Schwarz spent the late 1990s working in the low budget feature world, editing movies and trailers for directors such as
Gary Graver,
Fred Olen Ray and
David DeCoteau. In 1998, Schwarz was hired to edit a documentary about the making of
Gus Van Sant's controversial remake of
Alfred Hitchcock's
Psycho.
Psycho Path was included on the
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment DVD release of
Psycho, and was Schwarz's first foray into the burgeoning world of DVD bonus features, also known as value added material (VAM). As the
DVD-Video format was introduced to the public, all the major studios began offering making-of featurettes and audio commentaries on their discs as an incentive to consumers to replace movies they already owned on VHS or laserdisc. Schwarz capitalized on this moment to segue into producing original bonus content, and soon became one of the leading producers in this field. In 2000, Schwarz founded the
Los Angeles-based production house,
Automat Pictures. Schwarz and a team of skilled producers created content for over 100 major DVD and Blu-ray studio releases, and soon expanded into the production of EPKs (electronic press kits) and original television programming. The film premiered at the 2007
American Film Institute's
AFI Fest and was awarded the Audience Award for Best Documentary. In 2008, Schwarz directed the feature documentary
Wrangler: Anatomy of an Icon, which focused on the life and career of
porn star Jack Wrangler, who became a superstar in both the gay and straight markets before marrying singer
Margaret Whiting and retiring from the porn industry. The film features Wrangler as well as a host of notable golden age porn figures such as
Samantha Fox,
Gloria Leonard,
Jamie Gillis,
Al Goldstein,
Joe Gage,
Sharon Mitchell and
Candida Royalle. The film won a
GayVN Awards in 2009 for Best Alternative Release by
TLA Releasing. Wrangler died soon after its launch on the festival circuit in 2009. His next feature,
Vito, focused on the life of
Vito Russo, gay activist, film scholar, author and major figure in the fight against
AIDS. The film, executive produced by
Bryan Singer and produced for
HBO Documentary Films, premiered at the 2011
New York Film Festival and made its television debut on
HBO in July 2012. It received an
Emmy Award for Outstanding Research at the 2013
News and Documentary Emmy Awards, as well as a
GLAAD Media Award nomination for Outstanding Documentary. In 2013, Schwarz documented
Baltimore drag performer
Divine with the celebratory feature,
I Am Divine. It featured extensive interviews with contemporaries and admirers including Divine's mother Frances Milstead,
John Waters,
Mink Stole,
Tab Hunter,
Bruce Vilanch,
Susan Lowe,
Peaches Christ,
Ricki Lake, and others. The film had its
World Premiere at the 2013
South by Southwest Film Festival, and garnered much critical praise and audience good will. 's'' premiere at 2015 SXSW Following Hunter's participation in
I Am Divine, Schwarz was approached by Hunter's partner,
Allan Glaser, about adapting Hunter's best-selling autobiography,
Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star (2005, co-written with
Eddie Muller), into a
documentary feature of same name. The film features extensive interviews with Hunter, as well as friends and associates such as
John Waters,
Debbie Reynolds,
Clint Eastwood, and
George Takei. It had its World Premiere at the 2015
South by Southwest Film Festival, and went on to screen at festivals around the world to great acclaim. The film was nominated for "Outstanding Documentary" at the
27th GLAAD Media Awards. Schwarz' 2017
The Fabulous Allan Carr, is a documentary about flamboyant Hollywood producer
Allan Carr, famous for producing
Grease, ''
Can't Stop the Music, La Cage aux Folles'', and the notorious
1989 Academy Awards broadcast. The film made its debut at the 2017
Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF). It features interviews with
Patricia Birch,
Maxwell Caulfield,
Steve Guttenberg,
Randy Jones,
Randal Kleiser,
Sherry Lansing,
Lorna Luft,
Michael Musto,
Robert Osborne,
Brett Ratner,
Connie Stevens,
Alana Stewart,
Marlo Thomas,
Bruce Vilanch and more. In 2021,
Boulevard! A Hollywood Story premiered at
Outfest Los Angeles. Schwarz produced and directed along with John Boccardo. The film is about Dickson Hughes and
Richard Stapley, two young composers who are hired by movie star
Gloria Swanson to adapt a musical version of
Billy Wilder's 1950 film
Sunset Boulevard. The documentary also follows director Jeffrey Schwarz as he uncovers the story and discovers what happened to the two men later in their lives. The film features TCM's
Robert Osborne in one of his final film appearances. In February, 2023,
Commitment to Life premiered at the
Santa Barbara International Film Festival. It was acquired by
NBC Universal's
Peacock and made its debut on
World AIDS Day December 1, 2023. The film tells the story of the fight against
AIDS in
Los Angeles, with an emphasis on the work of
APLA Health, formerly known as AIDS Project Los Angeles. The film features interviews with
Jewel Thais-Williams,
Phill Wilson,
Michael S. Gottlieb,
Rev. Steve Pieters,
Karamo Brown,
Bruce Vilanch,
Jeffrey Katzenberg,
Torie Osborn, and
Bamby Salcedo. Schwarz has served as producer, co-producer, and executive producer on
Ron Nyswaner's ''She's the Best Thing In It'',
Michael Stabile's
Seed Money: The Chuck Holmes Story, Elijah Drenner's
That Guy Dick Miller, and
Rob Epstein and
Jeffrey Friedman's
And the Oscar Goes To. He was also consulting producer on Lisa Dapolito and
CNN Films'
Love, Gilda, which premiered at the 2018
Tribeca Film Festival, as well as Jennifer Kroot's
The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin. == Upcoming projects ==