RESUME

feature films

THE MENTAL STATE
Director | Co-Writer | Editor | Executive Producer
Drama, Thriller - 105 min
A teenager from rural Kentucky struggles to cope with the true identity of a local town shooter.
Based on the play by Josh Adell, the story focuses on themes of teenage mental health and gun control. The film stars Alyssa Sutherland, Carly Pope, Bryan Greenberg, Alison Thornton, as well as a breakout performance by Jance Enslin. I spearheaded the production from acquiring the rights of the play through its production to its successful festival run. The screenplay was an Official Selection in the Atlanta Film Festival and Cinequest. Aside from other various awards and selections, the film won Best Actor at the prestigious Newport Beach Film Festival and swept the Catalina Film Festival. The film has been lauded by mental health professionals for its authenticity. Sales are represented by Jack Rabbit Media.

A FATAL OBSESSION
Director | Editor | Executive Producer
Drama, Thriller - 87 min
A mother and her teenaged daughter believe they have at last found safe refuge from their abusive husband and father Michael. Michael, enraged by their escape, will do anything to find them.
During my third year of film school, I and my Out of Shot co-founder, Ronnee Swenton, were approached by the young and hungry producer, Richard Switzer, with the idea to produce an ultra-low budget made-for-tv movie. Richard had already packaged the actors, sales agent, and writer. Ronnee and I had more production experience, so we took the helm on the entire production as well as raising the funds. We put together a crew of our classmates and a budget less than $100K, used the school’s resources, and shot the film in less two weeks. The average age of the crew was roughly 23 years old. I was 22 at the time, making me one of the youngest American to direct a television movie. The film sold to Lifetime Movie Network and has continued to circulate on other VOD outlets since. It’s not the best film I’ll ever make, but I’m certainly proud of the feat. Sales are represented by Taylor & Dodge.

THE LENNON REPORT
Executive Producer
Drama, Historical Narrative - 87 min
On December 8th, 1980, John Lennon was shot outside of the Dakota apartment building in New York. In the moments following, several attempted to rescue the voice of a generation, and one man broke the story to the world. This their stories.
The film stars Richard Kind, Evan Jonigkeit, and Devin Ratray. I served as one of the executive producers on the film. I assisted in raising funds for the production as well as securing theatrical and VOD distribution. The film had a successful festival run including Best Director from the Beverly Hills Film Festival and an Audience Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival. Sales are represented by MPX.

SOMEBODY LOVED (Upcoming)
Director
Drama; In Casting
A sexually ashamed young man learns to take control of his life while his mother, suffering from Alzheimer's, loses control of her own.
I was brought on at the recommendation of the late long-time producer and assistant director, Glen Trotiner. The story is based on the life experiences of the writer and producer, Casey Baker. The cast currently includes Amy Brenneman, Dean Winters, and Graham Phillips.

SHORT FILMS

GARY
Director | Editor | Executive Producer
Drama; 21 min
A small-town drug dealer covers up his main business dealings by caretaking for a middle-aged man with Down syndrome.

QUESTINY
Writer | Director | Cinematographer | Editor
Comedy; 11 min
Greg the XIV goes on a quest to destiny as he traverses the lands of Gregcester in search of the barbarous warrior who's killed generations of his royal male lineage.

AND THE HEAVENS MUST HAVE CRIED
Experimental, Drama, Historical Fiction, Music; 14 min
A year before the most infamous women of the Manson Family made gruesome national headlines, Manson follower Susan Atkins writes a vinyl record for the man she loves until it begins to spin out of her control.

FIG JAM
Editor
Rom Com; 15 min
Tinder hookups are stressful in non-pandemic times, but Brenda and her late night visitor are about to find out just how crazy things can get in the age of Corona.

A WILD CALAMITY
Director | Cinematographer | Editor
Comedy; 16 min
In 1870 Wyoming Territory, two western legends meet when one is shot in the ass.

LOVE, BIGFOOT
Director | Writer | Cinematographer | Post
Comedy; 11 min
A Bigfoot hunter and his film crew arrive at a family’s home to find that Bigfoot is as real as his love.

WORK

OUT OF SHOT, LLC
2012 - Present | Co-Founder
Out of Shot, LLC was founded by myself and Ronnee Swenton after meeting at the School of Visual Arts in 2011. Shortly after meeting, James and Ronnee shot a spec-ad together with the help of fellow filmmakers Christian Lamorte and Max Arias. That afternoon shoot - filled with zombies and nosy spectators - became the foundation for a long-lasting friendship and creative partnership. Ronnee and James continued on to make numerous short films, commercials, music videos, and feature films together.

THE SELFTAPE CREATIVE STUDIOS
2022 - Present | Casting Assistant
The SELFTAPE Creative Studios is one of Los Angeles’s best self-tape studios for actors to tape auditions. On site, I help tape, read, edit, and distribute actor’s self-tapes. Several of our actors have booked feature film leads, series regular roles, and commercials.

INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY / INTERPLAY
2023 | Teacher
Interplay is a summer program for children from low-income status. I ran the film class for students aged 6-14 years old. My responsibilities included creating a lesson plan for young students to learn the process of filmmaking and the jobs on set. Their time culminated in creating several short films to present in their final showcase.

CAMP FATIMA OF NEW JERSEY (Volunteer)
2006-Present | Counselor
Camp Fatima of New Jersey is a week-long, sleep-away, summer camp for children and adults with disabilities. Their disabilities includes everything from Down syndrome to cerebral palsy to autism and behavioral disorders. The camp is organized as a 1-to-1, counselor to camper, experience. For most of my time there, I have been a veteran counselor responsible for children with severe autism, low communication skills, and behavior issues.

EDUCATION

SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS
2011 - 2015 | BFA in Film, Focus in Cinematography

WYNN HANDMAN ACTING STUDIO
2018-2020 | Director Studies

THE GROUNDLINGS SCHOOL
2023 | Improv Performance, Sketch Writing

SKILLS & EXPERTISE

TRAITS: Leader, team player, collaborative, problem solver, communicator, coordinator, highly organized, detail oriented, tech savvy

SET SKILLS: Directing, Editing, Producing, Writing, AC/Camera Op, Drone, Coloring

APPS: Davinci Resolve, Adobe Suite, Final Cut Pro X, Final Draft, Movie Magic, Google Tools, Microsoft Suite, Izotope RX9, Asana, Monday