Photographer Miranda McDonald
Fashion Luca Kingston at The Only Agency
Groomer Sydney Oprita using Ouidad, Anastasia Beverly Hills and Kiehl's
Writer Riley Liljestrom
Producer Tessa Swantek
Photo Assistant Josell Mariano
Fashion Assistant Tori Petrovski
Location Special Thanks The Godfrey Hotel Hollywood
“I feel hopeful every year naturally when it becomes springtime and summer. I realise that maybe the dark cloud that I thought was following me around was literally just because of three hours less of sunlight. Then I can ground myself and realise that usually things are just bad temporarily, and seasons frickin’ change, and time passes, and everything's actually fine.”
The view from my window is dappled in lime green and the brightest forsythia yellow, spring swirling with life and possibility. Streets lined thickly with pink petals, I smile at nature’s reclamation of all this land swallowed by pavement and SUVs. Ben De Almeida joins the call, ripping me into another plane. My initial thought is that he’s zooming me from the command station of a spaceship - the ceiling and walls are covered in mirrored panels, reflecting the neon glow of his whirring computer. Then I notice a wall of framed art hung gallery style, a rack of clothes opposite, a triple-head desk lamp, each shade a different primary colour. It’s Ben’s bedroom, I realise. His tousled curls are topped with over-the-ear headphones, and he admits his day is off to a bleak start after beginning season seven of Black Mirror.
Our conversation flows easily, being kids of the same generation navigating early adulthood in a chronically online culture. We joke easily and often, and Ben’s sarcasm and blasé attitude match his online presence as BENOFTHEWEEK. Creating YouTube videos with titles like “I bought every AI ad I saw for a week” and “I went drunk ghost hunting,” he doesn’t spend much energy on being taken seriously. Though Ben works as a creator, don’t think of him as an influencer, he warns: “I feel like if I'm influencing you to do anything, then I need to not.” Like most of us today, his screen time climbs sky high some days (thanks, Fortnite), and he fears his eyes might be toast for the long haul. Yet Ben lives for creativity, as he tells me with both extreme passion and self-deprecation, about his screenplay he just finished. Navigating the world tongue-in-cheek with an air of idgaf, Ben leverages that attitude to bring joy and levity through creating art that reflects current times (although calling his iPad videos “art” would definitely make him laugh).
Take in the full 18-page story beyond this teaser. Our brand new Spring Summer 2025 issue, "A Little Light" is available to buy online.
