Maura Smith
Steve Schapiro: Being Everywhere
As a graduate of the USC Cinema Department, Maura Smith went on to direct "Towing" with Sue Lyon and Joe Mantegna. While being an honors student in the MFA Screenwriting Program at Columbia University, Smith received first prize Director Statement: The goal in making this film about my husband Steve Schapiro was to capture his charm and creativity and, equally important, to show how we can’t always tell how our lives are being shaped—those moments in life that are influencing us but we don’t realize it.
It was important to me that Steve's story was told in his own words. Early on in Steve’s career, a minister at Riverside Church suggested that Steve photograph addiction in Harlem. That same minister was Steve’s connection to the migrants in Arkansas. During the 60s, Steve went on to photograph James Baldwin, the civil rights movement, and Robert F. Kennedy’s political campaigns.
Later in life, after working in Hollywood, Steve returned to his social justice roots, befriending social activists Shane Claiborne and Fr. Pfleger and spending time with Sr. Rosemary at Misericordia, an applauded home for the developmentally disabled in Chicago. Although Steve’s images of celebrities are quite famous, he never lost his passion for justice and equality for all.
Schapiro’s last photo essay was taken outside of the Federal Correctional Institution at Terre Haute, Indiana, on January 14, 2021. It was a protest against capital punishment and the execution of Corey Johnson.
Steve died a year later on the 15th of January 2022—Martin Luther King’s birthday.
for the Zaki Gordon Memorial Award for Excellence in Screenwriting. Smith has directed for such companies as Sony Music, BBC TV, and Paramount.
In 2025, Maura Smith will attend:
Gala Dinner
Filmmakers Parade
