Jake Van Wagoner is a director, producer, and actor known for his work on Impractical Jokers and the film Christmas Time. His recent film, Aliens Abducted My Parents and Now I Feel Kinda Left Out, is a family friendly sci-fi feature that premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.


In today’s episode, No Film School’s GG Hawkins speaks with director Jake Van Wagoner to discuss:

  • Getting funding for the film from a family friend
  • The unique title to the movie
  • Making a film the whole family could enjoy
  • Building the production team from many great connections
  • How directing is like being a father
  • Guiding the child actors in some challenging scenes
  • Shooting a 93 page script in only 15 days
  • Using children from his family to act as little aliens
  • The process of attaching Will Forte to the movie
  • Lessons he learned from his first feature, Christmas Time

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This episode of The No Film School Podcast was produced by GG Hawkins.