Brian Trenchard-Smith

Directing·Jun 1, 1946·England, UK

Rate

Brian Trenchard-Smith is an Anglo Australian film and television director, producer, and writer, with a reputation for large scale movies on small scale budgets, many of which display a quirky sense of humor that has earned him a cult following. Quentin Tarantino referred to him in Entertainment Weekly as one of his favorite directors. His early work is featured in Not Quite Hollywood, an award winning documentary released by Magnolia. Among his early successes were the 20th Century Fox release The Man from Hong Kong, a wry James Bond/Chop Sockey cocktail, the Vietnam battle movie Siege of Firebase Gloria, and the futuristic satire Dead End Drive-In, a particular Tarantino favorite. BMX Bandits, showcasing a 15-year old Nicole Kidman, and Miramax's The Quest, starring ET's Henry Thomas, won prizes at children's film festivals in Montreal and Europe. He has also directed 35 episodes of television series as diverse as Silk Stalkings, Time Trax, The Others, and Flipper. Born in England, where his Australian father was in the RAF, Trenchard-Smith attended UK's prestigious Wellington College, where he neglected studies in favor of acting and making short films, before migrating to Australia. He started as a news film editor, then graduated to network promos before he became one of a group of young people that, as he recalls, "pushed, shoved, lobbied and bullied the government into introducing investment for Australian made films." He persuaded Australia's largest distribution-exhibition circuit at the time, the Greater Union Theater Organization, to form an in-house production company that he would run. The company made three successful films in a row, and his career was underway. In parallel careers, he was also founding editor of Australia's quarterly Movie magazine for 6 years, and has made over 100 trailers for other directors in Australia, Europe, and America. Among his 39 movies, 5 were commissioned by Showtime, including the remake of the World War II classic, Sahara, the highly rated, Happy Face Murders, starring Ann-Margret, and DC 9/11: Time of Crisis, with Timothy Bottoms as President Bush. His frequently repeated family drama for Lifetime, Long Lost Son starring Gabrielle Anwar, introduced future Gossip Girl's Chace Crawford to audiences in the title role." I knew from his first scene, he was going to be hot." In 2009, Trenchard-Smith shot Porky's - The College Years, a re-imagining of the famous 80's franchise of teen comedies. His recent ecological thriller Arctic Blast, starring Michael Shanks, was chosen to premiere at the 2010 Possible Worlds Canadian Film Festival in Sydney. Trenchard-Smith writes for filmindustrybloggers.com as The Genre Director, and is a contributing guru to trailersfromhell.com. He is married to Byzantine historian Dr. Margaret Trenchard-Smith, lives in Los Angeles, and is a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

Film	Credit
Game of Death: The Six Doors to Hell2024 · Major Paul Anders	Major Paul Anders
Thanatomania2023 · Actor	Actor
Tales of the Uncanny2020 · Self	Self
Iron Fists and Kung Fu Kicks2019 · Self	Self
Drive Hard2014 · Director, Screenplay	Director, Screenplay
The Leprechaun Chronicles2014 · Actor	Actor
Absolute Deception2013 · Director	Director
The Cabin2011 · Director	Director
Machete Maidens Unleashed!2010 · Self	Self
Arctic Blast2010 · Director	Director
Malibu Shark Attack2009 · Producer	Producer
Porky's: Pimpin' Pee Wee2009 · Director	Director
Not Quite Hollywood2008 · Self	Self
Tyrannosaurus Azteca2007 · Director	Director
Long Lost Son2006 · Director	Director
In Her Line of Fire2006 · Director, Producer	Director, Producer
Tides of War2005 · Director, Producer	Director, Producer
DC 9/11: Time of Crisis2003 · Director	Director
The Paradise Virus2003 · Director, Producer	Director, Producer
Sightings: Heartland Ghost2002 · Director	Director
Seconds to Spare2002 · Director, Writer	Director, Writer
Megiddo: The Omega Code 22001 · Director	Director
Britannic2000 · Director, Writer	Director, Writer
Happy Face Murders1999 · Director	Director
Atomic Dog1998 · Director	Director
Voyage of Terror1998 · Director	Director
DDoomsday Rock1997 · Director	Director
Leprechaun 4: In Space1997 · Director	Director
Escape Clause1996 · Director	Director
Leprechaun 31995 · Director	Director
Sahara1995 · Director	Director
Night of the Demons 21994 · Director	Director
Official Denial1993 · Director	Director
The Siege of Firebase Gloria1989 · Director	Director
Strike of the Panther1989 · Director	Director
Day of the Panther1988 · Director	Director
Out of the Body1988 · Director	Director
Dangerfreaks1987 · Director, Writer	Director, Writer
Dead End Drive-In1986 · Director	Director
Frog Dreaming1986 · Director	Director
Jenny Kissed Me1986 · Director	Director
BMX Bandits1983 · Director	Director
Turkey Shoot1982 · Director	Director
TThat Dangerous Summer1980 · Director	Director
Day of the Assassin1979 · Director	Director
Stunt Rock1978 · Director, Screenplay	Director, Screenplay
HHospitals Don't Burn Down1978 · Director	Director
Deathcheaters1976 · Hit & Run Director, Director, Producer	Hit & Run Director, Director, Producer