Adam Salky

Writer and director Adam Salky attended Emory University as an undergraduate and Columbia University Film School as a graduate student. He first came to public attention with his breakthrough debut, the 2009 feature "Dare." An observant drama co-starring Emmy Rossum, Zach Gilford and Sandra Bernhard, the film unfolds at a suburban preparatory school, where three teenage characters come face to face with the prevalence and danger of social facades. "Dare" netted a Grand Jury Prize nomination at the Sundance Film Festival. Though it unfortunately received extremely limited theatrical distribution in November 2009, the picture did turn the heads of many reviewers, several of whom proclaimed it one of the finest releases of the year. The New York Times critic A.O. Scott was particularly rapturous in his praise, lauding Salky for his risk-taking and intelligent provocation. During the years that followed, Salky took a sabbatical from big screen work, and instead devoted his time to directing YouTube videos that gleaned over a million views each; he also taught film classes at the University of Southern California. Finally, in 2014, Salky began production on a sophomore feature, the drama "I Smile Back." Adapted from Amy Koppelman's 2008 novel, it tells the searing story of a New Jersey housewife and mother (portrayed by Sarah Silverman) who descends into a seemingly bottomless abyss of promiscuous sex and drug abuse. The Sundance Film Festival tapped "I Smile Back" for a prominent berth in its 2015 run.