Carl Wilson-Downie
Founder
Teesside Film Production Company
Welcome toSmoggie Bloom
A Teesside-based film company with lofty ambitions and a passion for telling authentic stories from the people and communities around us. From first idea to final cut, we develop, shoot and finish work that sounds and looks like the North East.
Established 2023
Middlesbrough · North East England
The company
Authentic stories from the people and communities around us
Smoggie Bloom is a film production company based in the heart of Teesside. We write, produce and finish our own work, and we shoot for others — always with the same instinct for honest, character-led storytelling drawn from the people and places around us.
More about the company
What we do
Development, production and post — all under one roof in Teesside
- 01
Development and Writing
Original scripts and story development, shaped around real characters and the communities we come from.
- 02
Casting
Finding the right faces and voices for the story, with deep roots in North East acting talent.
- 03
Producing and Production Management
Schedules, budgets, permits and logistics handled properly, so shoot days stay calm and productive.
- 04
Directing
Performance-led direction that keeps the story honest and gets the best from every actor on set.
- 05
Cinematography and Crew
Camera, lighting and grip packages with an experienced Teesside crew who know how to shoot fast and well.
- 06
Editing and Post Production
Offline edit, grade, VFX and delivery in-house — a film finished by the same team that shot it.
- 07
Sound and Score
Location sound, dialogue edit, mix and original music that gives each film its own atmosphere.
- 08
Commercial and Branded Films
Short films, promos and branded content for organisations who want the storytelling, not the stock footage.
How we work
How a Smoggie Bloom film gets made
Four stages, one team. Because development, shooting and post all sit under this roof, nothing gets handed to a stranger halfway through.
- 01
Development
We start with the story and the people in it. Treatments, drafts and honest conversations about what the film is actually for — before a single day is booked.
Story, script, schedule outline
- 02
Pre-production
Casting from North East talent, recces around Teesside, permits, kit lists and a call sheet that means a crew turns up knowing exactly what the day is.
Casting, locations, logistics
- 03
The shoot
Tight, calm, well-run days. Performance-led direction, an experienced local crew, and enough coverage to give the edit real choices.
Direction, camera, sound
- 04
Post and delivery
Offline edit, grade, mix and original score in-house, then delivery in the formats you need — festival, broadcast, online or all three.
Edit, grade, mix, delivery
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Cast and Crew Collaborators
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Commitment to Authentic Storytelling
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Founders
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Goal: Putting Teesside on Screen
Distribution and industry
Where our work sits
Our films have reached audiences through streaming platforms, and we work alongside industry bodies and production partners across the North East.
Streaming
Amazon Prime
Streaming
Tubi
Industry body
The Entertainment Agents Association
Production partner
Smoggie Productions
Showreel
A minute of what we make
Scenes from our completed films — performances, locations and crews all drawn from the North East.
See every filmOur films
Completed films, made on Teesside with local cast and crew
A Mother's Legacy
Featured film
“A Mother's Legacy” is one of our most recent films — a character-led story about what gets handed down through a family, shot on Teesside with local cast and crew. It is the clearest example yet of what we set out to do: authentic performances, real locations and a story that belongs to this region.
Case study
A Mother's Legacy
A character-led short about what gets handed down through a family — written, cast, shot and finished entirely on Teesside.
- Format
- Short film
- Location
- Teesside
- Shoot
- Multi-day
- Post
- In-house
01
The brief
We wanted to make something that could only have come from here: a family story where the accents, the kitchens and the silences are real. No period gloss, no borrowed setting — a film about inheritance that plays out in an ordinary Teesside house.
02
What we shot
Practical locations rather than a build, natural light shaped with a small lighting package, and long takes that let the performances breathe. Casting came from the North East pool we have been building since day one, and the crew was local top to bottom.
03
The finish
Offline edit, grade, dialogue clean-up, mix and original score all happened in-house, which meant the people who shot it also shaped it. Nothing got lost in a handover, and the film that came out is the film we set out to make.
04
The outcome
A Mother's Legacy is now the clearest example of what Smoggie Bloom does — and the calling card we put in front of writers, performers and commissioners who want work made properly in the region.
“This is the one we point at when someone asks what a Teesside film should look like.”
Recognition
Screenings, partners and coverage
Local screenings
Films premiered to Teesside audiences and the cast and crew who made them
Streaming
Work prepared and delivered for online and on-demand distribution
Regional talent
35+ North East cast and crew collaborators across our productions
Community access
Documentary partnerships with clubs, businesses and groups across Teesside
On air
Local media support
We are really pleased that local media have started covering these stories. BBC Tees Radio and CVFM Radio are both helping us with promotion around the release of the series and documentaries.
More coverage to follow as each project moves closer to release.
BBC Tees Radio
Local BBC radio for Teesside, County Durham and North Yorkshire.
CVFM Radio
Community radio for Middlesbrough and the surrounding area.
Work experience
Placements for North East students
We open our sets, edit suites and production office to students studying film, media, performance, art and creative production across Teesside and the wider North East. Placements are hands-on: you will be on real productions with a real crew, not making tea in a corner.
If you are studying at any of these institutions and need a work experience placement, get in touch and tell us what you want to learn.
Ask about a placement
University of Sunderland
Teesside University
Stockton Riverside College
Middlesbrough College
The Northern School of Art
Our team
The filmmakers behind the work
Carl Dobson
Production Manager
Mark Spayne
Founder
What people say about working with us
“A game changer for my career”
I've worked with a lot of production companies in the industry, on big projects and small. Working with Smoggie Bloom is easily up there with the best. Well organised shoots, incredibly efficient, exceptionally professional throughout. They are especially excellent with how they communicate with the talent to get the best from them. I wouldn't hesitate to work with them again.
Shaun Robinson
Writer
Common questions
Things people ask us before they get in touch
Got a story worth filming?
Whether it's your own script, a role in one of our films or a commission you want made properly on Teesside, tell us about it. We take on work we believe in and see it through from first draft to final cut.
Contact us