Ben Mathews

Last night we officially submitted ‘Project Hourglass’ to @tropfest & we’re feeling very grateful. This was an ambitious one. Written, directed, & produced in three months. First time acting & directing at the same time. Moving house two weeks before filming. Indi was four & half months old when we started talking about it and six months old when we shot, all while running Acting Mastery and juggling other projects. When Tropfest was announced, I honestly didn’t think we could do it. Not with a newborn. But after Josh Flavell suggested we at least think about making something, Holly got excited. Did we want to make a proof of concept for an existing project? Nope. When I saw this year’s signature item was an hourglass, I pitched Holly an idea Kya Stewart & I had talked about during the pandemic that had quietly been put in a drawer. Holly got even more excited & suddenly, we were off. This film was made with friends, students, and an extraordinary team. Huge shout-out to my incredible wife, whose drive & capacity for getting things done never ceases to amaze me. None of this would be possible without you. Big love to Larissa for producing alongside Holly & keeping Acting Mastery running, & special thanks to my film school buddies DOP Josh Flavell (we wouldn’t have made the film without you), editor Liz Deegan (who cut the film from London), & composer Chad Gock. You’re all insanely talented and went above and beyond. Awesome to work for the first time with other Heads of Department, production designer Charles Whiteway, sound designer John Hresc, costumer Madison McCreath & the best 1st AD, Craig Foster. Alexandra Wegman your VFX are so cool. Ray Anthony & your entire team from Stunt Action Consultants, especially Anna Hempstead - you guys are incredible. Kya Stewart thank you for all your hard work, talent, trust and total dedication. Bob Morley, thank you for making the trip from LA, & for your time, talent, & trust. And to our entire crew, we’ve been so moved and touched by your support, effort & generosity of spirit. You made it all possible. Whatever the outcome, I’m very proud of what we achieved together. More to come. ⏳💖 📸: @imagerybyliliana

A brush with Oscar! Did you know our own @benjamin_mathews is the only Australian ever nominated for a Student Oscar for his short film “Emily”? His film also screened at the Cannes Film Festival! Happy Oscars Day! 🏆 #oscars #cannes #actingclassessydney #actingmastery

With the Cannes Film Festival in full swing this week, did you know that @benjamin_mathews ‘ short film 'Emily' screened there in 2012? Here's your chance to watch it! The film won over 10 awards and is the only Aussie film ever nominated for a Student Academy Award! Link to watch is in the bio! Our 2 day Fundamentals Intensive with Ben is only 2 weeks away. Don't miss your chance to work directly with our award-winning director and coach, Ben Mathews! Audition Mastery: Fundamentals is an intensive two-day audition class designed to leave actors feeling deeply empowered, with the tools and mindsets necessary to book work. We explore the fundamentals of auditioning, both in the room and self-tapes.Over the two days, we'll cover the following: DAY 1: The Art of the Audition: Standing Out & the Audition Mindset; Script Analysis & Camera Technique; Creating Character & Emotional Energy; The Callback; Troubleshooting DAY 2: Coming into The Room, Drama & Genre; Mining the Breakdown, Storytelling & the Art of the Monologue, Internal Landscape & Behaviour 2 DAY INTENSIVE DATES: 10 - 11 June TIME: 10am - 6pm LOCATION: Bondi Junction CLASS SIZE: 14 students per class, maximum COST: $700 +GST Only a $385 deposit required to secure your place! REGISTER: /acting-mastery/fundamentals-intensive

Comment WORKSHOP if you want to join our free live training on how to become a breakout actor in 2026 — I’ll send you the link.

BTS of an actor working on their mindset and craft @acting.mastery 🎥 In the last few weeks there’s been tears, laughing, screaming and lots of aha moments in a room full of talented, like minded actors 🙌🏻 But we couldn’t have gotten through it without the most giving teacher and mentor @_benmathews and the whole team at #actingmastery #actorsydney #actresssydney #actorslife

Happy 2nd Mother’s Day to the incredible @hollyannamathews_ 💕 What a year it’s been. From a difficult birth, and hard early months with a colicky baby, to making films, doing deals, running a business, creating online courses and transforming people’s lives, all while showing up everyday in every way for our darling little girl. You are a true inspiration to me and an unbelievable role model for Indi. Thank you for every little & big thing you do and the love you pour into us both. We love you to the moon and back 😘❤️🥰 Pregnancy 📸: @atdusk

Look what arrived in the mail last week! Huge thanks again to @tropfest , John Polson & every single one of you who voted for ‘Project Hourglass’ to be the People’s Choice Award winner. This belongs to every member of our incredible cast & crew, and most especially these two powerhouse women. Very grateful 🫶🏼🙏🏼🎉

So many exciting things in the works at Acting Mastery. Lots to announce soon. Here’s just one small taste of what’s coming… Mindset Mastery. Very grateful to everyone who participated so courageously. Such a transformative three days full of breakthroughs, wins and possibilities. Just one part of everything on the way. Stay tuned. 📸 @larissamcee

⏳️TROPFEST 2026⏳️ A very belated post to give this whirlwind of an experience a much needed spot on the grid. Incredibly grateful for and proud of our now three-time award winning short film, 'Project Hourglass'. What a surreal night seeing our work on the big screen in front of over 35,000 people. Thank you @tropfest and to everyone who was a part of, supported, and voted for our film 🫶🧡✨️

Most people don’t avoid setting goals because they’re lazy. They avoid it because of what it means if they fail. Because every unfinished goal becomes added meaning they make about themselves… “I’m not good enough.” “I never follow through.” “It’s never going to happen for me.” So instead, they don’t write them down at all. No goal = no failure. But also… no real shot at the life you want. What if the goal was never about being right or wrong? What if you could go after what you actually want - without making yourself wrong along the way? We dive deeper into this on the podcast ✨

Most filmmakers make the mistake of pitching their projects to everyone. At Screen Forever we had a series of 10-minute pitch meetings with production companies. We carefully chose the people we met with because we knew they were likely to be interested in these specific projects. We understood the kinds of stories they were looking for, and we pitched to them accordingly. By the end of the conference: 4 companies were interested in our TV series and 5 were interested in our feature film. A great reminder that sometimes it’s not about pitching to everyone - it’s about pitching to the right people. The lesson: research who you’re pitching to before you walk into the room. Curious - have you ever pitched at Screen Forever or another industry market? Full episode of the Acting Mastery Podcast available now. Link in bio 👆🏼

Still buzzing from an incredible night at Tropfest! We’re honoured that Project Hourglass received the Runways Global Career Acceleration Award, that our amazingly talented DOP @joshflavellacs was recognised with Best Cinematography, and incredibly grateful that the film also went on to win the People’s Choice Award. Huge thank you to John Polson and the entire Tropfest team for creating such an inspiring platform for filmmakers and storytelling. Thank you as well to the partners who support the festival and make opportunities like this possible - @commbank @qantas @nationalnine.oa and the @motionpictures . Congratulations to all the finalists and filmmakers in this year’s lineup. It was such a fantastic group of films to be alongside. Feeling very grateful - and excited for what’s ahead 🙌🏼🙏🏼