About
Smith holds a PhD in Creative Industries (2021) from the Queensland University of Technology, Australia. His primary focus lies on the digital transformation of the screen industries and its impact on the power dynamics in creative labour and production.
Before academia, he spent three years inside the industry — working at Viacom18 Media (Bollywood) as an associate producer across nine feature films and a web-series, and was selected as a UNESCO Asia-Pacific Creative Specialist in 2018–19. That dual vantage point — practitioner and scholar — runs through all of his work.
His work spans both academic and industry-focused contributions. He has collaborated with Viacom18 across ten films and web-series as a studio executive, and secured internal funding to conceptualise and run the award-winning short-film competition Cineshorts. As a UNESCO creative specialist he has joined global workshops on diverse and inclusive media practices.
He has built a movie-recommendation system for Rushlake Media (Germany) and co-led inclusivity initiatives for YouTube Kids creators with the Centre for Scholars and Storytellers. Alongside his research, he contributes to public discourse on cultural labour — with editorials in The Indian Express and interviews with SBS Australia and Bloomberg — and is committed to research that bridges academia and industry, tracing the evolving roles of media professionals and platforms in a global context.
Languages
Industry & advisory
Three years in the Indian screen industry, followed by advisory roles for platforms, cultural bodies, and the European Commission.
Endorsements
Smith exhibits a restlessness to achieve something over and above the routine requirement of any role. He has the ability to reach out to people and engage with them effectively — without the need of hierarchical support.
What struck me most was the passion with which he spoke about content — and the fact that he could connect socio-cultural insights with what was being created for the digital eco-system.
Selected books
Indian Talent Agents and the Making of Global Media — a monograph on the brokers who shape who gets seen.
How streaming, platforms, and television reorganised India's digital media landscape.
Co-edited with Tugce Bidav — creator labour beyond the usual Western frame.
Recent & featured work
The Road to Censorship: The Case of Digital Audiovisual Industries in India
International Journal of Cultural Policy — with E. R. Amit-DanhiPeripheral Creator Cultures in India, Ireland, and Turkey
Social Media + Society, 10(1) — with T. BidavFunding
