An American writer and director who graduated from St Edmund Hall, Oxford, and went on to earn an MA in English from Columbia University and an MA in Film Studies from New York University. He began teaching at New York University Abu Dhabi as a visiting professor. He is known for his cooperation with director and writer Walter Hill, and in 2004, he won the Best Screenplay Award for his film We Don't Live Here Anymore (2004) at the Sundance Film Festival.