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Ben Smithard

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Ben Smithard
Alma materBournemouth and Poole College of Art and Design
OccupationCinematographer
Years active1993–present

Ben Smithard, B.S.C., is a British cinematographer known for his work on period pieces, such as the films The Damned United (2009), My Week with Marilyn (2011), Goodbye Christopher Robin, The Man Who Invented Christmas (both 2017), Blinded by the Light and Downton Abbey (both 2019).[1]

In television, Smithard served as cinematographer on the 2007 BBC One series Cranford (2007). He returned for the subsequent series Return to Cranford in 2009, for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography.[2] In 2012, Smithard received a nomination for Best Cinematography in a Television Drama by the British Society of Cinematographers for his work on the "Henry IV, Part I" and "Henry IV, Part II" episodes of the BBC Two series The Hollow Crown.[1]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Director Ref(s)
2004 Breaking the Fifth Austin Smithard
2009 The Damned United Tom Hooper [3]
2010 The Trip Michael Winterbottom
2011 My Week with Marilyn Simon Curtis [4][5]
2012 I, Anna Barnaby Southcombe [6]
2013 Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa Declan Lowney [7]
Belle Amma Asante [8]
2015 The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel John Madden [9][10]
2017 Viceroy's House Gurinder Chadha [11]
Goodbye Christopher Robin Simon Curtis [12]
The Man Who Invented Christmas Bharat Nalluri [13]
2019 Blinded by the Light Gurinder Chadha [1]
Downton Abbey Michael Engler
2020 The Father Florian Zeller [14]
2022 The Son [15][16]
The Bubble Judd Apatow
Allelujah Richard Eyre
2023 Freud's Last Session Matthew Brown
2024 Lonely Planet Susannah Grant
2025 Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Simon Curtis
2026 Bunker Florian Zeller

Documentary film

Year Title Director Notes
2006 Glastonbury Julien Temple Shared credit with Julien Temple and Terry Flaxton

Television

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Year Title Director Notes Ref
2005 Wire in the Blood Terry McDonough Episode "Synchronicity" [17]
Spooks Jeremy Lovering Episodes "The Book" and "The Innocent"
2006 The Street Terry McDonough Episodes "The Flasher" and "Football"
The Royle Family Mark Mylod Episode "The Queen of Sheba"
2007 Cranford Simon Curtis
Steve Hudson 		5 episodes
2009 10 Minute Tales Richard Eyre Episode "The Three Kings"
2010 The Trip Michael Winterbottom Season 1
2012 The Hollow Crown Richard Eyre Episode "Henry IV" (Part 1 and Part 2) [18]
2016 Cold Feet Terry McDonough 2 episodes
2021 The Nevers David Semel Episodes "Ignition" and "Undertaking"

Miniseries

Year Title Director Notes
2006 Eleventh Hour Terry McDonough Episodes "Resurrection" and "Containment"
2009 The Day of the Triffids Nick Copus
2010 Money Jeremy Lovering
2012 True Love Dominic Savage
2026 VisionQuest Terry Matalas Post-production[19]

TV movies

Year Title Director
2007 Instinct Terry McDonough
2009 A Short Stay in Switzerland Simon Curtis
Freefall Dominic Savage
2015 Esio Trot Dearbhla Walsh
The Dresser Richard Eyre
2017 Diana and I Peter Cattaneo
2018 King Lear Richard Eyre

References

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  1. ^ a b c Prince, Ron (September 2019). "Double Bill: Ben Smithard BSC / Blinded by the Light & Downton Abbey". British Cinematographer. No. 95. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  2. ^ "2010 Creative Arts Emmy Winners (Live)". Deadline Hollywood. 21 August 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  3. ^ Scott, A. O. (8 October 2009). "A Soccer Coach Divides and Doesn't Conquer". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  4. ^ Block, Alex Ben (19 November 2011). "Hip Pads, Prosthetic Chins, Dips in Sub-Zero Lakes: The Making of 'My Week With Marilyn'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  5. ^ Lumbard, Neil (14 March 2012). "My Week with Marilyn". DVD Talk. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  6. ^ French, Philip (8 December 2012). "I, Anna – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  7. ^ Dalton, Stephen (24 July 2013). "Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  8. ^ Romanek, Neal (10 December 2012). "Ben Smithard: 'It's important that you give the DoP the choice of the camera to shoot with'". Screen Daily. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  9. ^ Sragow, Michael (4 March 2015). "Deep Focus: The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel". Film Comment. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  10. ^ Fauer, Jon (12 March 2015). "Ben Smithard on "2nd Best Exotic..."". Film and Digital Times. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  11. ^ "Ben Smithard BSC captures 'Viceroy's House' for director Gurinder Chadha on Kodak". Kodak. 22 February 2017. Archived from the original on 22 August 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  12. ^ Linden, Sheri (20 September 2017). "'Goodbye Christopher Robin': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  13. ^ Valentini, Valentina (16 March 2018). "Lighting Ghosts: Ben Smithard BSC / The Man Who Invented Christmas". British Cinematographer. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  14. ^ Marchant, Beth (2 March 2021). "Here are 4 key films — and 4 great moments within them — for this awards season". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  15. ^ Laman, Lisa (20 January 2023). "'The Son' Struggles Where 'The Father' Soared". Collider. Archived from the original on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  16. ^ Kuźma, Darek (March 2023). "Fathers and Sons". Cinematography World. No. 14. pp. 36–37. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  17. ^ "BSC Members | Ben Smithard". BSCine.com. British Society of Cinematographers. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  18. ^ Wolf, Matt (8 July 2012). "The Hollow Crown: Henry IV Part 1, BBC Two". The Arts Desk. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  19. ^ "Ilana Garrard Resume". Sara Putt Associates. Retrieved 18 July 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
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