Don Downie is an award-winning director, writer, and producer. He creates whip-smart comedies with a hint of magic. 

Don is a 2024 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Nicholl Fellowship semifinalist, and is a 2024 Filmshop Breakthrough Fellow. 

Don started his career working behind the scenes at Saturday Night Live on their iconic digital shorts. He learned firsthand some of the best names in comedy, including Andy Samburg, Seth Myers, Kristin Wiig, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, Maya Rudoph, Kenan Thompson, Fred Armison, and many others. Don went on to produce a full season of digital shorts for Sesame Street, working under Emmy-winning showrunner Benjamin Lehmann. 

Don has extensive experience directing series. He directed 6 episodes of Kid Correspondent for YouTube Originals and Participant Media, featuring Rainn Wilson (The Office). Don won the New York Television Festival’s Critics Award for the comedy series Royally starring Rachel B. Joyce (I’m Dying Up Here) and PJ Adzima (Broadway’s Book of Mormon). 

He also directed eight episodes of AMNTS - A Mile in These Shoes, featured at the 2022 Catalyst Story Institute. Previously, he directed and produced the digital series Exit Strategy for TeenNick starring Erica Hernandez (CBS’ True Lies). Nonfiction TV credits include The Biggest Loser, Dr. Phil, and Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation.

In the medium of film, Don wrote and directed two award-winning shorts: Pepper and the Salt Sea starring Kat Cunning (The Deuce) and Stacie Capone (Grey’s Anatomy); and Le Creuset starring Walker Hare (1923, Babylon) He also directed the action-comedy short Viola - Unfinished Business and the modern film noir The Skies are Dead.

Other awards and prominent competition placements include 2024 semifinalist for the ScreenCraft Fellowship; 2024 quarterfinalist for the Final Draft Big Break Awards and the Hollywood Table Read My Screenplay Competition. Don’s feature script, The Spirit of Detroit is on the Red List - Coverfly’s Top 20 Comedy Screenplays as of August, 2024. 

The Spirit of Detroit feature is being developed by BlüRemedi and Small Media Extra Large, with Don slated to direct. The cast includes Angela Lewis (Snowfall) and J Mallory McCree (Homeland). 

Don is co-founder of Small Media Extra Large, a micro studio that makes big splash content for film, digital, and TV. He and partner Stacie Capone count Meta, Viacom, Microsoft, IBM, TED Conferences, and theSkimm amongst their clients. Don is also a longtime co-leader of Filmshop, and is the founder of Filmshop LA, a tight-knit collective of fiercely independent mediamakers.

Don was born in Detroit, forged in Brooklyn, and currently resides in sunny Pasadena.

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