Local StoriesJuly 7, 2023

Meet Donovan Smith

Local Stories

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Donovan smith. Donovan was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Dineta Williams Williams-Trigg.

Donovan , thank you so much for joining us today. We’d love for you to bring our readers up to speed – can you introduce yourself and share your story?
As a child of the 1980s, I’ve always been a fan of film and television, growing up with a screen in my face before I could even walk. For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to be a movie director. In high school, I took a tv production class, where the class was split into five groups, and each group was tasked with creating a short five-minute film. Fortunately, our group’s short film won best in class. Before I knew it, a couple of decades passed by and I never shot anything again. A few years ago began writing short stories in book form and became a published horror author. From there I began writing for a couple of horror websites, and I eventually joined M3 Karate and began my martial arts journey. During that time at my dojo, I became aware of a program my sensei Master (Eric) Mendoza does with the kids in class. It’s called the young entrepreneurs fair, where he encourages his students to create and sell a product of their choosing. Seeing the determination and hard work of the students, made me feel as if I wasn’t doing as much as I should, or living up to my potential. So, after a long period of preparation, I wrote a script, gathered all the supplies needed, and went out and shot my short film, Grimoire Vol. 1.

Please talk to us about your creative work and career. What should we know?
Currently, I have four books out, all of which you can find on Amazon under the author name Monster Smith. I have numerous short stories published in several other books, from a handful of different publishing companies. Two of the four books are charity anthology books, and one is a collection of short stories of mine called Monsters in the Dark, the adult version of the popular children’s series Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. The other book is my first novella, “Go It Alone”, a gripping action-packed thriller in the vein of Silence of the Lambs, but with a twist. It has been compared to and endorsed as better than Hannibal Lecter, which is a huge compliment. Aside from that, I’ve produced multiple indie horror films since 2019. I’ve also put out my podcast called In the Mouth of Monster (a spin-off of John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness, which was taken from H.P. Lovecraft’s In the Mountains of Madness), and I co-host on another podcast called “The Shitty Shark Show”, where we review all types of Shark and Shark adjacent indie/mainstream films. I’ve also put out my first-ever short film, Grimoire Vol. 1, which has recently garnered numerous awards from a handful of different countries. It was made by a crew of two (my brother Scott and I) with one actor (a long time friend of ours, Joe Gurmo), during the pandemic. It was out first ever short film, which received an Audience Favorite award after its premier at its first ever film festival screening. We’ve also put together and shot our second short film called “Sorry I’m Late!”, which is in post-production right now. It’s an intense harrowing drama that deals with mental health and thoughts of suicide and wanting to take your own life. And, we are about to shoot our third short film within the next couple of weeks, called “End of the Line, about a man who is having trouble sleeping, due to dreams he’s having about the passing of a loved one. It will incorporate actual footage from the real-life burial of an uncle of mine, who we put to rest just a couple of months prior, as a way to honor him and the huge influence he had on my life. His presence in my life really helped sculpt me into the horror nerd I am today. You can find me and check out my work on IMDB, as well as on Facebook, where I spend most of my time promoting all avenues of my creativity.

So, as we mentioned to our audience earlier, you were introduced to us by Dineta Williams Williams-Trigg and we really admire them and what they’ve built. For folks who might not be as familiar, can you tell them a bit about your experience with Dineta Williams.
I had the pleasure of discovering and meeting Dineta Williams-Trigg at the Phoenix FearCon festival in Phoenix, Arizona back in 2019. She was hosting a panel with actress Thommi A’mal on the history of African American actors in horror films, and I could tell immediately that she knew her stuff and was very familiar with the genre. I know greatness when I see it, and I just knew I had to get to know her. She has been a guest on my podcast twice and has also kindly participated in the two charity anthology books I’ve put out previously, and has continued to help the indie film community for years by hosting a handful of international film festivals with her co-host Gauthier Raad. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more kind, compassionate, caring person dedicated to helping indie artists and creatives find their outlets and live up to their potential. What she continues to contribute to the world at large, is unmatched.

Instagram: https://instagram.com/monsterdugan?igshid=MmIzYWVlNDQ5Yg==

Twitter: @MonsterDugan

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterDugan?mibextid=LQQJ4d

Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/@donovanmonstersmith6342/about