Jon Matthews

Jon is a civil-rights-lawyer-turned-filmmaker. He is known for the documentary "Surviving Cliffside" (SXSW 2014, Sundance Channel) and "Black Dog, Red Dog," starring James Franco, Olivia Wilde and Whoopi Goldberg. Jon grew up in a hollow, called Booger Hole, in Alum Creek, West Virginia. Before becoming a filmmaker, Jon was a lawyer. He practiced civil rights law for seven years. His last job was legal director for the ACLU of Connecticut. At 31, Jon decided to give up law and enroll in NYU's graduate film program. At NYU, Jon studied under James Franco, Todd Solondz, Ira Sachs, and Spike Lee. Jon also worked as Spike Lee's teaching assistant, during his third year at NYU. In the spring of 2012, Jon co-directed a film with James Franco and ten NYU classmates. The film was produced by James Franco and stars Whoopi Goldberg, James Franco, Olivia Wilde, and Logan Marshall-Green. In January 2013, Jon received a grant, awarded by Spike Lee, to finish his documentary, Surviving Cliffside, his first feature documentary.