Big and Little Films Pty Ltd was incorporated by Michael McMahon and Tony Ayres. Between 1998 and 2009 Michael and Tony positioned the company as one of Australia’s most exciting independent production companies working in feature films, documentaries, and television drama. In that period the company developed and produced a wide range of content which won prestigious awards both in Australia and internationally.
In 2009, Michael and Tony went on to co-found Matchbox Pictures Pty Ltd with three other producers. Matchbox Pictures has since become one of Australia’s most successful production companies, producing acclaimed television drama series, feature films, documentaries, and unscripted television for domestic and international audiences.
Michael re-established Big and Little Films in 2019, continuing its legacy as an independent, creator-led production company. Tony now develops and creates his new work through Big and Little Films, marking a new chapter for the company focused on distinctive, ambitious storytelling for global audiences.
At Big and Little Films, we believe:
That there are many audiences, and all of them deserve to be respected.
That years of process is as important as minutes of product.
That making something should be an act of generosity.
That filmmakers create culture as well as entertainment, but culture is only transmitted when it is seen.
That in a world of scarcity, a film must be worth the resources it takes to make it.
That you should only work with people you would want to have dinner with.
our team
TONY AYRES
SHOWRUNNER | WRITER | DIRECTOR
Tony Ayres is one of Australia’s most prolific and award-winning showrunners, writers and directors. He executive produced and co-wrote the hit Netflix miniseries The Survivors and Clickbait, both of which were nominated for Best Drama Series at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards. He also executive produced the ABC miniseries Fires, which won the AACTA Award for Best Miniseries or Telefeature and the TV Week Silver Logie Award for Most Outstanding Miniseries or Telemovie.
These works followed the success of Stateless (ABC), a miniseries starring Cate Blanchett that Tony executive produced and wrote, and which won Best Miniseries or Telefeature at the AACTA Awards. His extensive television credits as executive producer include Creamerie, Wanted, Glitch, The Family Law, Old School, and the contemporary reimagining of The Devil’s Playground. He also produced the miniseries Barracuda and Seven Types of Ambiguity.
Tony created and executive produced Nowhere Boys and the telemovie Nowhere Boys: The Book of Shadows, which received a cinematic release in 2016. The series was internationally acclaimed, winning an AACTA Award for Best Children’s Television Series, a Logie Award, a Prix Jeunesse International Award, and a nomination for a Children’s BAFTA Award. His other television credits include The Slap and its US remake, Underground: The Julian Assange Story, The Straits, and Saved.
Tony’s feature film debut, Walking on Water, won the Teddy Award at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2002 and five AFI Awards. His second feature, The Home Song Stories, premiered at Berlin and won 24 Australian and international awards, including eight AFI Awards. His third feature, Cut Snake, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2014 and screened at the Edinburgh International Film Festival.
MICHAEL MCMAHON
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
A former lawyer with extensive experience in arts and entertainment law, Michael also has an academic background and is an Adjunct Professor at Swinburne University of Technology.
Michael’s work has premiered at the Berlinale and Toronto FF, won International Emmy Awards, AACTA Awards, Golden Horse Awards, and BAFTA along with several national awards.
His documentary production and executive producing credits include Sadness, Wildness, the Anatomy Series, Murunduk – Songs of Freedom, Next Stop Hollywood, and The Coming Back Out Again Ball. His television drama credits include Call Me Mum, Saved, The Slap, series 1 of Nowhere Boys and Night Bloomers. He executive produced the Netflix series Clickbait and the SBS Digital Original Night Bloomers. Feature film credits are The Home Song Stories, Lou, Cut Snake, and Ali’s Wedding.
He was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award by Screen Producers Australia in 2018.
VEE SHI
DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVE
Vee Shi is an AACTA-nominated filmmaker. A recipient of both the Australian Directors’ Guild and the Australian Writers’ Guild awards, Vee was selected as one of Screen Producers Australia’s Ones To Watch in 2023. Vee’s work has won Screen Producers award and the Iris Prize Youth Jury Award, amongst many others.