Born in Arlington, VA, he has been interested in filmmaking ever since he could edit videos using the iMovie trailer templates on his family's desktop computer.  As a sixth-grader, he presented a presentation and petition at a school board meeting to support funding for a middle school film class, which he was able to take the following year.  John has also completed two courses at the UCLA Film Institute in both Film Production and Screenwriting. In recent years, John has gained experience as a Production Assistant on professional film sets, including the upcoming miniseries Lady in the Lake on Apple TV+.

John has also forayed into the world of video journalism. During high school, he completed two fellowships with PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs (SRL). He wrote, produced, shot, and edited the explainer video "How Students Are Fighting Zoom Fatigue", which aired live on PBS NewsHour and was published on its digital platforms.  During his second year of university, he co-produced, co-starred, and co-wrote the piece “Why does music affect our moods so much” which aired live on PBS NewsHourFor during Judy Woodruff’s final month as a reporter. For his work at PBS, John was named a 20-under-20 storyteller and received the Best Health Video Award from SRL. 

John has also written and directed films across many genres, including the dramedies Skipping a Generation (2023)m SEXILE (2022), and COME TO THE BEACH (2020), the documentary A Passover Story (2019), and the comedy The Case of the Unacademic Integrity (2019). His films have also won many awards, including a Merit Award from the National YoungArts Foundation, a Silver Medal from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, and a Best Documentary Nomination at the All-American High School Film Festival, to name a few.

Presently, John is in his third year at the University of Virginia studying Media Studies and Drama. Every month, he plays at various businesses with his band Logistical Nightmare as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist. He recently attended the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) as a journalist for PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs. John hopes to continue his work in the entertainment industry as a production intern this upcoming summer. He also plans on making more short films with his classmates this semester as the President of the Filmmakers Society at UVA. If you are interested in watching any of John’s work, you can visit his portfolio at www.johnbarnes.us/film.