About Us:

When advising a group of traveling players about acting, Shakespeare’s Hamlet famously warns them about the dangers of exaggeration and falsity in their performances. “The purpose of playing,” he tells them, is “to hold the mirror up to nature; to show virtue her own feature, scorn her own image, and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure.”

Mirror Up To Nature Films is committed to holding up a mirror to today’s world in all its beauty, vice, virtue, pain, happiness, comedy, and sensitivity.

Benny Lewis Rendell

Benny Rendell is a filmmaker, actor, screenwriter, teacher, and the founder of Mirror Up To Nature Films. His short films have been selected for various film festivals including the Woodstock, Austin, and Williamsburg Film Festivals. He has also directed a number of music videos for recording artists such as Donna Lewis, Gerry Leonard aka Spooky Ghost, and Pamela Sue Mann. Currently a student at NYU Tisch film school, Benny also teaches filmmaking classes for teens with The Firebird Project.

As an actor, Benny has performed in a number of off-Broadway shows, including the recent Firebird Players production of RUR. He trained with New Genesis Productions Youth Shakespeare Company, where he played many and varied roles, including Hamlet, Brutus, Mercutio, Malvolio, Bottom, and Benedick. In 2017, he won a National Youth Arts "Outstanding Lead Actor" award for his performance as Romeo in Firebird Theater's off-Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet. For Benny's acting resume, click here and see acting clips here.

Fae Leonard-Mann

Fae Leonard Mann is an actor, voice-over artist, model, and dancer who has collaborated with Mirror Up to Nature for over 7 years. She co-devised and starred in the recent experimental film "L'Espirit de L'Escalier." She's performed in other MUTN films and music videos, and she played the lead in "Sister," which was selected for various film festivals. Fae has worked with directors such as Jake Kasden (Jumanji), Graeme Harper, and Adam Leon. She has shared the screen with Tea Leoni, Sigourney Weaver, and Vanessa Kirby. She is a member of New Genesis Productions Shakespeare Company, where she's played various roles including Lady Capulet, Rosencrantz, and Puck. Fae trained at the Lee Strasberg School in NYC, Lir Academy in Ireland, and Central School for Speech and Drama in London. She currently lives in NYC and is signed with Ingrid French Management and Lorraine Brennan at LBM (Ireland).

www.faeleonardmann.com

Archie Lewis-Harris

Archie Lewis-Harris is a composer and musician, who has been working with Mirror Up To Nature films for the past 7 years. He composed and performed the original score for many Mirror Up To Nature films that have been selected for various film festivals, including "Woman's Troubles," "Pong," "Hurly Burly," "School Night " and "Sister." Archie has a multitude of film scores currently in the works, including two feature-length films: One More Weekend directed by Jack Diaz, and Good Friday directed by Jason Mendoza. In addition to composing for film, Archie has composed the original score for several live theater productions and has collaborated on several songs, including Stolen Love with Donna Lewis.

An accomplished pianist and clarinet player, Archie is also a keen actor who trained with New Genesis Productions Youth Shakespeare Company, where he played leading roles such as Lysander (Midsummer) and Sebastian (Twelfth Night). www.archielewisharriscomposer.com

Azalea Rusillon

Azalea has been part of Mirror Up to Nature for the last 4 years. She is an actor, costume designer, and writer who starred in MUTN’s "Woman’s Troubles" as the lead protagonist Charlotte. She also starred in "Hurly Burly," which was selected for a number of film festivals. Azalea designed all the costumes and make-up for these movies as well. Her poetry has been published in various journals and poetry magazines, and Azalea wrote and performed the poem for MUTN’s experimental short film "L'Espirit de L'Escalier." She trained in classical theater acting at New Genesis Productions, playing numerous roles including Gertrude, Lady Macbeth, and Nina (The Seagull). She has performed in, written, and directed her own short plays and attends Bard College, where she majors in Theater and Performance.

Leo Lion

Theater director, educator, and community organizer, Leo Lion has been working with MirrorUpToNature films for the past 9 years. He was the cinematographer for Mirror Up To Nature's short films "School Night" and "Cracked" and director of "Red." He's also the founder and artistic director the Firebird Project, an independent theater and education company that has staged off-Broadway shows over the last ten years, including RUR, Our Town, Enemy of the People, and Romeo and Juliet. Leo serves as an Associate Artistic Director at Phoenix Theatre Ensemble, and is a five-time recipient of the Outstanding Direction Award from National Youth Arts.