Llewellyn Smith

Llewellyn Smith’s filmography focuses on stories of history and science that illuminate social inequality and social change. He is the recipient of Peabody and duPont-Columbia awards, and other honors. The many groundbreaking projects Llewellyn has produced or contributed to include EYES ON THE PRIZE: AMERICA’S CIVIL RIGHTS YEARS (1987); RACE: THE POWER OF AN ILLUSION (2003); RECONSTRUCTION: THE SECOND CIVIL WAR (2004); UNNATURAL CAUSES: IS INEQUALITY MAKING US SICK? (2008); HERSKOVITS AT THE HEART OF BLACKNESS (2010); AMERICAN DENIAL (2015); WOUNDED PLACES: CONFRONTING PTSD IN AMERICA’S SHELL-SHOCKED CITIES (2014), and SLAVERY IN EFFECT (2016).

As the first story editor for PBS’s American Experience (1988) Llewellyn was central in origination, development, and acquisition of more than 70 programs for the acclaimed series, and was project director for the Emmy award-winning series AFRICANS IN AMERICA: AMERICA’S JOURNEY THROUGH SLAVERY (1997). He directed and produced the final episode Judgment Day. For the PBS science series NOVA, he produced and directed FORGOTTEN GENIUS (2007), the award-winning profile of African American chemist and activist Percy Julian. POISONED WATER (2017), an examination of the water crisis in Flint, Mich., won Llewellyn the AAAS Kavli International Science Journalism Award for best investigative television. His latest NOVA documentary CUBA’S CANCER HOPE (2020) tells why some American cancer patients defy the US embargo to seek lifesaving immunotherapy treatment in Cuba, treatments which are currently unavailable in the US. His production company, BlueSpark Collaborative, is based in New Orleans and Boston. He consults on documentary and media projects, and remains dedicated to supporting emerging talent.