Ben Lawson

Ben was raised on a small family farm in rural Southwestern Missouri. It was here in these early years that he nurtured an appreciation and passion for reading, drawing, and creating works with the horror and dark sci-fi themes which defined him as an artist. As a pre-teen inspired by the discovery of his father's 4x5 camera found in a barn attic, Ben acquired a small film camera and was immediately enraptured with this new medium. Consequentially, he later graduated from Missouri State University in 1997 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Photography. He took a ten-year artistic hiatus to get married and raised a family of boys, then resumed his artistic journey in photography with his own studio. This creative exploration encouraged Ben's foray into film - digital camera technology could now capture his art in motion - and he produced a number of short films and music videos, single-handedly writing, directing, shooting and editing the majority of those productions. A number of these works garnered nominations and awards in local film festivals and contests, including Best Screenplay and Best Direction. Following a divorce in 2014, Ben continued to work both in his home town of Springfield, Missouri and in Chicago, working on shorts and some feature productions. On the set of one feature he was encouraged to make the move to Hollywood to expand his artistic horizons and opportunities. True to his art and passion, Ben lives in Los Angeles where he showcases his distinctive creative vision both in writing and directing short and feature length projects today.