Samantha Smart

Samantha Smart

From Back To One by Peter Rinaldi

February 17, 2026 · 50 min · Episode 380

About this episode

Samantha Smart discusses her role in the film 'Charliebird' and her creative process as an actress, writer, and producer.

Samantha Smart is the lead actress, writer and producer of "Charliebird," the feature debut of director Libby Ewing, which won the top prize at the 2025 Tribeca Festival, calling it "a deeply affecting portrait featuring grounded and complex performances." On this episode, Smart describes the process of writing it, getting to a crisis point of wondering if she could still play the character she was creating for herself, and miraculously finding young Gabriela Ochoa Perez who skillfully plays Charlie. She details the fine-tuning that needed to happen with the central scene, how the camera operator's energy affects actors, talks about her role as "Labinia" in the hilarious Oscar Nominated live acton short "Jane Austin's Period Drama," and much more! "Charliebird" opens in NYC on February 27th, and more select cities after that. Back To One is the in-depth, no-nonsense, actors-on-acting podcast from Filmmaker Magazine . In each episode, host Peter Rinaldi invites one working actor to do a deep dive into their unique process, psychology, and approach to the craft. Follow Back To One on Instagram

People in this episode

Host: Peter Rinaldi

Guest: Samantha Smart

Topics covered

  • acting process
  • film production
  • character development
  • interview
  • performance analysis

Keywords

  • Samantha Smart
  • Charliebird
  • acting
  • film
  • character development
  • Libby Ewing
  • Gabriela Ochoa Perez

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Filmmaker Magazine

Books & works: Charliebird, Jane Austin's Period Drama

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