TheWrap’s BE Conference, a day of mentorship that brings together women starting their careers with the top women in entertainment and media, kicks off on Thursday at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica.
The event makes a new home in Los Angeles after two successful years at SXSW.
Joining TheWrap’s founder and CEO Sharon Waxman on stage are actresses, agents, entrepreneurs and C-suite executives hailing from some of the industry’s largest companies for keynote discussions, workshops, panels and hands-on mentoring.
Keynote speakers include actress Melanie Liburd (“This is Us”), actress Sydney Park (“Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists”), actress-writer-showrunner Frankie Shaw (“SMILF”), top agent Debbee Klein (Paradigm), executive Courtney Thomasma (BBC America), venture capitalist Jesse Draper (Halogen Ventures), producer Amy Pascal (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”) and many more.
They will speak on topics ranging from building confidence, negotiating from strength, the journey from assistant to executive, bgetting rid of bias and embracing inclusion, among others.
Speakers also include actress Jessica Parker Kennedy (“The Flash”), actress Danielle Macdonald (“Dumplin’”), Jessica Maria Garcia(“On My Block”). The event anticipates more than 200 millennial and GenZ women from companies including Disney, WME, Dolby, Imagine, Gunpowder & Sky, Circle of Confusion and many others.
“In the last year we’ve seen the good that can come from a collective cry for change in the entertainment industry,” Waxman said. “We’re here to pry those doors open further and – let’s aim big – blow them off their hinges. BE Conference was created to nurture the rising talent in media and entertainment, showcase real-life role models, offer answers to burning questions and provide one-on-one time with our unbelievable mentors.”
In addition to invaluable takeaways from speakers and mentors, the event also features activations that help attendees walk away looking and feeling their best. Activations include glam bar presented by beGlammed, Stare Cosmetics and Via Saviene pop-up shops, Pradas Glow spray tanning, shadow boxing hosted by Box Union, and morning sound meditation to help attendees start the day off right.
Speakers and mentors in alphabetical order:
- Speakers: Stephanie Allain, Adelle Archer, Amanda de Cadenet, Whitney Davis, Jesse Draper, DeVon Franklin, Jessica Marie Garcia, Debbee Klein, Melanie Liburd, Danielle Macdonald, Shabnam Mogharabi, Maile Pacheco, Sydney Park, Amy Pascal, Lauren Schulte, Frankie Shaw, Carly Stein, Courtney Thomasma, Rain Valdez
- Mentors: Stephanie Allain, Adhrucia Apana, Adelle Archer, Susan Brooks, Yasmine Campbell, Claudia Carasso, Marki Costello, Amanda de Cadenet, Jesse Draper, Jessica Marie Garcia, Carrie Gillogly, Jessica Parker Kennedy, April King, Debbee Klein, Dana Asher Levine, Melanie Liburd, Brooke Mason, Sarah Ann Masse, Valarie Phillips, Lauren Schulte, Carly Stein, Laine Strouse, Chandler Taslitz, Courtney Thomasma, Rain Valdez, Yira Vilaro,
A special thank you to sponsors and partners for helping make this event as successful as possible for the women in attendance. Event sponsors include Paradigm Talent Agency, AMC Networks, Participant Media, Imagine Entertainment, Stare Cosmetics, BEN Group, Pradas Glow, Via Saviene, Winc, West Elm, San Lorenzo Bikinis, SheaMoisture and beGlammed.
BE Conference benefits from the WrapWomen Foundation, a non-profit committed to empowering women to achieve leadership positions, promote gender equality and combat sexual harassment in the workplace.
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About BE Conference
BE Conference brings together 200 ambitious millennials and Gen-Zs to be mentored by the most influential women in entertainment and media, curated by the leading organization for female leadership in the entertainment industry, WrapWomen.
WrapWomen aims to leverage the power of media and entertainment to empower the next generation of women leaders.