Bi-racial writer-director Eric Byler grew up in Virginia, Hawaii, and California before graduating from Wesleyan University in Connecticut. Eric was nominated for a 2003 Independent Spirit Award for his first feature Charlotte Sometimes (2003), which also earned nominations for producer Marc Ambrose and actress Jacqueline Kim. Eric's second feature Americanese premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March of 2006 where it won the Audience Award, and Special Jury Award for Outstanding Ensemble Cast. Current projects include the short subject My Life Disoriented, Kealoha (The Loved One) in development, and a Charlotte Sometimes sequel called Tre in post production.

In 1995, Eric's student film Kenji's Faith premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, won six other festival awards, and was nominated for a Student Academy Award. Eric's father is of European descent and his mother is Chinese American.