Bio

About Daniel

Daniel Blake Smith is a writer and filmmaker who loves to tell true, compelling American stories. Raised in the north Texas town of Wolfe City and educated at Oklahoma State University and the University of Virginia (where he received his doctorate in American history), Smith is the author of six books, most recently, CRAZY LOVE.

Many of Smith’s films focus on powerful, pivotal moments in our nation’s past: he wrote and coproduced FEBRUARY ONE, a feature documentary about the 1960 Greensboro, N.C., lunch counter sit-in that helped launch the Civil Rights Movement. FEBRUARY ONE aired nationally on PBS’s ‘Independent Lens.’ He also wrote two prize-winning documentaries (both narrated by film star James Earl Jones) about native American life: CHEROKEE LEGACY: THE TRAIL OF TEARS and BLACK INDIANS: AN AMERICAN STORY. Smith’s documentary biopic about Edgar Allan Poe (TERROR OF THE SOUL), starring John Heard and Treat Williams with music by Philip Glass, aired on PBS’s ‘American Masters’ series. Smith’s documentary history of Kentucky, narrated by film star Ashley Judd, KENTUCKY: AN AMERICAN STORY, aired on regional PBS.

Smith’s current work includes his thriller, BLOOD BORN, about how a down-on-his-luck young man has his world turned upside down when it’s discovered that his blood cures cancer. Smith is the co-author/producer of TEXAS HEART (Indie Rights, 2016), a crime thriller starring John Savage (THE DEER HUNTER) and Lin Shaye (INSIDIOUS), available now on Amazon Prime as well as most other digital platforms. He’s also the writer/producer of A BEATING HEART, a horror film, that is slated to go into production this summer. He wrote and produced two short films: SAFE & HAPPY, and MEMORY BOX, selected for nearly 60 festivals worldwide. Finally, Mr. Smith has published two novels, MR. WONDERFUL, and CRAZY LOVE, both available as paperback or ebook on Amazon and bookstores.

Upcoming Films

BLOOD BORN

(thriller)

When a down-on-his-luck 20-something discovers his blood cures cancer, he quickly finds himself dangerously poised between the rush of fame and fortune and the hot pursuit of Big Pharma determined to eliminate him and his “miracle blood.” LIMITLESS meets THE FUGITIVE.

CRAZY LOVE

(Romantic Drama)

Danny and Dawn, two 20-something misfit dreamers on the run, flee a troubled past in backwoods Arkansas and head for the big city of St. Louis to reinvent themselves. Once there, they find their dreams on a collision course when their past manages to catch up to them. In the vein of Sally Rooney's Normal People.

SAFE AND HAPPY

(romantic drama)

Co-authored with Elizabeth Anne Martin

An ex-cop who for years has kept an explosive secret from his wife and the wider world, is suddenly exposed at a critical moment--with life-changing consequences.

EVIL'S MATCH

Evil’s Match is a romantic thriller in a between-worlds setting: A young woman mysteriously killed years after a vicious assault awakens in the afterlife with the opportunity to avenge her attacker but must abide by the rules of other-worldly justice. Based on SC Cunningham’s immersive novel, THE DEAL.

STEEL

An epic Western about a legendary gunfighter and lawman whose brush with death leads to revenge, redemption, and immortality.

A BEATING HEART (horror)

A young man faces a major crisis in his life when a dangerous spirit from his (and his family's) past bent on revenge suddenly reappears. In the vein of HEREDITARY and WE ARE STILL HERE.