John Cameron Mitchell (born April 21, 1963 in El Paso, Texas) is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Shortbus. Early life and career Mitchell was born in El Paso, Texas. The son of a retired U.S. Army Major General, he grew up on army bases in the U.S., Germany and Scotland, and generally attended Catholic schools. His mother is from Glasgow, Scotland and immigrated to the United States as a young schoolteacher. His brother Colin Mitchell is also an actor and writer. Mitchell's first stage role was the Virgin Mary in a Nativity musical staged at a Scottish Benedictine boys boarding school when he was 11 years old. He studied theater at Northwestern University from 1981 to 1985. His first professional stage role was Huckleberry Finn in a 1985 Organic Theater adaption at