Early life and career
Johnston was born in Minneapolis to Beverly & William Johnston. [2] He was raised in Neenah, Wisconsin. [3] [4] His father was an Episcopal priest. [4] When he was young, he received an annual pass that allowed him free entry into the Marcus Theatres, a Wisconsin-based theater chain, through a connection at his father's church. [4] Johnston is a graduate of Neenah High School. [2]
He graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1994 with a degree in journalism. [5] After graduation he worked in regional news television for nine years. [3] His first job was as a weatherman in Rochester, Minnesota despite knowing nothing about meteorology. [6] [3] He then worked as a bureau reporter at the Omaha, Nebraska, ABC affiliate, KETV. [7] Afterwards, he transferred to KARE station in Minneapolis. [8] [4]
Johnston graduated with a MFA in film from Columbia University School of the Arts' Film Program in 2004. [9] He was classmates with Jennifer Lee, whom he later brought on to co-write Wreck-It Ralph with. [10]
His short, Flightless Birds, about a community of five trying to save their town was shot in South Dakota. [11]
After graduation, Johnston sold his first work to ABC. [12] The half hour comedy, Life is Super, is about a woman who adopts several children and subsequently turning her experience into a podcast. [12]
Johnston optioned his first feature script to ThinkFilm before it went bankrupt. [3] Jeremy Orm Is a Pervert is about the intersection of a preacher's career and his son's pornography business. [3] This was loosely based on his side hustle back in middle school selling pornographic magazines he acquired from upperclassmen to his classmates. [6] He managed to buy a pair of Air Jordans with the profits before eventually getting the operation shut down by his parents. [6]
His script for Cedar Rapids (2011) was included in the 2009 Black List (survey), a list voted by members of the entertainment industry for favorite, unproduced screenplays. [13]
Personal life
Johnston met his wife, Jill Cordes, while working as a reporter at KETV, Nebraska, where she was a morning anchor. [14]
While attending Columbia, he lived in Brooklyn with his wife, Jill. [4] He was neighbors with film critic Christy Lemire. [4]
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