Schwimmer's not stuck in second gear

Four years have passed since David Schwimmer shot his last episode of the long-running TV sitcom "Friends." Now, he's become a movie director with his first feature, the comedy "Run Fat Boy Run," in theaters right now.

It stars Simon "Hot Fuzz" Pegg as a London slacker who challenges Hank Azaria's Chicago businessman for Thandie Newton's affections. The New York-set comedy moved to England after the script was purchased by a British production company.

I met up with Schwimmer -- a founder of Chicago's Lookingglass Theatre company -- at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Chicago.

DG: So let me get this straight. The only American in your movie, a Chicagoan no less, is the villain of your story?

DS: That's funny. When the script was suddenly taking place in London, I consciously made a decision to keep that character American because I thought it would be just that more relateable to an American audience. About halfway through the shooting, I suddenly realized I just made the only villain in the movie an American. I didn't mean to do it. It was just a coincidence.

DG: You shot this movie in November and December?

DS: It was freezing!

DG: And yet the movie doesn't look that cold.

DS: That's a credit to the actors, particularly Simon who has this little running shorts on. In between takes, we're running in with blankets and coats and keeping him warm. He has this ability to stop shivering the moment we're rolling. I can't imagine another actor playing this role other than Simon.

DG: What was your biggest challenge as the director?

DS: The marathon sequence. We had one day to shoot the entire marathon with what's supposed to look like 10,000 runners and 30,000 spectators. And I only had 200 extras to work with. We had several locations to cover and four cameras to do it. It was a challenge. It was like going to battle. I didn't get every shot I wanted, but we got enough to make the movie.

DG: What the greatest joy you experienced directing your first feature?

DS: There's nothing better than your first test screening. You've spent a year on the movie, six months editing it, and you're like "Please, God, I hope people get this joke!" Nothing's more wonderful than hearing that audience laugh. Okay, they get it. They're that smart. I think audiences are smarter than most films make them out to be.

DG: Any advice for theater students at your alma mater, Northwestern, who are struggling to land acting careers?

DS: Two things. One, there's no right way to make it in the industry. There's no one way to do it. So when someone says, "You have to do this," it's not true.

Second, you have to want it more than anything else in your life. If you can't see yourself doing anything else, you should do it. You're going to need to be that determined to get through some of the hurdles. If you can see yourself doing something else, or don't want it more than anything else, it will be tougher for you.