[3] At age 16, Nitzberg became a founding member and guitarist of the notorious Lower East Side hardcore punk band Artless.
While working there he directed his first documentary The Wild World of Hasil Adkins, One Man Band And Inventor of the Hunch for PBS' Headwaters TV Series.
[6] Nitzberg had to persevere through these death threats and other psychotic episodes from Adkins, in order to finally capture the life story of a performer known just as much for his drunkenness, unpredictability and frequent arrests as for his unique music.
This footage became the basis of the Emmy Award-winning documentary Dancing Outlaw, on which Nitzberg served as associate producer and sound man.
[1] It featured the debut of Mary Lynn Rajskub; the soundtrack was produced by the Dust Brothers and included songs by The Muffs, Beck, C.C.
[8] Godfrey Cheshire in Variety raved about the film calling it "an impressively assured and pro debut", as well as declaring that "it's reassuring that original, fiercely committed indie satires like this one are still emerging.
[1] In 2006, Nitzberg wrote the book and lyrics for the controversial musical The Beastly Bombing or A Terrible Tale of Terrorists Tamed by the Tangles of True Love, which he also directed.
The Beastly Bombing told the story of two Al Qaeda terrorists who show up in New York to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge.
[10] The Beastly Bombing drew comparison to Mel Brooks and was dubbed by The Huffington Post: "the first great work of comedy to emerge from the post-9/11 little planet of horrors."
Stephen Schwartz, the composer of Wicked and Godspell, called The Beastly Bombing "the most offensive and morally unredeemable musical I've ever heard.
"[11] The show became a sellout cult hit attracting celebrities including Diane von Furstenberg, John C. Reilly, Spike Jonze, Paul Reiser, Stephen Gaghan and Liev Schreiber.
Nitzberg spent eighteen months with the notorious family of Jesco White, documenting their history as dancers, criminals and the impact of the coal mining culture upon them.
Shot cinéma vérité style, the film followed four generations of the White family as they flowed in and out of prison and scrambled to get by in rural West Virginia.
[15] Chris Morris in Variety said "Drinking, gas-huffing, drug dealing and drug-taking (and rehab), brawling, infidelity, armed robbery, attempted murder, incarceration and parole -- it's all here.
Scott in The New York Times reviewed it favorably, noting, "Its governing spirit, captured in the raucous music that punctuates the story (including songs performed live by Hank Williams III), is one of outlaw celebration.
Inspired by writers like Nikolai Gogol, the Theatre of the Absurd, Franz Kafka and Monty Python, Nitzberg decided to take a surrealist approach and have the story be told by Michael Jackson's glove.
Although the work was satirical in nature, Nitzberg explained to Forbes that he did not want to make fun of abuse or the allegations against Jackson.
In the show, Michael Jackson's wish to turn white in his lifetime was explained as part of him wanting to get revenge on Donny Osmond.
[21] The story also put great emphasis on the trauma Michael Jackson suffered by being raised in the Jehovah's Witnesses denomination.
[23] Stage Raw's Stephen Fife wrote, "Of course, the subject of Michael Jackson couldn't be more controversial, especially in the wake of HBO's documentary Leaving Neverland.
All I can say (having written The 13th Boy, my own story of being sexually molested) is that Nitzberg has found a very clever way of raising the subject without in any way diminishing its importance.
"[24] The LA Weekly's Nikki Kreuzer wrote, "Enter the wryly brilliant mind of Julien Nitzberg and his bizarre yet fantastical new musical For the Love of a Glove.
Suspend your disbelief, check your political correctness at the door and go see this off-the-wall show with an open mind while preparing yourself for a comical, culturally warped adventure.
"[25] Stage and Cinema's Marc Wheeler reviewed the show saying it was "a cleverly constructed, uproarious oddity that feeds our collective desire for catharsis through humor.
[28] The script was based on his time spent with Monroe, a white professional wrestler who used his popularity to force sporting arenas throughout the South to integrate.
He also sold a pilot to HBO called The Tribe about "a family of contemporary Hasidic and secular Jewish criminals inspired by a number of weird true cases."
[29] In 2011, Nitzberg sold a pilot to the USA Network based on This American Life contributor David Ellis Dickerson's memoir about working at Hallmark Greeting Cards.
[33][34] In 2017, Nitzberg was hired as a writer and consulting producer on the Cinemax series Mike Judge Presents: Tales from the Tour Bus.
[35] Nitzberg was a writer and consulting producer on the pilot about Johnny Paycheck as well as the episodes about George Jones and Tammy Wynette.