Take a closer look at some of Hollywood's top-tier talent at the beginning of their careers.

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Take a closer look at some of Hollywood&#39;s top-tier talent at the beginning of their careers.

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John Matthews on the set of "I Believe" video with director Andrew Hachem and Amine Hachem

Still of John Matthews on the set of "The Gamer" (2012)

John Matthews with Brock Manwill and Christian Larsen at the 2017 Red Nation Film Festival in Santa Monica, CA

Producer John Matthews on the set of USC 546 Project This Time Tomorrow with crew

Producer John Matthews on the set of King Cake with Huey Lewis - May 2019

Will Hess, Steve Rash, and John Matthews in King Cake: The New Orleans Mardi Gras Story (2024)

John Matthews on the set of "Thirty Bikes" by Huntington Pier, Huntington Beach, California

John Matthews on the set of "Thirty Bikes" at Huntington Pier

Still of John Matthews in "Chance Encounter"

Still ofJohn Matthews on the set of "The Gamer" (2012)

John Matthews on the set of "This Time Tomorrow" (2012)

John Matthews introduces the cast and crew of "This Time Tomorrow" in the Frank Sinatra Hall at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theater Complex on the University of Southern California campus (2012)

John Matthews and John Schneider take a break from screenings at the 2018 Nacogdoches Film Festival to read what people are texting about them

Producer John Matthews and Producer Andrew Hachem on the set of Polina Gorbacheva directed "You"

Producers John and Aaron Matthews on the set of Lore (2015)

John Matthews with Andrew Hachem and JJ Dunlap

John Matthews with Red Nation Film Festival Panel

John Matthews and former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis at Harvard University 2001

On the set of King Cake with Director Will Hess and Alfred Doucette

John Matthews with cast and crew of Lore at the 2017 Red Nation Film Festival

Still of John Matthews on the set of "Chance Encounter"

John Matthews and Polina Gorbacheva at the 2017 premier of Lore at Dances with Films at the Chinese Theater

John Matthews on the set of USC 546 film This Time Tomorrow

John Matthews with director Lucy Eagleson and 1st AD Bubba McLean on the set of USC 546 project This Time Tomorrow

John Matthews on the set of USC 546 production This Time Tomorrow as the character of Big Tex

A graduate from USC's School of Cinematic Arts, John Matthews works as a writer and producer with the production company Folklore Films.

John Elbert Matthews was born in 1975 in Houston, Texas, to Judy V. Matthews (Skrobanek), a librarian, and Richard C. Matthews, a postal worker. Early life was spent horseback riding at his grandparents' East Texas property, camping and playing baseball. His family moved to Tomball, Texas when he was a sophomore in high school.

After moving from Texas to California, Matthews received his B.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles in International Relations with a minor in Public Policy. While at UCLA he directed the UCLA cable news program "UCLA: Next" and produced a series of documentary shorts drawing attention to homeless issues in Los Angeles. A college athlete, he rowed for the UCLA Men's Varsity Rowing team his junior year. Matthews also completed summer internships at Valhalla Motion Pictures (Aeon Flux, The Walking Dead), and United Talent Agency.

Upon graduating UCLA cum laude, he worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs negotiating contracts with studios and production companies interested in filming on Federal land in and around Los Angeles. He completed his M.F.A. from USC's School of Cinematic Arts in 2013 with a special emphasis on writing and producing. While still a student at at USC he was selected to produce a promotional short for Sony, shooting on a prototype of what became the F5 camera. He would go on to produce two of his fellow classmates' thesis films as well as the 546 film "This Time Tomorrow." John also holds a master's degree in Communication Management from USC's Annenberg School.

His first feature film "Lore" (2018), a psychological thriller involving the disappearance of a teenager, was shot in 2015/16 in Paris, Idaho and Los Angeles. "Lore" won Best Feature at the Utah Film festival and Nacogdoches Film Festival in 2018 before being picked up by Indican Pictures through an output deal with Lionsgate. Since then, he has produced a number of culturally significant films including "King Cake," a documentary on the history of Mardi Gras/New Orleans featuring John Goodman and the "Fan Level Midnight" series, an exploration of the abiding popularity of the U.S. version of "The Office." He continues to work as a producer and writer on a number of projects in development.

Matthews lives in Long Beach, California.

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