James grew up in New York state, where his first dreams included becoming a fine artist... either that or literally a rocket scientist.  He watched entirely too much television, played the piano, and was a big fan of NBA basketball.  

He initially enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania for a 4-year biochemistry masters program, but by his senior year, he was skipping Lab to act, write, and direct plays in various productions on campus.  Upon graduating with an Economics degree, he immediately got a job as a busboy to pursue acting in earnest. He worked with some of Philadelphia's finest theater artists at companies such as the Mum Puppet Theater, the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, and The Philadelphia Theater Company.

Soon he headed to New Haven, Connecticut to attend the acting program at the Yale School of Drama, chaired by the legendary Ron Van Lieu.  Over the next 3 years, he had the great fortune to train with the best teachers and fellow actors in the country, playing various roles in a wide range of productions at the Drama School, the Yale Cabaret, as well as the Yale Repertory Theater.  He also served on the advisory board for the Committee of Diversity at the Drama School, attended summer acting programs at the Chautauqua Theater Company and the Guthrie Theater, and on receipt of his MFA, James was awarded the Dexter Luke Memorial Award.

The next stop was the amazing city of New York where he began enjoying a professional acting career in television, independent and studio film, theater stage productions, audiobooks, and commercials.  He is a founding member of the Leviathan Theater Lab, a member of Descendant Films. He currently splits his time between New York City and Los Angeles.