Author: The JT LeRoy Story

On January 9, 2006 The New York Times sent shock waves through the literary world when it unmasked “it boy” wunderkind JT LeRoy, whose tough prose about a sordid childhood had captivated icons and luminaries internationally. It turned out LeRoy didn’t actually exist. He was the creative expression of 40-year-old San Francisco former phone-sex operator turned housewife, Laura Albert. Author: The JT LeRoy Story takes us down the infinitely fascinating rabbit hole of how for a decade Laura Albert—like a Cyrano de Bergerac on steroids—breathed not only words, but life, into her avatar. Albert’s epic and entertaining account plunges us into a glittery world of rock shows, fashion events, and the Cannes red carpet where LeRoy becomes a mysterious sensation. As she recounts this astonishing odyssey, Albert also reveals the intricate web spun by irrepressible creative forces within her. Her extended and layered JT LeRoy performance still infuriates many; but according to Albert, channeling her brilliant fiction through another identity was the only possible path to self-expression.

“FOUR STARS. ENDLESSLY RIVETING. Albert is a hell of a storyteller.” – Nigel Smith, The Guardian

“A TIGHTLY WOVEN AND ALMOST UNBELIEVABLE YARN. A strange, existential and ultimately thrilling story of a woman donning identities with a degree of spy-novel ambition.” – Steven Zeitchik, Los Angeles Times

“A fascinating treatise on creative desire and fame, as compelling as anything the writer herself dreamed up.” – Eric Kohn, Indiewire

“Trust us, ‘Author’ will be one of the most entertaining films you see this summer. You will not believe the twists-and-turns.” – Chris O’Falt, Indiewire

“Wildly entertaining and truly stranger than fiction.” – John Fink, The Film Stage

“A cinematic page-turner. A sensational but unsensationalistic telling of a riveting story.” – Jason Bailey, Flavorwire

“That Feuerzeig can navigate this hall of mirrors so cleanly and effectively is positively supernatural.” – Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine