Early Life
Johnson was born in Maryland. He was raised in San Clemente, California, and attended San Clemente High School, where Brick was predominantly filmed. He then attended the University of Southern California and graduated from the USC School of Cinematic Arts in 1996. Johnson's first short film, "Evil Demon Golf Ball From Hell", which is loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe’s "The Tell-Tale Heart", was included as an easter egg on the Looper DVD and Blu-Ray.
Johnson's film career, as told to Robert K. Elder, author of The Film That Changed My Life, was largely inspired by Annie Hall, "a film that broke so many rules in terms of film narrative":
It moved me in a way that very few other films have moved me. That’s something that, I pray to God, if I am able to keep making movies, I can only hope, twenty years down the line maybe, I’ll be able to approach.
In addition to his film work, Johnson is also a folk singer and banjoist. Some of his songs can be found on his website.
His brother is well-known music producer Aaron Johnson. His cousin, Nathan Johnson, composed the score for Brick, The Brothers Bloom and Looper. Rian and Nathan make up a folk duo called The Preserves. Other cousins, including Zachary and Marke Johnson, have been involved in design and illustration work relating to Johnson's films.
Read more about this topic: Rian Johnson
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