Ben Proudfoot

An Academy Award®-winning short documentary director and entrepreneur, Ben Proudfoot is the creative force behind Breakwater Studios, which creates 40 to 50 shorts a year. The studio’s work has been recognized by the Academy Awards®, The Emmys, The Peabody Awards, Critics Choice Documentary Awards, The James Beard Awards, the Sundance Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival and the Tribeca Film Festival among others. Proudfoot was named one of Forbes "30 Under 30" for his leadership and innovation in the brand-funded documentary space. He hails from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and is a graduate of the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts. Proudfoot is an accomplished sleight-of-hand magician and has performed at The Magic Castle in Los Angeles. His work includes the feature documentary Rwanda & Juliet (2016), the documentary series “Almost Famous,” the short film A Concerto is a Conversation (Mountainfilm 2021), The Queen of Basketball (Mountainfilm 2022), Mink! (Mountainfilm 2023) and 2023 Academy Award Winning Best Short Documentary The Last Repair Shop (Mountainfilm 2024).