James Kicklighter on the 2024 Emmys red carpet

Emmys Red Carpet · 2024

Electronic Press Kit

James Kicklighter

Director Producer p.g.a.

Representation

Travis Tammero UTA [email hidden — enable JavaScript]

Lucius Cary Rain [email hidden — enable JavaScript]

01 · Biography

An award-winning director and producer of narrative films, documentaries, and advertising.

James Kicklighter was born in 1988, where he spent the first eighteen years of his life in Bellville, Georgia, population 123. He has gone on to become an award-winning director and producer of narrative films, documentaries and advertising. He is an active member of the Director’s Branch of the Television Academy, and is a p.g.a. producer.

His work has been recognized by the world’s press, including The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline Hollywood, Politico, The Los Angeles Times, and The Times of India. Kicklighter has served as a panelist at the Oscar®-qualifying HollyShorts Film Festival, taught filmmaking courses on Stage32.com, and his interview series with the popular YouTube channel Film Courage has over 250,000 views.

He resides in Los Angeles, California and still can’t believe he gets to work across the country and around the globe.

02 · Reel

Director's Reel

03 · Selected Filmography

Feature Films & Documentaries

2024 Feature Documentary Apple TV

The American Question

#1 New Release · Apple TV

100% Critics · Rotten Tomatoes

Released in 2024, The American Question was the #1 new release on Apple TV and earned a perfect 100% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Delving into the heart of a divided America, exploring the historical and contemporary factors that have eroded our trust in our neighbors, communities, institutions, and government.

With input from numerous experts, including Colin Woodard, Amy Chua, Yuval Levin, Tania Israel, and narrated by political analyst Guy Tal Seemann, The American Question seeks to answer the pressing question: can America rediscover its unifying values and restore trust among its people?

Creative Team

Director & Producer: James Kicklighter, p.g.a.
Producer & Narrator: Guy Seemann, p.g.a.
Director of Photography: Jonathan Pope (Emmy® Nominee, The Social Dilemma)
Editor: Mohamed El Manasterly (Emmy® Winner, Welcome to Wrexham, The Square)
Editor: J.D. Sievertson, a.c.e. (The Chi, Cosmos)
Editor: Carlos Puga (Emmy® Winner, True Life)
Original Animation: Filmograph (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Joker: Folie à Deux, John Wick)

2021 Feature Documentary STARZ · Prime Video

The Sound of Identity

91% Fresh · Rotten Tomatoes

STARZ Premiere

In 2021, Kicklighter released The Sound of Identity, premiering on STARZ, streaming on Prime Video, and available on demand — rated 91% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. In the spotlight of global media coverage, Lucia Lucas, the first transgender woman to perform as Don Giovanni in a professional opera, makes her historic debut in one of the reddest states in America.

Creative Team

Director: James Kicklighter
Producers: Russ Kirkpatrick & Andy Kinslow (Emmy® Winners)
Executive Producer: Josh Bachove (Minari, The Little Hours · Golden Globe® winner, Academy Award® nominee)
Director of Photography: Jonathan Pope (Emmy® Nominee, The Social Dilemma)

Previous Work 2015 — 2019

Prior Credits

2019

Every 9 Hours

Producer, Editor, Co-Writer

The directorial debut of youth advocate and novelist Jim St. Germain. Starring Philip Smithey (Switched at Birth), Elizabeth Ferrera (Lethal Weapon), Kahyun Kim (American Gods), and Danny Trejo (Predator, Machete). Now streaming on Prime Video.

2018

Angel of Anywhere

Writer, Director

An empathetic stripper plays therapist to his damaged clientele. Starring Briana Evigan (Step Up 2), Ser’Darius Blain (Jumanji), introducing Axel Roldos. Winner, Best Narrative Short — 2018 Macon Film Festival. Screened at the Oscar®-qualifying HollyShorts and Sidewalk Film Festivals.

2015

Desires of the Heart

Writer, Director

His first feature, released theatrically across India in November 2015. Starring Val Lauren (Medal of Honor, Sal) and Alicia Minshew (All My Children). Shot in Savannah and Rajasthan. Official Selection: Cannes Marché du Film. Winner: Best Foreign Film, Los Angeles Femme Film Festival.

2016

Hillary Clinton Presidential Campaign

Film Director · Virginia

Directed content featuring Sen. Tim Kaine, Sean Astin, Lena Dunham (Girls), Kate Walsh (Grey’s Anatomy), Bellamy Young (Scandal), Constance Wu (Fresh off the Boat), Miley Cyrus, Olympic figure skater Michelle Kwan, and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

04 · Press Coverage

Selected Press

Curated coverage across major outlets, filterable by project.

Showing 32 of 32 articles

Politico

How a polarized America walks out of 2024

These are the questions James Kicklighter and Guy Tal Seemann set out to explore eight years ago after working on Hillary Clinton

Los Angeles Times

Election stressing you out? Here are 5 psychologist-approved tips to make you feel better

Film director James Kicklighter, whose documentary

Pipeline Artists

A Pure Moment: James Kicklighter and “The Sound of Identity”

A profoundly important documentary

Film Threat

The American Question | Film Threat

A wealth of information, and director Kicklighter does an incredible job assembling the footage and staying on track to get his point across.

CNN

Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter

We explored over 8 years how this trust deficit in America occurred, over time, discovering what was happening on the ground over that period of time, and what we can do to make it better, director James Kicklighter told me.

Inquirer.com

👻 Grab your costume, Philly | Things to Do

As former factory and coal towns that have experienced major population shifts in recent years, these sites served as case studies as director James Kicklighter explored 'how the glue that held Americans together dissolved and why this threatens the stability of America today.'

App

American Question documentary examines division in U.S.

The American Question released this week as the number 2 documentary on Apple TV's streaming service, and number 1 new documentary release in the United States

Loud And Clear Reviews

The American Question Review: Timely & Hopeful

Within the 90-minute documentary, viewers get a history lesson of a brief, yet monumental decade. This is one of those unique contributions to politics that left me optimistic, rather than stressed and anxious, about America’s future.

film-authority.com

The American Question – film-authority.com

I’d encourage anyone feeling disenfranchised by recent events to consider James Kicklighter’s The American Question, not least because it’s free of hysteria and gaslighting, and attempts to understands all sides of a political argument.

Cinemacy

‘The American Question’ Review: How to Get Democracy Back on Track

The American Question is an enlightening, non-partisan look at an incredibly sensitive and timely issue. James Kicklighter doesn’t just ask the question to create provocative soundbites.

Times-Herald.com

Weekly Movie Reviews

Talented filmmaker James Kicklighter continues his upward progression with the years-in-the-making "The American Question," a revealing conversation about the polarization and conflicting views that have gripped the nation.

Film Focus Online

‘The American Question’ Review: Though-Provoking and Explorative Insight Into America – Film Focus Online

A thought-provoking and explorative film, for audiences who want to learn and understand what is happening in and around America.

Deadline Hollywood

Shout! Studios To Distribute Docu ‘The Sound Of Identity’ Spotlighting Trans Opera Star Lucia Lucas

Shout! Studios secured all North American distribution rights for the documentary which includes theatrical, digital, VOD, broadcast, and home entertainment for cross-platform releases. Shout! Studios is set to this movie across all major entertainment platforms.

Queerty

James Kicklighter raises the curtain on a transgender opera star in ‘The Sound of Identity’

James Kicklighter says, "This story, at its core, is about what it means to be an artist. I would be lying if I said I didn’t see myself in the story of Lucia, even if I’m not a transperson. I suspect many other artists will as well."

ScreenRant

Best LGBTQ+ Movies On Hulu Right Now

The Sound of Identity is an enthralling and introspective glimpse into the life of a trans woman in the modern arts. Lucia Lucas' vividly inspiring story is translated perfectly to screen.

Film Inquiry

THE SOUND OF IDENTITY: The Artistic Pursuit

I came to appreciate the film more than I had the first two times I had watched it. Because what I saw was an artist with a compassionate and intelligent vision that is both disciplined and inquisitive...the film bears the hallmarks of an instinctual and intuitive director. Kicklighter knows when to lean into elements that might seem superfluous and build on a contextual subterfuge that reinforces the film.

Elements of Madness

Director James Kicklighter’s “The Sound of Identity” is the rare documentary which delicately shifts the audience away from the expected

The Sound of Identity reveals itself as the rare documentary which evolves as it goes, taking the audience on a journey of the soul, uncovered piece by piece, moment by moment, conversation by conversation.

OperaWire

Q & A: Director James Kicklighter on His Film “The Sound of Identity”

As Kicklighter pointed out in our conversation, vocal tone, for better or for worse, is a defining aspect of gender.

theindependentcritic.com

“The Sound of Identity” Begins Indie Festival Journey

As a longtime fan of James Kicklighter's work, I've become accustomed to the quality independent motion pictures he creates seemingly regardless of type or genre. The Sound of Identity is, perhaps, the film that will, or at least should, make Kicklighter the household name he always should have been.

Directors Notes

How James Kicklighter Captured Trans Opera Singer Lucia Lucas’ Historic Performance in ‘The Sound of Identity’

I knew Lucia always had to be interviewed on a stage. The stage gets bigger with every interview, representing the internal and external growth of her career. Once we left one stage, as with our development as artists, we would never return to that stage again.

Jeanbooknerd

HollyShorts: Angel of Anywhere – James Kicklighter Interview ~ JeanBookNerd

Don’t be turned off by the headline, this is a very impressive dramatic short film. Angel of Anywhere is an award-winning short directed by James Kicklighter that has been playing at festivals this year.

FirstShowing.net

Watch: Male Stripper Short ‘Angel of Anywhere’ by James Kicklighter | FirstShowing.net

It goes to some very deep, personal places, with a very intelligent script.

UK Film Review

Movie Review | Desires of the Heart review

Desires of the Heart begins, in many ways, like your typically idealistic romance movie, and it's easy to write it off as such. But you'd be a fool to do so. This faux saccharine surface belies a superbly written and wonderfully understated and evocative piece of filmmaking with a great cast of talented actors and visuals so beautiful—they belong in a gallery. ★★★★★

Film Threat

DESIRES OF THE HEART | Film Threat

The film matches its narrative’s expansive ambitions with gorgeous visions that turn both Georgia and India into almost permanent states of postcard-friendly imagery. The quality scenery is matched by the attractiveness of the leads, Val Lauren and Alicia Minshew, who offer up another element to enjoy…they succeed in their performances, keeping a tale that can be somewhat fantastical grounded in a sense of reality. Mastery to be found throughout; a strong film.

Mic

Hollywood vs. Bollywood: An Interview With Filmmaker James Kicklighter

Kicklighter notes that as Hollywood explores partnerships with financing and distribution deals, ‘it is clear that the market is important to Hollywood.’ Kicklighter sees the main barrier to Bollywood’s power is not film output, but the accessibility to Western markets.

Aint It Cool News

AICN HORROR looks at new horrors: FOLLOWED Short Film! CANNIBAL: THE MUSICAL 13th (or so)…

Directed with a delicate and gentle hand, Followed is probably the most unexpected horror surprise I’ve seen in quite a while.

Macon Magazine

James Kicklighter: Camera With A Conscience

James Kicklighter, a 22-year-old from Bellville, is inevitably tagged as a prodigy, wunderkind and lovable ‘old soul,’ with eight movies to his credit, more in the works and a shelf of awards from indie festivals and arts organizations around the world.

Hammer to Nail

THE SOUND OF IDENTITY – Hammer to Nail

There is an intimacy here that allows Lucas’s story to resonate beyond the specifics of her experience. The film wisely centers Lucas, allowing her voice and presence to guide the narrative. It’s a moving portrait of an artist navigating identity, ambition, and legacy.

Chicago Tribune

Do you share the same values as your neighbor? That’s ‘The American Question’

If someone queried you about truths and values that you hold to be self-evident, would you and your neighbors see eye to eye? That’s the question “The American Question, directed by James Kicklighter.

No Film School

How Can You Tell if You Have What It Takes to Be a Filmmaker?

Is filmmaking a long-term or short-term thing for you? This is one of the best points Kicklighter talks about, namely because it's a little obscure. If you're working on a project right now, do you know what your next is going to be? If your answer is yes, have you determined how your current project will help you make your next one?

South Magazine

Writer/Director James Kicklighter is Calling the Shots

Georgia native James Kicklighter is a lot like the boy next door. Smart and well-spoken, he is close with his family, loves spending time with friends and has a tremendous work ethic. His work just happens to be a globe-trotting writer and director. "Film's not just about what we put on screen," says the conscientious filmmaker. "It's about the catering, the hotels, the transportation, it's about logistics. It's about all of the smaller things that become much bigger things."

The Hollywood Reporter

‘All My Children’s’ Alicia Minshew Nabs Lead in ‘Desires of the Heart’ (Exclusive)

The film will begin production in Savannah, Georgia, on Monday before moving to India.

05 · Philanthropy

Community & Mentorship

Director James Kicklighter is on the Advisory Board for AMBITION, a Los Angeles-based entrepreneurial program for disadvantaged youth. He volunteers with Kids in the Spotlight, a Los Angeles-based organization that helps foster youth heal and grow from trauma through the power of storytelling and filmmaking — directing the 2024 film Whatever it Takes, and producing the 2023 National Script Competition Winner, Speak.

He also serves on the Advisory Board for the Department of Communication Arts at Georgia Southern University, his alma mater. He was chosen out of over 30,000 living graduates to be listed on the inaugural Georgia Southern 40 Under 40 Alumni, selected for “impact in business, leadership, community, educational and/or philanthropic endeavors.”

06 · Downloads

Press Assets

High-resolution headshots, approved biographies, film stills, one-sheets, and logos. Use directly or with attribution per your editorial guidelines.

07 · Contact

For Interviews & Inquiries

Talent Agency

Travis Tammero

UTA

[email hidden — enable JavaScript]

Management

Lucius Cary

Rain

[email hidden — enable JavaScript]

Direct

James Kicklighter

General Inquiries

Contact James →

← Back to Press Archive