Exclusive: Court Crandall Assembles All-Star Comedians in Bromates

Old School scribe Court Crandall assembles all-star comedians for his buddy relationship comedy. Bromates has two best friends moving in together after being dumped by their long-term girlfriends. Sid (Josh Brenner), a solar energy salesman who cares about the environment, is despondent after Sadie (Jessica Lowe) leaves him for the puppeteer (Flula Borg) next door. Jonesie (Lil Rel Howery) loses Charlotte (Nelcie Souffrant) after hiring a stripper to test their sex swing’s safety.

Jonesie recruits their childhood pals, Angry Mike (Asif Ali) and flamboyantly gay Runway Dave (Brendan Scannell), to break Sid out of his funk. Crazy shenanigans ensue as the crew helps Sid pursue a redneck beauty queen (Taryn Manning). This endangers Sid’s business deal for his equally solar power-enthused boss (Rob Riggle).

Crandall reflects on shooting an independent comedy through COVID. He was forced to change filming locations from Toronto to Los Angeles. Any worries he had directing a feature film were alleviated by his talented ensemble and co-star/executive producer Snoop Dogg. The mood on set was upbeat and collaborative. Crandall gave his cast latitude for improvisation. He also discusses his company, Positivity, and goal to improve the world by helping others achieve their dreams. This was the case for Bromates, based on a break-up experienced by co-writer and solar power entrepreneur Chris Kemper.

Inspired by Chris Kemper

What was the impetus for this story? Was somebody dumped by their girlfriend?

Court Crandall: This actually started with my writing and creative partner throughout the whole venture. Chris Kemper approached me and said he had this idea for a screenplay he’s been thinking about for years. Based on some stuff that happened to him. My company is called Positivity. I try and help people out. He sent it and I said, “There’s some funny bits in here. I’m not sure we have a movie.” I thought one part was particularly interesting, two guys kind of help each other through relationship recovery. I feel like we’ve seen it with women, Bridget Jones Diary and stuff like that. We’ve never really seen guys try and help each other. There was something kind of unique and funny about guys approaching it in the idiot way that guys would. That’s where it started.

Chris’s background, his solar power company, is he the real version of Sid?

Court Crandall: He is, I mean, we took a lot of liberties throughout everything, but he is involved in solar energy. He did have some funny stories about his girlfriend dumping him and literally ending up in the apartment next door, which you just can’t make up. There are bits of truth.

Related: Bromates Review: Silly Buddy Comedy Gets Laughs

You’ve assembled this all-star team of great comedians. I love Rob Riggle. Talk about putting these guys together on the film.

Court Crandall: It was an interesting process. We didn’t have to get approval from a studio or anything. It was about who can we get given our budget that we think are good, funny people who will make the film better. As always, you need a linchpin to get the others. Lil Rel Howery was definitely that for us. He helped quite a bit. Also, people love doing anything that involves Snoop [Dogg]. It was a concerted effort to get not just comedic actors, but stand-up comedians. People who I thought were really funny in interviews and other things outside film and TV. It made my life a whole lot easier. Hire good people, and they can make you look better than you really are.

What’s it like working with Snoop Dogg as an actor, businessman, and executive producer? The public sees one aspect of him as a weed smoker. Does he get down to brass tacks and get professional?

Court Crandall: Yeah, completely. He’s one of the more fascinating people I’ve known. He’s so multifaceted. He is a serious businessman and has just good instincts for many things, comedy being one of them. He came very prepared. He knew his lines. He gets comedic timing. I can’t speak highly enough of him.

There’s so much improvisational talent here. How much did you adhere to the script? Did you allow them to riff? And then cut up the funny bits later on?

Court Crandall: In general, I’d say a lot. I allowed them to have a fair amount of latitude. So I actually spoke with Christopher Guest beforehand. He operates like a fifteen-page outline. There’s a ton of backstory with all the characters and stuff. And then it’s just pure riffing from that point on, spending hours and hours editing. I couldn’t make that kind of commitment. It is tough when you’re filming. You want to just let people do their thing. But you’ve got to shoot over and over, then you got to shoot the close up, wide, and things like that. It’s tough, every new angle you take. You basically get to have three, four shots. I tried to be as open as possible. Cover one take of the script. And then wherever it goes, whatever is working well, I would lean into that. There were some entire scenes that were changed by the actors.

Shooting During COVID

How much time did you have to shoot overall?

Court Crandall: Five weeks, it was tight. And that was five weeks in COVID, which was particularly challenging. We ramped up production costs. It was a lot of added expense. We ended up filming in LA rather than Toronto. You had to do a ten-day or fourteen-day quarantine in your hotel room. And I thought, Snoop will be in our movie, he’s not going to sit in a hotel room for ten days to do it. We made the decision to film in LA. I think it went well except for one COVID scare for somebody who didn’t follow the protocol. That shut us down for five days. We don’t have the budget to get shut down. People were pretty careful. But it’s tough on a film set to keep people separated and not potentially infecting one another.

Describe the mood on set surrounded by comedians. Was every day a lot of fun? I can’t imagine not laughing around Rob Riggle.

Court Crandall: I’m a big believer in the notion that if you’re having fun at what you do, it will show itself and what you’re making. So you’re making comedy, there’s no reason for it not to be fun, unless people’s egos get in the way. I think it was a very fun set. The four main guys loved hanging out together. They enjoyed making each other laugh and developed quite a nice bond along the way. It was Rob’s first project since COVID. He was telling me, “Hey, I’m a little rusty. Just let me know how much do you want me to go?” I was like, go do your thing. At each stage, he gets to add more and more stuff. Everybody was so good at that aspect, it almost starts to become a crutch for you.

Related: Triangle of Sadness Review: A Hilarious Skewering of Wealth, Class, & Gender Dynamics

Best and Worst Day on Bromates

What is the best and worst day filming Bromates?

Court Crandall: The COVID shutdown was pretty bad. But I would say the most defining moment came on day three, when I was sitting there going, good God, this is a lot of work. I was riding in the van back from craft service with Flula Borg. The driver turns back to me and says, “Hey, are you the director? I have to tell you every person who’s gotten in this van has talked about how great the director is. At that moment, I just kind of realized that if your heart’s in the right place, and you’re kind to people, they will help you out. And so any shortcomings I had about no experience and some of the technical stuff, I think people overlook, and will give you their best effort. That was maybe one of the best days for me. It’s almost impossible to make an independent movie. I don’t even hear of anybody trying to make an independent comedy. So I made a point of enjoying the ride.

Embracing Positivity

I’m going to turn the conversation towards you personally. You wrote a children’s book. Your company is called Positivity. What are you trying to achieve with it?

Court Crandall: A few years back, I created a free throw competition for a college scholarship at Compton High School. The idea, inspired by my son, was to create one line that brought people together in a world that has many lines that divide us. That sort of set me off on this journey. And Positivity grew from that. My purpose is to perpetuate positive thinking and behavior in the world. I wake up every day and try to do that. And if I do that, then the rest kind of just falls into place. I have an ad account I handle, and then usually try and do one sort of philanthropic endeavor, and one entertainment project a year.

How do you deal with negativity?

Court Crandall: I’m having to steel myself to criticisms we’re going to have for this movie, which is just designed to be a fun escape for an hour and a half. There’ll be all sorts of people who just want to bludgeon us to death. People feel emboldened to say things they would never say to each other’s faces because it’s online. I don’t know what the answer to it all is. But yeah, it’s concerning for sure.

Bromates is currently in theaters and available on-demand from Quiver Distribution.