I was born in London, started directing theatre in high school and continued as an undergraduate at Oxford University. I was later awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to attend the graduate film program at NYU.

While at NYU, I supported myself by DJ-ing. I appeared frequently at the Soundlab, and with my friend Moby, I contributed a chapter to "Sound Unbound, Sampling Digital Music and Culture" edited by Paul D. Miller aka DJ Spooky that Subliminal Kid. I also directed episodes of Nickelodeon’s Blues Clues and was nominated for two Emmy Awards for that work.

I then ventured into the documentary feature world. My first documentary, Devil’s Playground, premiered at Sundance in 2002. My last two documentaries, Countdown To Zero and Waste Land, both premiered at Sundance in 2010, the first time a documentary director has had two films in the festival in the same year. Waste Land won the Audience Award at Sundance and Berlin, the first time a film has won in both festivals.