Born in South Africa and living in Vancouver since his teens, Tony Dean Smith is a Director, Writer and Editor - known for his elegant camerawork, grounded performances, and sharp sense of story. His feature-film directorial debut, Volition, is an elevated sci-fi thriller that has swept up awards across the world, receiving rave reviews from Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Ain't It Cool News, Rotten Tomatoes (88% Fresh) and is playing on Showtime USA. While Tony Dean continues to write and develop his next personal projects, he has also had the pleasure of directing multiple long-form movies, including Aurora Teagarden: How To Con A Con and Love Under The Rainbow for Hallmark; the stylish thrillers The Killer Downstairs, The Secret Lives Of College Freshmen and Killer In The Guesthouse for Lifetime, along with the upcoming supernatural thriller Ghost Affairs. He was the youngest director on the acclaimed television series Robson Arms (3 episodes over 2 seasons), directed the series pilot for Health Nutz, and has won numerous awards and accolades for his filmmaking, starting with his award-winning 35mm short film, Reflection, which was awarded the DGC Kickstart grant. A life-long camera nerd, storyboard-artist and editor, his ability to see the movie before the shoot allows him to save hours of production time. As an actor of stage (yes, jazz hands) and screen (X-Files, Poltergeist), Tony's sense of character, precision and playfulness are always present, giving him unparalleled comfort on set with his actors, crew and fellow producers.