Andrew Johnson was born in Cortland, New York to a jazz guitarist, civil war historian father and science major mother who, together, won many bowling tournaments. Between paper routes and studying at the Ella Van Heusen Experimental Laboratory, he made his first life-size faux bronze sculpture of Baron Manfred Von Richtoven at the age of 13, miniature marzipan figurines of Fats Waller at 11 and his first film cycle on the battle of Gettysburg at 9. Pursuing his film interests, he transferred from SUNY Buffalo to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where he received his BFA in 1982, having studied with Stan Brakhage, Peter Kubelka and P. Adams Sitney.