Simon James Smith (born 16 September 1968) is a British

animator An animator is an artist who creates images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video games. Animat ...

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

, and

voice actor Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...

. He is best known for his work at

DreamWorks Animation DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA, also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios or simply DreamWorks) is an American animation studio, owned by Comcast's NBCUniversal as part of Universal Pictures, a division of Universal Studios, Inc, Universal Stud ...

. Smith came to

PDI/DreamWorks Pacific Data Images (PDI) was an American computer animation and visual effects production company based in Redwood City, California, that was bought by DreamWorks SKG in 2000. It was renamed PDI/DreamWorks and was owned by DreamWorks Animation. ...

in 1997 as head of layout for the company's feature film division. A CG animation veteran with nearly 35 years of experience, Smith supervised the layout department on PDI/DreamWorks' first animated feature ''

Antz ''Antz'' is a 1998 American animated adventure comedy film directed by Eric Darnell and Tim Johnson from a screenplay written by Todd Alcott and the writing team of Chris and Paul Weitz. It was produced by DreamWorks Pictures, DreamWorks An ...

'' (1998), serving as the head of layout in ''

Shrek ''Shrek'' is a 2001 American animated fantasy comedy film directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson, and written by Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, Joe Stillman, and Roger S. H. Schulman, loosely based on the 1990 children's picture boo ...

'' (2001). He then directed the

Universal Studios Universal Studios may refer to: * Universal Studios, Inc., an American media and entertainment conglomerate ** Universal Pictures, an American film studio ** Universal Studios Lot, a film and television studio complex * Various theme parks operat ...

Theatre experience ''

Shrek 4-D ''Shrek 4-D'' (also known as ''Shrek 3-D'' for the DVD release and ''The Ghost of Lord Farquaad'' for the ''Shrek's Thrilling Tales'' DVD release and ''DreamWorks Spooky Stories'' Blu-ray release, Netflix, and other streaming releases) is an ani ...

'', followed by the short ''

Far Far Away Idol ''Shrek 2'' is a 2004 American animated fantasy comedy film loosely based on the 1990 children's picture book '' Shrek!'' by William Steig. Directed by Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury, and Conrad Vernon from a screenplay by Adamson, Joe St ...

''. His first feature film as a director was in 2007, with ''

Bee Movie ''Bee Movie'' is a 2007 American animated comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and Columbus 81 Productions, and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Directed by Simon J. Smith and Steve Hickner from a screenplay by the writing team o ...

''. He then directed another DVD short, '' Megamind: The Button of Doom'', before co-directing, with

Eric Darnell Eric Darnell (born August 21, 1961) is an American animator, storyboard artist, film director, director, screenwriter, songwriter and occasional voice acting, voice actor best known for co-directing ''Antz'' with Tim Johnson (film director), Tim ...

, the comedy/spy action spin-off from the ''Madagascar'' series, ''

Penguins of Madagascar ''Penguins of Madagascar'' is a 2014 American animated spy comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and PDI/DreamWorks and distributed by 20th Century Fox. A spinoff of the ''Madagascar'' film series, it was directed by Eric Darnell and ...

'', the mini series ''Baymax Dreams'' for Disney, and is executive producer on ''

Batwheels ''Batwheels'' is an American animated Superhero fiction, superhero children's television series that premiered on September 17, 2022, on Max (streaming service), HBO Max. It made its linear premiere on October 17, 2022, on Cartoon Network's presc ...

'' for Warner Bros.

Early and personal life

Smith was born in

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

, to English parents. He grew up in

Hatch End Hatch End is an area of North West London, situated within the London Borough of Harrow. It is located north west of Charing Cross. Attractions Hatch End is home to Harrow Arts Centre, a complex which centres on the 404-seat Elliott Hall and ...

, Middlesex, before moving into

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

proper in 1982.

Career

Smith began his career in London, where he worked as a boom operator/sound assistant working on various film and TV productions. He discovered video editing at the advertising agency

BBDO BBDO is a worldwide advertising agency network, with its headquarters in New York City. The agency originated in 1891 with the George Batten Company, and in 1928, through a merger with Barton, Durstine & Osborn (BDO), the agency became Batten, B ...

, editing on the Apple and Pepsi accounts. He then moved over to post production house SVC Television, to continue editing but there he also discovered the computer graphic machine Symbolics. He continued animating and FX supervising on various projects at the editing and effects house

Framestore Framestore is a British visual effects and computer animation studio based on Chancery Lane in London, England. The company was founded in 1986. Framestore specializes in visual effects for film and prestige TV, advertising, rides, and immers ...

and post house VTR, where he established his own 3D department. Immediately prior to joining PDI/DreamWorks, Smith served at The Mill as the CG supervisor on commercial projects for

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

Volvo The Volvo Group (; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distribution and sale of truck ...

and

VW Polo The Volkswagen Polo is a supermini car (B-segment) produced by the German car manufacturer Volkswagen since 1975. It is sold in Europe and other markets worldwide in hatchback, saloon, and estate variants throughout its production run. As of 20 ...

. He was a pioneer in the field of pre-visualization, becoming the second ever head of layout in cinema history on the 1998 film ''

'', using that skill set to create PDI's Layout/Pre Viz Department which became an integral part of PDI's filmmaking process. Smith was also instrumental in helping to set up a CG layout department for

Aardman Animation Aardman Animations Limited, known simply as Aardman, is a British animation studio based in Bristol, England, United Kingdom. It is known for films and television series made using stop motion and clay animation techniques, particularly those fe ...

for the production of ''

Chicken Run ''Chicken Run'' is a 2000 animated adventure comedy film directed by Peter Lord and Nick Park and written by Karey Kirkpatrick from an original story by Lord and Park. Produced by Pathé and Aardman Features in partnership with DreamWork ...

''. Known for his work on the award-winning pop video " Go West" for the

Pet Shop Boys Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music h ...

, Smith also received the first ever Gold Leaf Award for his 3D directorial work on the commercial "West Lites". Smith supervised the layout department on PDI/DreamWorks' first animated feature ''Antz'', serving as the head of layout in ''

''. He then directed the

Theatre experience ''

'', followed by the short ''

''. His first feature film as a director was in 2007, with ''

''. He then directed another DVD short, '' Megamind: The Button of Doom'', before co-helming, with

, the comedy/spy action spin-off from the ''Madagascar'' series, ''

''. He then created, wrote, and directed ''Baymax Dreams'' for Disney. A joint Unity/Disney production to prove that a real time engine could be used to make broadcast TV content. Smith won an Emmy for the project. He is currently executive producer/showrunner on the animated superhero children's television series ''

'' starring

Ethan Hawke Ethan Green Hawke (born November 6, 1970) is an American actor, author, and film director. He made his film debut in ''Explorers (film), Explorers'' (1985), before making a breakthrough performance in ''Dead Poets Society'' (1989). Hawke starr ...

for Warner Bros.

Film credits

Directing

Animation

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Simon J. 1968 births Living people British animated film directors British animators British cinematographers British film directors British male voice actors DreamWorks Animation people Warner Bros. Animation people