Love Fraud, Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady

Bigamy. Identity theft. Fraud. For the last 20 years Richard Scott Smith has used the internet and his dubious charms to prey upon unsuspecting women in search of love — conning them out of their money and their dignity. But now his victims have banded together determined to seek sweet revenge. LOVE FRAUD is a 4-part limited documentary series that follows (in real time) a con-man who is on the loose and the dynamic women determined to put him behind bars. Oscar-nominated directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady take viewers on a bizarre, engrossing ride through the twisted mind of a criminal and the chaos he leaves in his wake. LOVE FRAUD premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival on Day One, marking the first time an episodic series was programmed on opening day in festival history. Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady join us for a conversation on the determination of the women who refused to be victimize by a sociopathic abuser and helped bring about some measure of justice, despite the collective ambivalence of several law enforcement agencies across multiple local and state jurisdictions.

RACHEL GRADY – DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER – Co-owner of New York’s Loki Films, Grady is the co-director of “Jesus Camp” (Oscar nominee), “The Boys of Baraka” (Emmy nominee) 12th & Delaware (Peabody winner) and DETROPIA (Sundance and Emmy winner). Most recently Grady co-directed “Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You,” which premiered as the opening night film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. The film opened theatrically in July 2016 and will be broadcast on PBS October 25th. Most recently, she and co-director Heidi Ewing completed, “One of Us,” a documentary thriller about the ultra-insular Hasidic community of New York City, currently streaming on Netflix. Rachel is a member of the Directors Guild and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She Resides in Brooklyn, N.Y. For more on the work of Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing go to: lokifilms.com

HEIDI EWING – DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER – Co-owner of New York’s Loki Films, Ewing is the co-director of “Jesus Camp” (Oscar nominee), “The Boys of Baraka” (Emmy nominee) 12th & Delaware (Peabody winner) and DETROPIA (Sundance and Emmy winner). Ewing co-directed “Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You,” which premiered as the opening night film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Most recently, she and co-director Rachel Grady completed “One of Us,” a documentary thriller about the ultra-insular Hasidic community of New York City, currently streaming on Netflix. Heidi is a member of the Directors Guild and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. For more on the work of Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady go to: lokifilms.com

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“There’s a fun kind of justice rolling across the American Midwest in this four-part documentary… Stunning graphics add to the slightly hyperreal feel.” – Brad Newsome, Sydney Morning Herald

“The work of collage artist Martin O’Neill and the animation by Andrew Griffin help to create an atmosphere of surrealistic fantasy around the hard facts of the case.” – John Anderson, Wall Street Journal

“As twisty and juicy as the story here is, Love Fraud keeps threatening to slip through your fingers, which makes it a bit like Richard Scott Smith, if you’re into that sort of mirroring.” – Dan Fienberg, Hollywood Reporter

“This is one of the fastest 200 minutes you’ll see all year.” – Brian Tallerico. RogerEbert.com

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