PRESS RELEASE: Melbourne Family of Filmmakers Head to the Sydney Opera House for SF3 SmartFone Flick Fest 2026

Melbourne, Australia – November 2025 — Melbourne filmmaker Tez Frost (Tez Vi Truong) and his two young children have been selected as finalists in the SmartFone Flick Fest (SF3), with all three of their films to be screened at the Sydney Opera House in January 2026.

Tez’s short film, The 5-Minute Empire, has been named a finalist in the SF3 Gala Finals, to be held on Friday, 23 January 2026, at 8:30 p.m in the Sydney Opera House Playhouse Theatre. The film marks a milestone for the festival as the first film ever to be screened in the AI category at the SF3 Film Festival. Shot entirely on an iPhone in a single Saturday afternoon, the film will be one of only 16 films selected for the Gala Finals.

Tez’s daughter Alexis Truong (7) and son Charlie Truong (5) have also been selected as finalists in the SF3 Kids Finals, screening at the Opera House on Saturday, 24 January 2026, at 1:30 p.m. Alexis returns after making history at the 2024 festival as SF3’s youngest-ever director at the time, while Charlie makes his debut this year as the festival’s youngest ever filmmaker with Looking for Parking, filmed when he was just four. The siblings’ films, “Maxton and the Moon” and “Looking for Parking,” will be shown alongside 25 other young creators’ works in SF3’s dedicated Kids program.

Together, the family makes history at SF3 as the first family of three finalists in the festival’s history, representing a unique cross-generational snapshot of storytelling, from AI-assisted filmmaking to childhood imagination, all grounded in the accessibility of mobile technology.

As a Guinness World Record–breaking filmmaker and former Disney writer, Tez Frost has always pushed the boundaries of storytelling. “I wanted to demonstrate that AI can support creativity without losing the human touch,” he says. “The storytelling is still human centred. AI just allowed me to create worlds and moments that otherwise wouldn’t have been possible.”

Alexis Truong (7) adds, “I love telling stories. Last year was my first time at SF3, and now my brother and my dad are joining me.”

Now in its 11th season, SF3 SmartFone Flick Fest is one of the world’s leading mobile film festivals, celebrating stories shot entirely on smartphones and tablets.

High-resolution images, posters, and behind-the-scenes materials are available upon request.

Media Contact:
Tez Vi Truong – Director / Writer
[email protected] 
+61 481 347 988
www.instagram.com/tezfrost/