John Wilson

Originally hailing from Queens, NY, John Wilson is the writer, director, cameraman and star of the new HBO series How To with John Wilson. He started working for a private investigator directly after graduating from college, and has been making first-person “how-to” documentaries in his idiosyncratic style for over a decade. In 2015, Wilson was asked to go on tour with David Byrne to make an original film about his performance. The year after that, Wilson was hired to make an official documentary for Vimeo about the Sundance Film Festival. His work eventually caught the eye of Nathan Fielder, whom John met by chance at a restaurant in Chinatown one night – and immediately started a collaboration with. Thus, How To with John Wilson was born. His catalog of films can be seen at johnsmovies.com. (Picture by Zach Dilgard / HBO.)

Talks

How To Remember Your Idols

By John Wilson | October 27, 2020

How To Remember Your Idols

The man behind How To With John Wilson froze when he was asked about his influences, so he decided to write some of them down.

Why I Shunned the Sundance Route (But Still Made a Film About the Festival)

By John Wilson | April 12, 2017

Why I Shunned the Sundance Route (But Still Made a Film About the Festival)

The internet's favorite no-budget filmmaker, John Wilson, explains why he was at Sundance this year, despite openly resenting the festival.