Stephanie Dziczek, broadcast producer at TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles, has produced a feature film in her spare time (an agency broadcast term meaning sometime between 3 am and 6 am).

The movie is a romantic comedy called Forev. It stars Noël Wells (a new cast member on SNL) and Matt Mider as a couple who decide to get married on a first date/road trip. You can find out if they’re on the Highway to Happiness on iTunes.

The movie premiered at last year’s Los Angeles Film Festival, and has been written up in Huffington Post, Austin Chronicle, and Variety.

We interviewed Stephanie to see where she gets her boundless energy. You can thank us later when you spot her at Oscars, giving that acceptance speech for Best Picture.

What (or who) are your biggest influences?

In the producing realm, I’ve worked with so many fantastic, tenacious women and there are many others who inspire me, including: Christine Vachon for championing talented directors with fresh voices for almost three decades; Galt Niederhoffer, a writer/director and prolific indie producer with three movies that premiered at Sundance this year; and Deborah Snyder, who used to be an agency broadcast producer and is now Zack Snyder’s film producing partner.

What was the hardest part of producing a feature length movie? Would you recommend your experience to someone else?

I would absolutely recommend it. Producing the movie made me better at my job and a stronger person, but it was also the hardest thing I’ve done. It’s not just because of the time, energy and heart you devote, but when you’re working with close friends without a power hierarchy (i.e. there’s no boss or executive that has the final say), you have to find a way to give and take opinions, and choose the right path without compromising the end product or killing your relationships. The good news is that battles over which ADR (looping) line or poster font you should use will wash away in time, and you’ll be left with something you’re really proud of.

Do you have a movie that you can watch over and over?

I love old Wes Anderson and P.T. Anderson movies. Every intonation, look, camera move, and music cue is so memorable and well done. I could watch Boogie Nights or The Royal Tenenbaums for days.

How long did your movie Forev take to shoot? How did you raise the money? How big was the view?

The shoot was 19 days overall. Most of us had full-time jobs so we shot over the course of seven weekends, plus Memorial Day week. It involved a lot of 5:00 am call times to drive to Joshua Tree for just one or two days of shooting.

When writer/directors Molly Green and James Leffler were concepting the movie, they kept scope in mind so that once the script was finished, it would be something they could shoot themselves. The budget of the movie was always contingent on what we could afford, so we borrowed from savings accounts and received small investments from close friends and family. We never did any crowdfunding campaigns.

We’ve been happy with the movie’s reception since its release on May 15th. If you look at us on the iTunes Comedy or Romance charts, we’re surrounded by studio movies. At one point we were at #11 in Romance, sandwiched between Crazy Stupid Love and The Hunger Games. That was definitely a highlight.

Forev is described as a romantic comedy. Does that mean it’s a chick flick or can guys enjoy it too?

Guys can enjoy it too! The writers are a guy/girl team, so the perspective isn’t skewed one way or another. The male half of the team tried to tell me at one point that our movie was like a contemporary Dumb and Dumber. While I don’t know if I agree with that, there are definitely moments your little brother will love more than your grandmother, and vice versa.

Is there a moment in your movie that you most relate to?

As absurd as it sounds, I love the moment when our two main characters decide to get married. I’m energized by people who are doing big things on their own terms, without handholding or asking permission. Whether it’s making a movie or marrying your neighbor, you just have to go for it.