John Stead is a renowned Canadian director and stunt coordinator, boasting an impressive array of awards and nominations. His accolades include two Canadian Screen Awards for Best Stunt Coordination, the ACTRA Toronto Stunt Ensemble Award, an Award of Excellence from the Canadian International Film Festival, a Genre Award for Best Suspense from the BNFF, a Derek F. Mitchell Artistic Director's Award from the Stratford Festival, a Judges' Choice Award from the 15 Minutes of Fame International Film Festival, a Tyrone Guthrie Award from the Stratford Festival, and a Best Short 1st Runner-Up Award from the Ticket to Hollywood International Film and Screenplay Festival, as well as a nomination for a Best Short Award from the Directors Guild of Canada.
As a director, John has worked on several feature films, including Cyborg Soldier, Troubled Waters, and Good Morning Tomorrow, as well as numerous short films, such as the multiple award-winning thriller, The Waking. He has also directed episodes for various television series, including Pretty Hard Cases, Designated Survivor, Dark Matter, Bitten, The Bobby Buck Show, XIII, Lost Girl, Mutant X, Aaron Stone, The Dresden Files, Tracker, Earth: Final Conflict, and The Adventures of Sinbad.
John's extensive experience in the stunt industry includes stunt coordinating over 700 film and television episodes in Canada and abroad, as well as stunt performing on over 300 TV episodes and films. He is a Master Instructor-Emeritus with the Academy of Dramatic Combat, Stage Combat Coordinator for The National Theatre School, and a member of the Society of Canadian Fight Directors.
Throughout his 30-year career, John has been the fight director on over 600 professional theatre productions, including work with the Stratford Festival, Canadian Stage Company, and the Guthrie Theatre. He has also worked as Head of Stage Combat for the Stratford Festival of Canada for 25 seasons, and as Fight Director with the Shaw Festival for over 100 productions. His extensive credits also include work with numerous companies across Canada and the U.S., including Soulpepper Theatre, Canadian Stage Company, the National Ballet, Mirvish Productions, Theatre Passe Muraille, Tarragon Theatre, Manitoba Theatre Centre, Factory Theatre, the National Arts Centre, Studio Arena Theatre, the Geva Theatre in Rochester, the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington D.C., Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Los Angeles Ahmanson Theatre, and the Lincoln Centre on Broadway.
As an educator, John has taught at the National Theatre School, the Birmingham Conservatory, and the Universities of Toronto, Waterloo, Humber, Saskatchewan, and Wilfred Laurier.
