About Me

Award winning filmmaker James Grisom is an LA based storyteller from Lynwood, California. A USC School of Cinematic Arts MFA graduate and George Lucas Scholar recipient, he writes and directs stories rooted in the sincere complexity of the human experience.

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He wrote for Village Roadshow & USC's feature script adaptation of New York Times best-selling author Don Yaeger's "Turning of the Tide: How One Game Changed the South". His short film, Eye for an i, streamed on American Airline’s Inflight Entertainment. It also premiered at the American Black Film Festival and has won multiple awards including the First Place Gold Circle Award from the esteemed Caucus Foundation and Best Narrative Short at the Sights + Sound Film Festival. His ballet short film, Bobby, has gotten into multiple festivals including Black Harvest Film Festival and New Filmmaker LA and is streaming now on KANOPY.

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His filmmaker's sensibility extends to his professional sound, music composition, and video editing experience. He sound designed the Tribeca nominated and HBO MAX acquired, The Cypher and BAFTA shortlisted animated student film, Izzy Demons. He’s composed music for documentaries, narrative shorts, and branded content. That same ear for sound informs his work as a video editor, where he brings his full filmmaker's toolkit to shape and elevate scripted and unscripted material.

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Outside of filmmaking, he’s an autodidact who has a deep passion for learning, especially the intersections of philosophy, religion, and science. He loves anime, sports, hip hop, animated films and TV, playing narrative driven video games, and expressing himself through the piano.

 

Inspired by his community and loved ones, he finds purpose in sharing sincere stories about humanity through a lens of reflection and empathy.