John Lechago was born in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, to an Argentinean mother and a Spanish father. At the tender age of four, his family relocated to Los Angeles, California, where he would spend his childhood developing a passion for drawing and creating imaginative monsters. Alongside his fraternal twin brother, John would spend hours honing his artistic skills, often reproducing the world around him.
As he entered his pre-teen years, Lechago's fascination with traditional oil painting led him to enroll in classes, where he would go on to win awards every year. This strong foundation in traditional painting would later influence his approach to filmmaking.
In addition to his artistic pursuits, John was enrolled in self-defense classes at a young age, coincidentally under the tutelage of the legendary Chuck Norris. On his second day of karate class, Lechago was introduced to a 16mm film print of Norris's breakout film, Breaker! Breaker! (1977). This early exposure to the filmmaking process would have a profound impact on his future endeavors.
At the age of ten, Lechago and his brother James were part of a children's class on the set of Chuck Norris's A Force of One (1979). Witnessing firsthand the intricacies of filmmaking and seeing how scenes were set up and shot, Lechago made the decision to become involved in the movie industry.
As a teenager, John began studying screenwriting and experimenting with video cameras, eventually founding the "Cinema Productions" club at his high school. After completing high school, Lechago attended the prestigious S.A.I.C. in Chicago, where he concentrated on film, before finishing his degree at Columbia College Chicago.
Upon returning to Los Angeles, Lechago faced an actor's strike, forcing him to find work with a corporate video company. However, the company's owner, out of curiosity, gifted Lechago $5,000 and allowed him to use their equipment and office space to make a film. Lechago teamed up with Vincent Bilancio to produce his first feature, Blood Gnome (Video 2004),which was later distributed in Europe, Asia, and North America.
Lechago would go on to make one more film with Turning Point Productions, Magus (2008),before producing his first self-financed feature, Contagion (2010),formerly known as Bio Slime. He would later write and direct Killjoy 3 (Video 2010) for Charles Band and Full Moon Features.
