James was born in Nairobi, Kenya to British parents who emigrated the family to
Canada in the early '70's.
After attending high school in Perth Ontario, he went to film school in
Thunder Bay at Confederation College. A work placement after college
landed him in Toronto on the CBC drama 'Street Legal' where he spent five seasons.
Over the next few years James spent his time in the trenches working
his way up through the AD department and in the last twenty-five years James has AD'd
over three hundred and fifty hours of film and television, 2nd Unit
Directed over sixty hours and Directed seven hours.
He lives in Toronto with his wife Caris and their two children.
Has one younger sister, Tracy, a speech pathologist, who lives in
Ottawa with her husband and three kids and one younger brother, Marcus,
who lives in Whitby with his wife and two children.
His younger brother Marcus Rait is an IATSE 873 Special FX Key.