\/em>. This was where I really wanted to be different while still feeling familiar in other areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker: <\/em><\/strong>You also are a freelance cinematographer \u2013 how do you balance that with directing films?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss: <\/strong>Yes, that\u2019s my livelihood and main funnel into raising enough money to make my own movies. It\u2019s 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\u2019m not with a studio while I\u2019m producing my films there is no deadline, so I really take my time with things. It\u2019s also nice being able to still work in the same medium for my main job and passion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MovieMaker: <\/em><\/strong>What\u2019s next?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven Schloss:<\/strong> 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Main image: The dreidel in “Gimme,” designed by Jordan J. Estrada.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Steven Schloss brought a dreidel to school for show and tell at age 10, he expected his classmates to","protected":false},"author":1641,"featured_media":1185785,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_comments":false,"cm_data":"","cpt_newsletter_id":0,"tpd_coauthor":[],"tpd_feed_delay":{"delay_type":"default"},"is_tpd_lists_single_post":false,"tpd_featured_posts_arr":"","tpd_franchise_content":"","hide_featured_img_single_post":false,"msn_featured_video":[],"_msn_custom_title":"","tpd_featured_video":[],"tpd_sponsored_post_logo":"","tpd_sponsored_post_logo_link":"","tpd_sponsored_post_logo_width":0,"tpd_sponsored_enable_nofollow":true,"tpd_disable_incontent_ads":false,"tpd_disable_right_rail_ads":false,"tpd_disable_after_content_ads":false,"tpd_disable_header_ads":false,"tpd_disable_sticky_footer_ads":false,"tpd_disable_video_ads":false,"tpd_disable_outbrain":false,"tpd_affiliate_disclaimer":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"coauthor":[],"feeds":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1185784","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news"},"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Gimme-Steven-Schloss-Dreidel-428x241.jpg","fimg_url_thumb":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Gimme-Steven-Schloss-Dreidel-428x241.jpg","fimg_url":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Gimme-Steven-Schloss-Dreidel-788x444.jpg","author_name":"Tim Molloy","author_avatar":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/IMG_1078-100x100.jpg","author_link":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/author\/tim-molloy\/","coauthors":[],"primary_category":{"term_id":11,"name":"Movie News","slug":"news","taxonomy":"category","url":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/category\/news\/"},"featured_img_medium":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Gimme-Steven-Schloss-Dreidel-788x444.jpg","post_categories":["Movie News"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1185784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1641"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1185784"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1185784\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1185785"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1185784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1185784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1185784"},{"taxonomy":"coauthor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthor?post=1185784"},{"taxonomy":"feeds","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moviemaker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/feeds?post=1185784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}