James Spooner

His debut graphic novel, The High Desert was named “Best of 2022” by Publishers Weekly, The Washington Post and The New York Public Library. The High Desert is the 2023 recipient of the American Library Association's Alex Award and the Cartoonist Studio Prize. Spooner co-edited an anthology of Black punk writers and comic creators entitled, Black Punk Now. 

Spooner directed the documentary Afro-Punk which premiered at national and international film festivals, including Toronto International and The American Black Film Festival. Following four Black punk enthusiasts across the United States, Spooner weaves their personal stories together with interviews from dozens of other Black musicians and fans to examine what it means to exist in a subculture that prides itself on rebellion and outsider status, yet often shies away from conversations about race.

James also co-founded the AfroPunk Festival, which currently boasts audiences in the hundreds of thousands around the world.

Spooner’s work has been recounted in various publications, including NPR, The Los Angeles Times, Vice, The Village Voice, The New Yorker, MTV, NBC News and Variety. He was a recipient of the ReNew Media Rockefeller Grant. He is a guest curator for the Broad Museum in Los Angeles and the Punk Rock Museum in Las Vegas and previously programmed for the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

James’ latest memoir, It Starts With Anger, is his insider account of the peak of the punk scene in New York City in the 90s and early aughts. Moving through his career as a filmmaker and music organizer, James grapples with the balance fostering a genuine, grassroots scene with the multimillion dollar rebranding of “punk”, trying to find the culture’s future in the process. 

James is a passionate educator, available for talks and conversations on his memoirs and filmmaking, and workshops on DIY zine publishing, finding your creative power, and more.