Reed Smith is a man of many talents, skills, abilities, and interests. He is a filmmaker, a screenwriter, a podcast host, and a creative, talented man. He is also living with autism. Recovery Diaries is committed to featuring a diverse array of autism spectrum stories, and Reed’s journey is exciting and engaging, as you will see in this latest episode of Recovery Diaries in Depth.

In 2017, Recovery Diaries made a film about Reed’s interests in screenwriting called “Living with Autism: A Screenwriter’s Story” but our relationship with Reed actually goes back quite a bit further. Reed met our Executive Director and podcast host, Gabe Nathan, back when Gabe was working at a non-profit performing arts center for children and Reed, then 14, was Gabe’s student in acting and writing classes. Gabe is fond of saying that he learned far more from Reed than Reed did from him and he never forgot Reed’s interest in creative storytelling and film.

Fast forward to Reed’s early twenties; he was in film school and interned at FreshFly, Recovery Diaries’s filmmaking partner in all our documentary films. There Reed was able to gain hands-on, practical experience in documentary filmmaking, and Reed’s interest in various genres only blossomed.

Reed is currently navigating post-production on an ambitious film he made about making, keeping, and navigating friendships as a person with autism. We are already looking forward to having Reed back on RDID once his film is complete!

It was such a joy bringing Reed back for a podcast interview to talk about his life, his thoughts on cinema (he has many, and expresses them enthusiastically and earnestly in his own podcast, “Cinema on the Spectrum.”) his experiences with bullying and the intricacies and nuances of friendship in this wide-ranging and thought-provoking podcast interview between two friends with shared interests and passions.

Conversations like the ones on this podcast can sometimes be hard, but they’re always necessary. If you or someone you know is struggling, please consider visiting www.wannatalkaboutit.com. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please call, text, or chat 988.

​EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR / EDITOR: Gabriel Nathan | DESIGN: Leah Alexandra Goldstein | SITE ORIGINATOR: Bud Clayman

See Related Recovery Stories: Autism Spectrum Disorders, Mental Health Interviews, Recovery Diaries In Depth Podcast