Arteta's first film, Star Maps, is a dark tale of a Mexican teenage boy and aspiring actor who is pimped by his father as a male prostitute in Los Angeles.
Arteta achieved critical acclaim and won a 2001 Independent Spirit Award for Best Feature Under $500,000 for Chuck & Buck, which teamed him with his fellow Wesleyan alumni Greenfield (film producer) and White (screenwriter and star).
It is a story of male friendship and homoerotic desire, featuring a 27-year-old man who tracks down his former best friend and stalks him, hoping to re-enact their childhood sex games.
[3] The trio worked together once more on 2002's The Good Girl, starring Jennifer Aniston, a retelling of Flaubert's Madame Bovary set in the American Midwest.
[11] In 2020, Arteta directed Like a Boss, starring Tiffany Haddish, Rose Byrne and re-teaming with Hayek, which was released on January 10 by Paramount Pictures.