Introduced to Roger Ebert in Western North Carolina, where he was raised, Dustin received his bachelor’s degree in mass communication from The University of North Carolina Asheville. There, he landed his first interview on camera with an Oscar nominee, Jennifer Tilly, for his final project in the program. He found himself working in the Houston area, leading to various media opportunities: Co-founding Texas Art & Film and writing film reviews for Texas’ oldest Newspaper, The Galveston Daily News. In 2017, he won the top prize for “Comment & Criticism” awarded by The Texas Associated Press of Managing Editors. He joined The Houston Film Critics Society and later Critics Choice, doing various radio programs, including film reviews for Houston NPR. Dustin also hosted CW39’s NEWSFIX film criticism segment, which aired over 155 episodes in syndication. He was a film professor at Houston Community College before moving to Hawaii’s Big Island in 2022, where he currently resides.