Fresh from film school in 1984, Hartley joined Jerome's company Action Productions, which produces TV commercials, industrial films and videos and various public service projects for the government. "Hal got his first job with us," explains Jerome. "He became our staff assistant and we immediately recognized his abilities. He was very capable, doing things it would have taken other people years to learn."
It was thanks to Jerome that Hal's first feature, "The Unbelievable Truth" was made. "He was writing one script after another, and one was 'The Unbelievable Truth,'" says Jerome. "I thought it had a lot of potential. Hal was preparing to make it on 16mm with a next-to-nothing approach, so I told him I would put up the money to make the film properly."
That was the beginning of a long and prolific relationship. Since then, Brownstein has served as a producer on all of Hartley's films, and in 1989, he and Hartley started a new company, True Fiction Pictures, to represent their theatrical endeavors.