Production
James M. Johnston
Johnston is an award-winning filmmaker from Fort Worth, TX. He is part of the filmmaking collective Sailor Bear where he produced the films Ain't Them Bodies Saints and Listen Up Philip. Johnston also directed the short films Knife, Receive Bacon, and Merrily, Merrily.
Acting credits
5.7The relationships of three men are examined through their use of technology.
LOL
2006
3.9On their way to a rock concert, Carrie, her boyfriend Sam, and Bone, her thug ex-boyfriend, get lost and wind up in Fate, Texas – a town populated by bloodthirsty, dimwitted vampires. Featuring genre favorites Nicholas Brendon and Tom Towles.
Blood on the Highway
2008
NREd Franklin, a young man pursuing his dreams in Hollywood, returns home to Fort Worth, Texas at Christmas time to find his family in turmoil. His parents' marriage is crumbling and his relationship with his two brothers is rocky at best. The discovery that his beloved Granny has been placed in a nursing home after a stroke left her mentally disabled pushes Ed over the edge. He decides to come to his unhappy Granny's rescue, abducting her from the home against his family's orders. Ed's father Rex and brothers, Steve and Davy, set out after Ed and Granny, and a cross-country pursuit begins.
Carried Away
2012
Behind the camera
5.7Long-buried wounds rise to the surface when iconic pop star Mother Mary reunites with her estranged best friend and former costume designer Sam Anselm on the eve of her comeback performance.
Mother Mary
2026
6.6An epic fantasy adventure based on the timeless Arthurian legend, The Green Knight tells the story of Sir Gawain, King Arthur's reckless and headstrong nephew, who embarks on a daring quest to confront the eponymous Green Knight, a gigantic emerald-skinned stranger and tester of men.
The Green Knight
2021
7.1Recently deceased, a white-sheeted ghost returns to his suburban home to console his bereft wife, only to find that in his spectral state he has become unstuck in time, forced to watch passively as the life he knew and the woman he loves slowly slip away.
A Ghost Story
2017
6.4The true story of Forrest Tucker, from his audacious escape from San Quentin at the age of 70 to an unprecedented string of heists that confounded authorities and enchanted the public. Wrapped up in the pursuit are a detective, who becomes captivated with Forrest’s commitment to his craft, and a woman, who loves him in spite of his chosen profession.
The Old Man & the Gun
2018
6.1Bob Muldoon and Ruth Guthrie, an impassioned young outlaw couple on an extended crime spree, are finally apprehended by lawmen after a shootout in the Texas hills. Although Ruth wounds a local officer, Bob takes the blame. But four years later, Bob escapes from prison and sets out to find Ruth and their daughter, born during his incarceration.
Ain't Them Bodies Saints
2013
3.8After the death of a much despised patriarch, a mysterious box shows up during the reading of the will, forcing the family to reckon with each of their own deadly sins.
The Unwilling
2017
6.1Angela and Jessie are best friends intent on taking a wild beach trip, but when their roommate loses all of their money in a drug scam, the girls -- blissfully stoned -- go to increasingly daring and absurd lengths to get it back.
Never Goin' Back
2018
5.8Anger rages in Philip as he awaits the publication of his second novel. He feels pushed out of his adopted home city by the constant crowds and noise, a deteriorating relationship with his photographer girlfriend Ashley, and his own indifference to promoting the novel. When Philip's idol Ike Zimmerman offers his isolated summer home as a refuge, he finally gets the peace and quiet to focus on his favorite subject: himself.
Listen Up Philip
2014
5.2Follows a variety of New York characters as they navigate personal relationships and unexpected problems over the course of one day.
Person to Person
2017
5.9Openly gay Ernesto and closeted Gabe grapple with the sad tribulations of being gay in a small, working-class Texas town
Pit Stop
2013
6.4Turquoise, a former beauty queen turned hardworking single mother, prepares her rebellious teenage daughter for the “Miss Juneteenth” pageant, hoping to keep her from repeating the same mistakes in life that she did.
Miss Juneteenth
2020
6.0Shelia, a single mom and sometime paranormal investigator, is enlisted to investigate a possible “haunting” at a widower’s farmhouse in East Tennessee.
Light from Light
2019
Two women find themselves competing against each other – one is a young new fighter while the other is a former champion who is determined to reclaim her title.
Strawweight
—
A simple story about a 13-year-old girl in an existential crisis. Her name is Merrilee. She is an only child. Introspective and out of place, her social nexus is nominal.
Merrily, Merrily
2008
A simple story about a 13-year-old girl in an existential crisis. Her name is Merrilee. She is an only child. Introspective and out of place, her social nexus is nominal.
Merrily, Merrily
2008
A simple story about a 13-year-old girl in an existential crisis. Her name is Merrilee. She is an only child. Introspective and out of place, her social nexus is nominal.
Merrily, Merrily
2008
8.3In this companion-piece to The Green Knight, two mysterious entities exchange their knowledge in unconventional ways.
Oak Thorn & the Old Rose of Love
2022
Set in rural Texas the story chronicles an unnamed man with a broken spirit. In the beginning we see him returning to his family. Where he’s been is unknown. Wherever it was – prison, maybe war – the years have not been kind to him. In spite of his family’s warm welcome the man can’t shake an anger that builds in him so he must leave them again. This time to return to the land that was once theirs, a land that had been in the family for generations, a land that has been stolen, plundered, and sewn with seeds of greed. There’s a force at work, a corruption that destroys homes, nature, families, and memories. The Man decides to lay his stakes down and pits himself against it all. He is on a ruinous mission to sate the hatred in his heart with the knife he carries in his hand.
Knife
2011
Set in rural Texas the story chronicles an unnamed man with a broken spirit. In the beginning we see him returning to his family. Where he’s been is unknown. Wherever it was – prison, maybe war – the years have not been kind to him. In spite of his family’s warm welcome the man can’t shake an anger that builds in him so he must leave them again. This time to return to the land that was once theirs, a land that had been in the family for generations, a land that has been stolen, plundered, and sewn with seeds of greed. There’s a force at work, a corruption that destroys homes, nature, families, and memories. The Man decides to lay his stakes down and pits himself against it all. He is on a ruinous mission to sate the hatred in his heart with the knife he carries in his hand.
Knife
2011
Marcus is dealing with some serious shit but he can't seem to talk to anyone about it.
Melville
2015
Marcus is dealing with some serious shit but he can't seem to talk to anyone about it.
Melville
2015
NRA young man calls an old friend to pick him up from the airport. She does so, and they spend a long cold night in each other's company; driving around, listening to music, and trying hard not to grow up.
The Outlaw Son
2007
Four encounters, each confined to a single room: a man helps a young woman remember her past; a husband and wife confront each other about their infidelities; a journalist interviews a famous author about the mysteries hidden in his novel; and a secretary visits her former employer to tell him how much she's always loved him. Each of these conversations could happen any day, every day – except that the young woman has been raped and murdered, the husband has died in a terrible automobile accident, the employer has perished in a fire, and the novelist has passed away from old age. The four intertwined stories weave a tale that is shocking, humorous, tragic and uplifting, in which secrets are shared, truths are revealed, and each of the eight characters comes to an understanding they could not have gained without the touch of death.
Deadroom
2005
Four encounters, each confined to a single room: a man helps a young woman remember her past; a husband and wife confront each other about their infidelities; a journalist interviews a famous author about the mysteries hidden in his novel; and a secretary visits her former employer to tell him how much she's always loved him. Each of these conversations could happen any day, every day – except that the young woman has been raped and murdered, the husband has died in a terrible automobile accident, the employer has perished in a fire, and the novelist has passed away from old age. The four intertwined stories weave a tale that is shocking, humorous, tragic and uplifting, in which secrets are shared, truths are revealed, and each of the eight characters comes to an understanding they could not have gained without the touch of death.
Deadroom
2005