Krieger grew up in Rochester, New York, with no connection to the movie industry. He attended SUNY Brockport where he studied journalism. After graduation, Krieger moved to Los Angeles and worked at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner newspaper. Upon the advice of staff in the newspaper's entertainment department and, later, celebrities that he interviewed, Krieger set about getting an agent, eventually landing representation at a small boutique agency. His agent introduced him to a producer looking for a writer for a low-budget teen coming-of-age-movie, who then asked Krieger to act in another movie to gain set experience. In that role, he played the boyfriend of an actress named Hillary Horan, who would eventually become his wife in real life.
