The Multi-Talented Jade Smith on Amplifying Queer Voices and Women’s Sport
Jade Smith has energy in abundance. They’re a queer, non-binary, and polymath director and artist whose work spans photography, painting and self shooting.
Behind the scenes, Jade has been quietly hustling – pitching bold, heartfelt concepts to clients while waiting for the right opportunity to break through. Meanwhile, they’ve been building out spec ideas sharpening their voice and vision.
Represented by Annex, Jade thrives in both commercial and community spaces. They are especially passionate about projects that highlight women’s sports and celebrate LGBTQI+ inclusion. On the more intimate side, Jade’s darkroom-printed personal documentary photography includes projects like the ongoing ‘British Pride’, capturing communities grown out of pride, and ’Body in Progress’, a photo essay on their local calisthenics community.
Regarded as a developing talent to have on your radar, they were a finalist in the 22 Photographic Journal with FotoFilmic, and their work was featured in Fujifilm’s Life As We See It exhibition. Their debut women’s football commercial, adidas x Goals for Girls, was shortlisted in the top 10 at The Shiny Winter Awards and showcased at the APA Underrepresented Directors event.
Now, Jade sits down with LBB's Zara Naseer, sharing their creative heroes, why it's so important for them to establish a "silent bond" with talent, and their vision for a better industry.
Above: adidas x Goals for Girls
LBB> How did you first get into filmmaking?
Jade> I think through photography. I didn’t go to film school and after a few years assisting when I was 23, I quickly realised how competitive the industry was and that I needed to expand my skills to sustain a creative career long-term. I had a Fuji XT1 camera with video capability and thought, ‘Why not just try filming?’
I reached out to modelling agencies and asked to book models for video instead of stills. I’d meet them in Hyde Park or Regent’s Park in central after my shifts stacking shelves at Boots. I’d start early around 6am, and finish at 2pm, spending the afternoons on days between assisting at studios and running jobs practising directing, shooting and editing. I had so much energy in my early twenties – it became a habit of discipline to learn and a rhythm of making stuff. I still have that drive now.
That hustle eventually led to paid freelance gigs as an editor and videographer, allowing me to rely less on retail jobs and assisting and move on to more rewarding work. Though being an assistant and runner was invaluable. I learned lighting setups, on-set language, and how productions run. Now, I’m focused on growing creatively. At the moment, most of my time is spent on social commercial jobs to pay rent, but I’m eager to work on and direct more creative work within sports and community and develop my queer art practice further.
LBB> Who are your creative heroes?
Jade> I’ve loved drawing and painting since I was young, but photography started my creative engine when I was at school. Photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson, Vivian Maier, William Eggleston inspired me to pick up the camera and queer photographers such as Robert Mapplethorpe, Sunil Gupta, and Wolfgang Tillmans. This blend of classic and contemporary photography shaped how I see and direct.
In film, I’m drawn to queer cinema from the past. ’The Wounded Man’ by Patrice Chéreau, set during the AIDS crisis in Paris, is one of my favourites. It's so beautiful, a masterpiece where every frame feels like a painting.
I love digging through charity shops for old sports and photography encyclopedias from the past too. I’m always reading in between work, recently gay fiction but currently I’m in the middle of Derek Jarmans’s ‘Dancing Ledge’. His artistic journey and journals are inspiring to read as a queer artist and filmmaker. Also reading philosophy like ‘Meditations’ by Marcus Aurelius.
Above: Shots from 'Body in Progress'
LBB> You've previously referred to the "silent bond" between you and your subjects. What's your process for getting talent to feel comfortable and open in front of the camera?
Jade> Each director or photographer has a different process, which is shaped by their character and personality, but for me, it’s about seeing people like mates.
I'm friendly and try to see the good in people, I can be very chatty and I'm open to being adaptable. We’re all trying to get by and make our art and so there’s no room for ego or believing we’re better than one other – every person comes with something about them, a message they’re trying to tell, and I think that's beautiful. When I'm shooting, I try to capture this beauty.
My first commercial directing job was adidas x Goals for Girls. I worked with a group of young girls and, despite being new to directing at that scale at the time, I felt completely at ease. We had a great time, and it confirmed I was where I needed to be. That project was shortlisted at The Shiny Awards and picked up by the APA Showcase.
I got that opportunity thanks to Trisha Lewis, my football coach from Romance FC, who believed in me and gave me full creative control. I hadn’t directed sports before, but it clicked. That was when I started to see myself as a sports director, not just a photographer.
Being non-binary and neurodiverse, I understand feeling awkward or out of place sometimes, so on set it’s crucial to me that everyone feels safe, comfortable and seen. My photography background helps me notice when someone is relaxed or needs space. It’s about timing, intuition, and creating a space where people can just be themselves. I also believe working on yourself makes you a stronger director. Staying calm under pressure is vital because if you panic, the whole set feels it.
Above: University of East London student campaign
LBB> How has your identity shaped who your work as a director?
Jade> My identity is central to why I create. Every time I get paid, I try to fund projects that give back to the LGBTQ+ community. For example, my ongoing ‘British Pride’ photography project about voices away from the centre was partly funded by a small commercial job. I used that money for paper, darkroom time, and printing to make something meaningful. I felt then that all that time studying directing paid off because I went 360 and reinvested back into my photography, trying to improve that too.
I juggle many roles – directing, photography, personal projects – but I’d love to be able to push further into directing sports.
I’m working on my first film that I’m starting as a short. It’s a project with heart. I realised because I hadn't gone to film school, I wasn't as educated in film language and scripts, so I took on two scriptwriting courses over a year because my writing at the time felt like my weakest skill. I once lost a pitch to a director with a film background who understood narrative structure better. That stuck with me, so I studied and improved. Now, I feel much more confident in storytelling and scriptwriting, recently pitching a TVC AD script I was proud to show to a client. It’s the little wins I try to remind myself of, it’s a learning process.
I’m cheeky and light-hearted but take my work seriously. Growing up under Section 28, where homosexuality was banned from schools, I remember hiding who I was. The first time I saw someone like me was on ’Queer Eye’. That’s why queer representation matters – you never know who it’s helping, but it is helping someone.
That’s why I keep writing ideas in my notebooks – stories from lived experience. What a queer person creates isn’t the same as someone who hasn’t lived it.
Above: Portraits from Pride 2023
LBB> What can the industry do better to support diverse voices?
Jade> It starts with more conscious hiring. If you’re making women’s sports work, consider hiring a woman or non-binary director.
Women’s sport is having a moment, and it’s amazing. But as we celebrate what’s happening on the pitch, we also need to amplify the voices behind the camera.
Jade is represented by Annex on a non-exclusive basis.
