Meet Cameron Smith | Cinematographer & Filmmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cameron Smith and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cameron, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I grew up in a midwest small town where you could drive 20 minutes in any direction and find cornfields all around. It wasn’t until I was twenty years old that I decided it was time to leave that small town and find a new place to call home, that being Denver, Colorado. I grew up in a loving and supportive home. My parents were always pushing me to do the best I could in whatever I was involved in whether it was sports, hobbies, or school, though I didn’t always listen. In my early years I was always outside exploring, building moats in the sandbox, or turning the old refrigerator box into some kind of spaceship. I’m thankful I didn’t grow up with iPhones and iPads, just the number one rule which was “be home by sundown.” In high school I was involved in sports but didn’t really take my academics seriously. I didn’t really know where my passions lied, I just knew they’d be in a place where I could be creative and get my hands dirty. It wasn’t until my college years that I realized my true passion was in filmmaking. I had taken a couple film courses at the local community college in Illinois where I started to take academics seriously and began leaning towards fulfilling a degree in filmmaking. By this time I had professors asking me to work on their personal film projects, so I was doing something right. From there I decided to finish my degree in filmmaking at the University of Colorado, Denver. I had always enjoyed visiting Colorado and I knew this would be my ticket to making Colorado my home. While fulfilling my degree at CU Denver I got to meet incredibly talented filmmakers and people who helped raise me to be the filmmaker and creative person I am today.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I entered the freelance filmmaker world not long ago. I moved to Denver Colorado in August 2019 to pursue my degree in filmmaking. While I was getting my degree I tried to hop on as many film sets and videography jobs as I could. I felt being on a set was where I needed to be if I was to really hone in on the craft. If you asked me five years ago what my dream job would be, I probably would have said to be a cinematographer for companies like ‘Red Bull’ and ‘Go Pro’. Being able to film extreme sports athletes in some of the worlds most beautiful destinations really would be a dream come true. While I haven’t exactly done that yet, I have gotten to work on some really cool projects from hiking up to the top of a mountain with a snowboard and film gear strapped to my back, to filming on stage at concerts for artists like ‘Zedds Dead’ and ‘Rick Ross’. I couldn’t have done these projects without the crew over at ‘Basis Creative’, the Denver based production company I work with. I am very proud of the projects I have worked on with them and can’t wait to see what the future holds. I’m currently excited about a feature documentary I have also been working on for the past year that focuses on the world of paleontology and the people involved. This project has brought me and my team all over the western states to work with really inspiring paleontologists and to hear their stories. This project has definitely been the most involved and ongoing project I have ever been a part of and i’m excited to see where it continues to take us.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my friend was looking to do some hiking, i’d start them off at Red Rocks and show them the amphitheater or maybe see a concert! It’s a beautiful spot and the shows are incredible. Then i’d take them out to Breckenridge and do some hiking around there. You can’t go wrong with the restaurants and breweries in downtown Breckenridge either. My favorite place to go in summit county is Chimayo, they have the best fish burritos you’ll ever have. I’d also take them to a Rockies game, the stadium is beautiful with the mountains in the background and the games are always a good time. If my friend was interested in going to a brewery and didn’t mind a little drive, I would take them up to Fort Collins to have a beer at the New Belgium brewery, some of the best beers in Colorado! If my friend wanted to try some skiing I’d take them out to Arapahoe Basin, my favorite place to go snowboarding. They have some of the best terrain in Colorado and you can’t beat their Bloody Mary’s! Lastly, for a chill night in the city i would take them to some rooftop bars like 54thirty and the Source Hotel for the views and great atmosphere.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Throughout the last few years while I finished up my film degree at CU Denver there were so many people I have gotten to know and work with that have positively impacted me as a creative and as a filmmaker. I’d like to give a shoutout to a couple of my professors who saw the potential in my creative eye and knowledge for the craft. They have gotten me connected with some very cool projects that I’m not sure I would have worked on without them. They’ve taken me under their wings and helped me to reach the potential of cinematography that I have aspired to be at. They’ve been not only mentors to me, but friends too. They’re always there to answer any questions I have whether its about filmmaking, cinematography, or just life in general. I’m also in an organization on Facebook that gets thousands of Colorado local filmmakers together and I have gotten in touch with some really talented people from that organization who have also been a positive influence on my filmmaking. I have worked with the Denver local production company ‘Basis Creative’ for almost two years now and the team there has been nothing but positively impactful on my life and my filmmaking career. I have worked on very rewarding projects with them that I could have only dreamt of not long ago. I want to give a shoutout to the founder Ryan Sheetz for also taking me under his wing and allowing for me to get into my most creative state as a filmmaker and a video editor and for always being there to help build me up to being the filmmaker I am today.

Website: www.cambiumfilms.com

Instagram: @imcamsmith

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/cambiumfilms

Image Credits
Tom Kolicko, Uriel Barron, Margaret Camp-Blair, Brooke Buchan, Abby Pellien