Jarecki was born on June 25, 1979 in New York City, to Henry Jarecki and Marjorie Heidsieck. His brother is finance executive Thomas A. Jarecki and his half-brothers are fellow filmmakers Andrew and Eugene Jarecki. His father is Jewish and his mother is from a Catholic background.

At 16 he was hired as a technical consultant on the 1995 film Hackers, where his job was to consult with the actors and director about computer hacking. Jarecki took an interest in filmmaking on the set of Hackers, recalling, “I kept noticing that there was this guy that the actors seemed to really look up to and respect, so I asked ‘Who’s that?’ and they told me he was the director. Then I knew it was clear what I wanted to do.”

In 2005 Jarecki produced, directed, and edited his first feature film The Outsider in which he chronicled the 12-day shoot of the thriller When Will I Be Loved. Showtime acquired the film and it made its television premiere during August 2007. Netflix’s Red Envelope Entertainment label acquired the home video rights. The Outsider has been received well, currently holding 69% on Rotten Tomatoes and generally favorable reviews on Metacritic.

Jarecki next worked in 2008, serving as an executive producer for the documentary Tyson. In the same year he served as an executive producer for The Informers which he co-wrote with novelist Bret Easton Ellis (whose novel the film was based on) and was even set to direct it at one point.

The following year Jarecki founded Beat Sheet Central, a popular script writing resource. He returned to directing and writing with the 3-minute short film The Weight in 2009 as well.

At the Sundance Film Festival in January 2012 Jarecki debuted the first feature film he both wrote and directed, Arbitrage. starring Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Tim Roth and Brit Marling. Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions acquired the film and it opened in US theaters September 2012. Arbitrage was praised by critics receiving an 87% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the top 20 reviewed films of the year. It won a number of awards including the National Board of Review for “Top 10 Independent Films,” as well as a Golden Globe nomination for “Best Actor – Drama” for its star, Richard Gere. The film was also a commercial success; although made inexpensively, it grossed over $48 million in worldwide box office and VOD.

It was announced in October 2012 that his next film would be Fuel, “a detective story set in Los Angeles amid a futuristic world of electric vehicles and alternative energy.”

In December 2015, Jarecki was reported to be in a relationship with Courtney Love.

In February 2019, Jarecki directed, wrote, and produced the forthcoming multi-narrative film about the opiod crisis, Dreamland, starring Gary Oldman, Luke Evans, Evangeline Lilly, Armie Hammer, Michelle Rodriguez, Veronica Ferres, Mia Kirshner, Greg Kinnear and Lily-Rose Depp.