Born in 1959 in Los Angeles, CA, Jim grew up in San Diego, CA where he received a BA in Music from the University of San Diego in only SIX years, (after making the rounds of most of the other significant universities in San Diego, and playing clubs with his band) and then an MFA in Drama from the University of California, San Diego. He moved to New York City in 1989 and worked as an actor for a number of years in film, television, and theater. He spent ten years as an audio and video producer for various Catholic organizations and charities, and in 2010 started his own production company, Navis Pictures, which specialized in the unique film genre of Children's Cinema. Both of his independent feature films, St. Bernadette of Lourdes and The War of the Vendée have been broadcast worldwide on EWTN and the FORMED network to millions, and have sold tens of thousands of copies. Jim and his wife, Fran, raised their six children in Danbury, CT.