NEW YORK, USA // Ray Smiling is a director whose work focuses on finding universal emotion presented in wild specificity. The stories he creates are naturalistic, beautiful, with a distinct visual flair. They feature people you feel like you already know, in situations both funny and emotionally rich. Basically, you can tell you’re watching something he made, if you’re feeling feelings, about a thing you never thought you’d feel feelings about.

He’s created the Ciclope shortlisted PLAY THIS AT MY FUNERAL—a collection of vignettes about the intimate moment a random song becomes your song. The Clio winning JUNETEENTH THOUGHTS—where two coworkers discuss the nuances of a complicated holiday. There’s also the award winning web series KHAKI IS NOT LEATHER—an exploration of loneliness and the internet, told through cam girls/boys. Vulture called it “an A24 wet dream.”

Ray has spent years creating campaigns as a director and a creative director for brands like Adidas, Under Armour, Nike, Covergirl, the NBA, Beats By Dre, and Amazon. His work is always energetic and beautiful but driven by strong insights. He’s been recognized by Ad Age as the Director to Watch for 2023 and is repped by Division7.