James Breen

A native of Detroit who relocated to San Francisco, Jim has worked on various films in Detroit, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In 2003, Jim formed A & I Pictures, a production company that would allow him the opportunity to produce, write and direct his own films. In 2003, Jim wrote and directed #1, his first short film. #1 premiered at the 2004 San Francisco Black Film Festival and gave the opportunity for Jim to appear on Movie Closeup, an interview show that showcases Bay Area talent. In 2008, Jim completed My Grief is My Own, a one hour drama about a woman coming to terms with the death of her son and her descent into the underground world of dogfighting. My Grief is My Own premiered at the 2008 Orlando Hispanic Film Festival. After completing Valentine's Day, his third film, Jim was selected as one of only 28 directing fellows to attend the 2009-2011 Directing Conservatory at the prestigious American Film Institute in Los Angeles. In 2011, James completed Happy Birthday Michael Peck, his thesis film produced as part of the AFI program. The film went on to play a number of festivals including the 2011 Detroit-Windsor International Film Festival, the 2011 Ojai Film Festival(where is won the The Limelight Award for Best Student Film) and the 2012 Newport Beach Film Festival. In 2012, Jim was selected as a semi-finalist in the prestigious Nicholl Fellowship for his feature screenplay "The Importance of Blood". The screenplay was also selected as one of 13 of the best unproduced genre scripts in 2012's Blood List.