https://www.ollyrileysmith.com

Born on the dirty cobbled streets of Cambridge, England, Olly developed a passion for crafting moving stories about unique worlds when he directed the short documentary Born Without A Beat, about a deaf girl attending her first deaf rave. His work led him to USC School of Cinematic Arts, where he honed his skills as a visually innovative and emotionally honest director, winning the Delphic Art Award in 2010 for his documentary Behind the Wall, about Los Angeles muralists.

In 2011, he was selected by BAFTA as a Brit to Watch, announced at a swanky event in Hollywood hosted by Prince William and Kate, and it led to him to direct broadcast commercials for clients such as Nike, Microsoft, Huawei and Verizon to name a few.

His work has taken him across the globe, directing and teaching filmmaking for the European Union in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Vietnam. He has been Emmy-nominated for his work on the Nat Geo documentary Breaking2, and his recent short film about the aftermath of a police shooting, The Riot Act, has been accepted into Cannes and the British Urban Film Festival. He is also helping develop non-fiction projects at NBC Universal.

As an editor, Olly also has the ability to visualize a cut while directing, and has crafted everything from features (such as HBO’s J Cole: Forest Hills Drive) to TV series (My Last Days on Soul Pancake) and broadcast commercials (Jim Beam Mila Kunis campaign, Nike Kevin Hart spots).