Biography
Emmy award-winning filmmaker Sean-Michael Smith began making stop-motion 8mm films as a child, eventually moving into live action. He spent 10 years in Scandinavia, working in film and television as an actor, and soon found himself writing dialogue and coaching actors such as Catherine Deneuve, Joaquin Phoenix, Claire Danes, Bjork, Mark Hamill, David Morse, and Peter Stormare, among others, after director Harald Zwart asked him to rewrite the English dialogue for the Swedish action film Hamilton.
Smith began writing dialogue and coaching actors such as Catherine Deneuve, Joaquin Phoenix, Claire Danes, Bjork, Mark Hamill, David Morse, and Peter Stormare. He worked with Dogma 95 directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, learning a collaboration method and perspective unique to Europe. Returning to California, Smith worked for actor/director Forest Whitaker on First Daughter when he was accepted to graduate school at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts. At USC, Smith produced and directed several short films that were awarded prizes by some of the most prestigious film festivals in the world, including Sundance, Tribecca, Cannes, and Slamdance. Moving into feature films, he produced the feature indie comedy Pete Smalls is Dead, starring Peter Dinklage, Tim Roth, Steve Buscemi, Lena Heady, and Rosie Perez.
In 2017, Smith received a Daytime Emmy award for Outstanding Travel and Adventure Program for his series Wonder Women, which he co-created, Executive Produced, and lensed as director of photography.
