Leo Adam Biga's My Inside Stories

Alexander Payne: His Journey in Film

If you are an Omaha native like me, then I am sure you agree our shared hometown boasts many leading lights of merit. In arts-entertainment, fellow Omaha native Alexander Payne is at the top of his profession. The two-time Oscar winner’s craftsmanship makes him one of the Hollywood film industry’s most acclaimed and sought after professionals. His reputation as a writer-director extends worldwide.

As Nebraska celebrates 150 years, Payne represents the best this state has to offer in terms of talent, output, loyalty and work ethic. I am privileged to be the author of a book – “Alexander Payne: His Journey in Film” – that takes the full measure of the man and his work. My comprehensive look at his career is newly released in an expanded second edition.

I am happy to say that “Alexander Payne: His Journey in Film” has many champions.

Leonard Maltin gives it a big thumbs up with:
“Alexander Payne is one of American cinema’s leading lights. How fortunate we are that Leo Biga has chronicled his rise to success so thoroughly.”

Thomas Schatz, (“The Genius of the System”) recommends it with:
“This is without question the single best study of Alexander Payne’s films, as well as the filmmaker himself and his filmmaking process. In charting the first two decades of Payne’s remarkable career, Leo Adam Biga pieces together an indelible portrait of an independent American artist, and one that’s conveyed largely in the filmmaker’s own words. This is an invaluable contribution to film history and criticism – and a sheer pleasure to read as well.”

The publisher is River Junction Press LLC in Omaha and its distributor is Independent Publishers Group (IPG). The book is a available at Barnes & Noble and other fine bookstores nationwide, as well as on Amazon and for Kindle. In Nebraska, you can find it at all Barnes & Noble stores as well as at The Bookworm and Our Bookstore in Omaha, Indigo Bridge Books in Lincoln and in select gift shops statewide.

The easiest way to purchase it is at–

You can order signed copies by emailing your request to leo32158@cox,net.

Just as it’s my pleasure to showcase one of Nebraska’s greatest natural resources in Alexander Payne, I hope it’s your pleasure to read about his journey in film. That journey is about to take a dramatic new turn with the December 2017 release of his long-awaited film “Downsizing” starring Matt Damon. Look for my new Reader story about it in the April 2017 issue.