Matt Tyrnauer was born in Los Angeles and studied film at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. For 16 years he has been an editor and writer for Vanity Fair magazine, writing features including profiles of Martha Stewart, Valentino Garavani, Philippe Starck and Frank Gehry, among many others.
"Valentino: The Last Emperor" is Tyrnauer’s first film, yet filmmaking has long been part of his life. His father was a successful TV writer and producer, responsible for scripting some of the best-known programs on TV, such as “Colombo,” “The Virginian” and “Murder, She Wrote”, which his father produced.

Tyrnauer’s journalism career began at Spy magazine. Graydon Carter, the co-founder of Spy, then hired Tyrnauer to write for him when Carter was editor of the New York Observer. In 1992, Tyrnauer followed Graydon to Vanity Fair, where he has worked ever since. He lives in New York City.