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James Greer
Greer in 2010
Occupations
  • novelist
  • screenwriter
  • director
  • musician
  • critic
Years active1991–present
Notable workBad Eminence, Unsane, The Failure
StylePost-modernism, experimental literature

James Greer is an American novelist, screenwriter, director, musician, and critic. As a screenwriter, he is known for writing the 2018 thriller Unsane directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring Claire Foy and Juno Temple, as well as the family comedies Max Keeble's Big Move, Just My Luck and The Spy Next Door. He lives in Los Angeles.[1]

Career

Musician/Critic

Greer was senior editor and senior writer at Spin[2] magazine in New York City in the early 1990s, during which time he helped define the generational cohort that became later widely-known as Generation X.[3]

He wrote and performed all instruments/vocals on the song "Trendspotter Acrobat" on the EP Sunfish Holy Breakfast by Guided By Voices. He was the bassist in the band from 1994 to 1996.[4][5]

Greer started a band in 2012 with musician Lola G. called DTCV.[6] Pronounced "detective", it was an indie rock duo from Joshua Tree, California. The band released a double album called Hilarious Heaven in 2013 on Xemu Records, followed by a compilation of their early singles and EPs, The Early Year. The duo released their second studio album, Uptime!, in 2015.[7] In April 2016 the band released its third and final studio album, entitled Confusion Moderne, on Xemu Records.[8]

Novelist/Author

Greer has published three novels: Artificial Light (Little House on the Bowery/Akashic, 2006),[9] The Failure (Akashic, 2010).[10] Artificial Light won a California Book Award Silver Medal for First Fiction.[11] and Bad Eminence (And Other Stories, 2022), which Andrew Gallix in The Irish Times called "this year's cult classic," writing that the novel was "hilarious, exhilarating and mind-blowing" [12]

In 2013 Greer released his first book of short fiction, titled Everything Flows, via Curbside Splendor. Publishers Weekly said of the book "Halfway between the mind of God and a vivid dream, Everything Flows is proof that there remain new places to go, both on paper and in the known universe."[13]

FICTION

NON-FICTION

Screenwriter

Greer has written or co-written several movies, including Max Keeble's Big Move[14] (Disney, 2001), Just My Luck[15] (20th Century Fox, 2006) starring Lindsay Lohan, the Jackie Chan vehicle The Spy Next Door[16] (Lions Gate, 2010) and Unsane,[17] directed by Steven Soderbergh, and starring Claire Foy and Juno Temple (Fingerprint Releasing, Bleecker Street, Regency, 2018). In February 2018, Deadline Hollywood reported that Greer was set to write a script called Planet Kill for Soderbergh to produce.[18] He also has adapted the John Barth novel The Sot-Weed Factor (novel) for a projected series from Soderbergh. [19]

Discography

Guided By Voices

DTCV

Filmography

Writer [20]

FILM

TV

Director[21]

References

  1. ^ "James Greer is comfy under the magnifying glass in new band Détective". Denverpost.com. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  2. ^ Crew, Adrienne (August 8, 2006). "Interview in LAist discussing Greer's "influence on a generation of music journalists"". Laist.com. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  3. ^ "Unsane writer James Greer on the death of Kurt Cobain and birth of Generation X". March 20, 2018. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
  4. ^ "James Greer: Making the World His Bitch (and Elephants)". www.vice.com. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  5. ^ "Steven Soderbergh's 12-hour John Barth adaptation, via James Greer". Los Angeles Times. April 2, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  6. ^ "DTCV AllMusic Biography". AllMusic.com. July 10, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
  7. ^ "DTCV | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  8. ^ "Consequence of Sound Advance Stream of Confusion Moderne". consequence.net. April 1, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
  9. ^ Jaime-Becerra, Michael (October 8, 2006). "Los Angeles Times review of Artificial Light". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  10. ^ Baron, Zach (March 24, 2010). "Review of The Failure in the Village Voice". Villagevoice.com. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  11. ^ Official California Book Awards Site Archived June 20, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ "James Greer's Bad Eminence: A wicked thrill opened at your peril".
  13. ^ "Fiction Book Review: Everything Flows by James Greer".
  14. ^ Max Keeble's Big Move IMDB page
  15. ^ Just My Luck IMDB page
  16. ^ The Spy Next Door IMDB page
  17. ^ Kroll, Justin (July 18, 2017). "Juno Temple to Co-Star With Claire Foy in Steven Soderbergh's Next Movie (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  18. ^ Busch, Anita (February 1, 2018). "Studio 8 Acquires 'Planet Kill' For Steven Soderbergh To Produce, May Direct". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  19. ^ "Steven Soderbergh's 12-hour John Barth adaptation, via James Greer". Los Angeles Times. April 2, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  20. ^ James Greer at IMDb
  21. ^ James Greer at IMDb

External links

Guided by Voices
Authority control databases
Categories