CMT to Air ‘The Bandit’ Documentary Film

CMT in August will air the documentary film The Bandit, which chronicles the development of the hit 1970’s film Smokey & The Bandit.

The film, which debuted earlier this year at SXSW, profiles actor Burt Reynolds, his best friend, roommate and stunt-double Hal Needham, and their work together in developing the car-chase comedy Smokey & The Bandit, which starred Reynolds, Sally Field and Jackie Gleason.

The Bandit is executively produced and directed by Jesse Moss, with Jayson Dinsmore, Lewis Bogach and John Miller-Monzon also serving as executive producers for CMT.

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.