Do Not Disturb

As with many directors his age, James started as a teenager shooting on Super 8mm, and produced dozens of shorts and full-length “movies.” Shortly after graduating from high school, he raised $7,000 from private investors for his first professional production, a comedic short – which was ultimately licensed by HBO and incorporated into the first episode of “Real Sex.”

James moved to Las Vegas in 1989 and spent five years developing what he considered “the next step” – a $30 million feature entitled “Ghost Writer.” Even though the project failed at the 11th hour and was never produced, he actually came remarkably close for a young man with no industry contacts, very limited experience, no money of his own, and no related education. Before pulling the plug, Academy Award nominee Michael Anderson had agreed to direct, and the cast included: Tom Skerritt, Ed Harris, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, Redd Foxx, Jimmie Walker and Joan Van Ark.

In 1994, James took a break from the movie business and attended the University of Nevada’s Hotel Administration program, and then two years at the Boyd School of Law. Most of his exposure to media and entertainment in the years that followed was limited to finance, accounting and legal. His most notable credit during that timeframe was legal consulting for the beleaguered feature film “Buckaroo,” starring Gary Busey, Adam West and Lindsay Wagner.

After years of complaining to family and friends about the success of “The Blair Witch Project” and “Paranormal Activity,” James decided it was time to put up or shut up, and quickly secured financing for “Do Not Disturb.”

James is currently general manager of a resort property in Southern Nevada, and is also chairman of the town’s tourism advisory board – which manages the promotion of tourism in the area and is funded by the state’s room tax.

A promotional video James recently produced and directed for the resort he manages took first place this year at the State of Nevada’s annual “Rural Roundup” conference. And currently, he is directing the first in a series of horror shorts aimed at the YouTube market, which will be complete before year’s end.