Second Annual Women & Fashion Filmfest Empowers Women

On June 3-7, the second annual Women & Fashion FilmFest (WFF) will showcase fashion and beauty to unite leaders in fashion, entertainment and media to support and empower women and girls. The five-day event will kick off on June 3 with a Red Carpet Opening Benefit hosted by Celebrity Stylist Jacqui Stafford at the Gold Bar on Broome Street in New York City.

"I was asked by people from the U.N. to start it, and we are gathering leaders in fashion, entertainment and media -- the image making industries -- to support women and girls. That's the premise of the festival," said Jeanine Jeo-Hi Kim, founder and director of WFF.

The event will feature panels on fashion, diversity in entertainment, designing, film, television, and magazines. Special events include a Girls' Film Fest, a Day of Beauty, and a Girls Empowerment Fashion Runway Show at Yotel Hotel.

The panels will feature top names in the industry, including former Vogue Editor-at-Large Andre Leon Talley, filmmaker James Belzer (The Tents), who will offer an advance preview screening of his latest documentary, "Make It in America: Empowering Global Fashion," which examines the loss and subsequent re-invigoration of domestic apparel production in the U.S., Sasha Charnin Morrison, Fashion Director of U.S. and Lynn Yaeger, Contributing Fashion Editor of Vogue.

There will also be a girls' film festival featuring films "made by actual high school girls," said Kim, noting that they would premiere a film called "Human Trafficking."

The schedule is as follows:

Day 1- Film & Television - June 4, 2014 (Wed.) at LIM College, 216 E 45th St., NYC

5pm Session1: Fashion Films
Student Fashion Shorts: Screening & Talk-Back with Student Filmmakers moderated by Lisa Donofrio- Head of the Women & Fashion FilmFest Student Fashion Shorts Program.

6pm Session 2: Filmmaking
Indie Filmmaking in NYC: A Panel Discussion with Women Leaders on Opportunities & Resources in NYC for Independent Filmmakers with Hoong Yee Krakauer- Executive Director of The Queens Council on the Arts, Joana Vicente, Executive Director of the Independent Filmmaker Project and the Made in NY Media Center by IFP, and Rose Ganguzza, President of Rose Pictures, moderated by Michelle Handelman, Filmmaker and Associate Professor of Film & Media at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

7pm Session 3: Television & Online Media
The Small Screen Renaissance: A Panel Discussion with Women Leaders in Television & Online Distribution with Laura Michalychshyn, President of Sundance Productions, Dae Mellencamp, President of Vimeo, Stephanie Sharis, COO of SnagFilms, Liz Janneman, EVP and Head of Strategy of OvationTV, moderated by award winning actress Heather Matarazzo.

8pm Session 4: Tangled Thread
A special preview of Tangled Thread, the latest documentary by Sara Ziff, Founder of the Model Alliance, The screening is followed by a talk-back with Sara Ziff.

About "Tangled Thread": The runway of New York and the factories of Bangladesh could not seem further apart. Yet they both drive a global, multi-trillion dollar industry: the fashion industry. And, in both cases, the work is performed overwhelmingly by young women and girls who are struggling to assert their rights in a hostile labor environment.

"Tangled Thread" tells the story of two labor activists who become unlikely allies: runway model Sara Ziff and former garment worker Kalpona Akter. Together, they attempt to organize across the supply chain to unite fashion's most and least visible workers. Tangled Thread: labor rights, women's rights & a call to action.

Day 2- Fashion & Beauty - June 5, 2014 (Thurs.) at LIM College, 216 E 45th St., NYC

3pm Session 5: Fashion & Retail Careers
Getting Your Foot In The Door & More: A Panel Discussion won Having a Successful Career in Fashion and Retail with LaVelle Olexa, Former Chair of Fashion Group International, Terre Simpson, President of Simpson Associates, a major fashion and retail executive search firm; and Gail Monroe-Perry, President of BRAG and Executive Search Consultant with Martens & Heads, moderated by Nicole Kirpalani, Ph.D?, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Management & Finance of LIM College.

4pm Session 6: Diversity in Fashion & Entertainment
African American Women in Fashion & Entertainment: A Panel Discussion with Prominent Women as African American Female Role Models and the Status of Their Industries from Their Perspective with Supermodels Grace Bol and Devyn, 1st Winner of Naomi Campbell's The Face, Vivian Reed, Tony Award Nominated Actres, and Audrey Smaltz, CEO of Ground Crew, moderated by Harriette Cole, President of Harriette Cole Media and Former Editor-in-Chief of Ebony Magazine.

5pm Session 7: Magazines
Magazines Behind the Scenes: A Panel Discussion with Top Magazine Editors with Andre Leon Talley, Consulting Editor and Former Editor-at-Large of Vogue, Constance White, Consulting Editor of Ozy.com and Former Editor-in-Chief of Essence, Sasha Charnin Morrison, Fashion Director of US Weekly; and Lynn Yaeger, Contributing Fashion Editor of Vogue.

6pm Session 8: Emerging Designer Resources in NYC
Can You Make It In NYC?: A Panel Discussion on Resources Available to Emerging Designer in NYC with Eric Johnson, Director of Fashion, Arts & International, Center for Economic Transformation of NYC Government; Debera Johnson, Executive Director of the Brooklyn Fashion & Design Accelerator; and Gary Wasner, CEO of the Hilldun Corporation.

7pm Session 9: Special Advanced Film Screening
Make It in America: Empowering Global Fashion: A Special Advanced Screening of the latest documentary by James Belzer (The Tents) followed by a discussion with the filmmaker and Q&A Panel, including: Dennita Sewell, Curator of Fashion Design at The Phoenix Art Museum (www.phxart.org), Michelle Vale, Handbag Designer and Associate Producer of film, and other special guests. Moderated by Jacqueline Jenkins, Graduate Studies Director of LIM College.

Day 3- Girls Film Festival� - June 6, 2014 (Fri.) at LIM College, 216 E 45th St., NYC

4pm Session 10: GFF Red Carpet
A fun opportunity for girls to walk the red carpet!

5pm Session 11: Mothers & Daughters Building Bridges to Understanding: a Discussion with mother and daughter teams on how they have helped each other through life's challenges with Stacey Sheiffelin, Former Ford Model & Founder and President of ybf, Sandi Bass, a renowned Casting Director and Muse to Hubert de Givenchy and legendary and daughter Christina Millar. Supermodel Pat Cleveland & daughter Anna Cleveland, moderated by Dr. Estella Sneider, Co-Host of LIVE Today with John Johnson & Dr. Estella, #1 Talk Show on LA Talk Radio, Licensed Psychologist, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT) & Certified Sex Therapist.

6pm Session 12: Inspiring Girls, Finding Your Passion, Building a Bright Future: A Panel Discussion with Supermodels Models on Their Philanthropic Projects & Social Enterprises to inspire girls to focus on developing skills & talents & contributing to society with Supermodels Sessilee Lopez talking about her work with Operation Smiles, Nykhor Paul on her work promoting peace in Sudan through her initiative "We are Nilotic," Grace Bol on The Roots Project that teaches arts and crafts to South Sudanese communities, Crystal Renn and Claudia Mason on body image and women's health.

7pm Session 14: Girls Film Festival
Girls Calling the Shots: A Screening of Short Films by Girls in collaboration with Reel Works, Scenarios USA, and the Civic Life Project.

8:30pm Closing Party at the Gold Bar, June 6, 2014 (Fri. night)
DJ Juli-Lee spins the music for the closing party of the Women & Fashion FilmFest'14 at the Gold Bar on 389 Broome St. produced by Eleonora Quizmolli and Sensation of House.

Day 4- Girls Empowerment Fashion Runway Show at Yotel Hotel - June 7, 2014 (Sat.)

WFF will conclude with the Girls Empowerment Fashion Runway (GEFR), a fashion show sponsored by True Model Management and Runway The Real Way at the Yotel Hotel (570 Tenth Avenue?, NYC -btw 41st/42nd St.) during their Fashion Brunch. From 2:30-3:30pm, the event will showcase a live fashion show featuring designs by students of the United Colors of Fashion (UCOF Academy) and various NYC colleges as well as outfits from Best Dressed NY. DJ Marcus will spin music for a Girls Dance Party after show. Students from LIM College will style the show. Make-up & hair styling provided by Make Up For Ever Academy. Backstage workshops by: The Luminous Foundation, Karen Lee Group, Model Moves/iModelSchool, Divine Life Styles, Be Your Best Health, Gerardo Porteny Backal, Admittedly & more.

Founded in 2013 by Jeanine Jeo-Hi Kim, the Women & Fashion FilmFest� (WFF) is an annual film festival and conference that gathers leaders in fashion, entertainment and media to examine social issues and foster social responsibility, especially toward women and girls. WFF also provides information, tools and creative opportunities for women and students, and honors leaders for their societal as well as their artistic contributions.

WFF is a Partner of MARITAGE International, a new United Nations-affiliated platform focusing on empowering women and addressing poverty by creating employment opportunities for women artisans and artists. WFF is also a growing dynamic online Community that will share its panels online as part of its global outreach.??

The event will be held at ?LIM College, founded in 1939. It is focused exclusively on the study of business and fashion, offering an MBA program with concentrations in Fashion Management and Entrepreneurship, MPS programs in Fashion Merchandising & Retail Management, Fashion Marketing, and Visual Merchandising, a BS degree in International Business, bachelor's degrees in Fashion Merchandising, Visual Merchandising, Marketing, and Management, and associate degrees in Fashion Merchandising.

The second annual Women & Fashion FilmFest will be held June 3-7 at LIM College, 216 E. 45th St. in New York City. For information or tickets, visit http://www.womenfashfilm.com/