Wednesday, April 29th, 2015

Track VII:  - Live Webcast from this Room

12:30 PM - 1:45 PM

Women & Original Content: From Internet Video and Advertising to TV and Film

Heidi E. Lehmann, Founder - SWSIMedia,  "QueenBee" on OraTV

Valerie Voci, Chief Marketing Officer, OWNZONES Media Network

Caryn Ward Ross, Actress (BET's The Game and He's Mine Not Yours)

Kylie Sparks, actor/producer, "Squaresville"

Marlene Sharp, Director Of Development, RGH Entertainment

Helenna Santos – Founder and CEO of “Ms. In The Biz”/Actress/ Producer/Writer

Natascha Hopkins, Actress - Stuntwoman/Writer

Perrin Kaplan, Principal, Zebra Partners, Moderator

partners' premium content while continually improving the experience for our consumers. The OWNZONES model of "anywhere, anytime, on any connected device" viewing of personally selected content, all free from the clutter of advertising, is promoted by our brand and media relations team. Voci Media Works East, a consultancy founded by Val Voci, focuses on marketing and communications for online customer acquisition and engagement. The firm manages a wide-range of projects for clients; providing media relations, creative services, social media management, brand identity, marketing automation and data services. Voci is a frequent speaker at industry events. Recent engagements include Folio: Media Next and SIIA Annual Conference.

Heidi Lehmann, Founder SWSIMedia: Heidi is Co-Founder of SWSI Media a new network of original multi-screen programming focused on “Smart Women with Smart Ideas”.  SWSI’s first show, “QueenBee,”a reality competition that incorporates crowdfunding, launched this past Fall on Ora.TV a digital network founded by Larry King and Carlos Slim. Heidi is also strategic advisor to Trellie a Smart Jewelry Company and Healthy You Now a Wellness Subscription Service founded by Tonya Lewis Lee.  Additionally, she consults with venture capital firms to assist consumer-facing start-ups with market entry and is on the Investment Committee for Venture Out which seeks to back exceptional businesses founded by LGBT entrepreneurs.

Heidi’s previous endeavors include Founder and CEO of MoxieQ, a cross-media network of influential lifestyle celebrity experts in partnership with most all US mobile carriers and BravoTV, and Co-Founder and VP Strategic Alliances of Third Screen Media, a mobile ad network and ad delivery platform that was acquired by AOL in 2007.

CARYN WARD ROSS Actress/Producer Caryn Ward Ross portrayed Erica Harrison, a feisty and out-°©_spoken NFL wife on four seasons BET's comedy series “THE GAME.” Caryn's other television credits include co-°©_starring and recurring roles on HBO's ” Entourage”, “Lincoln Heights”, “The Shield”, “Friends” and “General Hospital”. Some of her feature film credits include “Motives” (Sony) opposite Vivica A. Fox and Shemar Moore and the romantic comedy, “He's Mine Not Yours” for Image Entertainment. Currently, Caryn is co-°©_producing and starring in the provocative noir drama, THE AFFAIR written and directed by filmmaker husband Craig Ross Jr. The Ross' are shooting the entire feature on the iphone 5 using only natural light, and plan to make digital filmmaking history by creating the first ever smart-°©_phone feature solely with existing light that is capable of being projected into a movie theater screen without loss of quality. A teaser for the film can be viewed at www.theaffair-°©_themovie.com. A professionally trained dancer, Caryn studied at the acclaimed Alvin Ailey Dance Center in New York City. She's danced with Janet Jackson, Usher, Arsenio Hall, Rosie Perez, and Jasmine Guy. Please visit www.CarynWardRoss.com for the latest news.

Kylie Sparks had her professional debut at 16 as the star in IFC Films' "Pizza," alongside Ethan Embry, Julie Hagerty, Judah Friedlander, and many notable others.  Since then, she's guest-starred and recurred on such television series as "Complete Savages," "Desperate Housewives," "Bones," "Melissa & Joey," "Greek," and "ER," and a plethora of other series, including an upcoming spot on FOX's new show "Weird Loners." Kylie is also starring in the upcoming comedy indie "Mr. Intangibles," and has been part of many staged readings, including Darren Stein's "GBF" at Outfest Screenwriters Lab.  Kylie has also made her mark in the digital world, starring in the hit webseries "Squaresville," which has been featured in Entertainment Weekly, Variety, USA Today, and IndieWire among numerous other publications and won four IAWTV awards (including Best Comedy Series and Best Ensemble Cast as well as a Best Actress in a Comedy nomination for Kylie).  Kylie has also been in numerous digital series and sketches because of "Squaresville," including the recent Wing Girls sketch "If Girls Were Like Guys on Valentine's Day," which garnered 2 Million views over multiple platforms.  On the set of Squaresville, Kylie met her creative partner, Tiffany Ariany, and the two created, produced, and starred in the cult web parody "LA GIRLS," the 'west coast companion' to HBO's GIRLS.  "LA GIRLS" was an official selection at the Hollyweb and LA Webseries Festivals, was featured in Variety as a "hot spoof" with IFC's Spoils of Babylon, and also was featured in HelloGiggles (next to Tina Fey's SNL GIRLS spoof), IndieWire, Tubefilter, and Comedy TV is Dead, which named Kylie a "Woman to Watch" in Comedy.  Kylie is an alumna of the University of Southern California's School of Theatre, a pug rescue volunteer, and the mom to a pug named Scarlett and a corgi-pug-mutt named Pie.  Her favorite things in the world are brunch, SoulCycle, and Bradley Cooper.

Helenna Santos – Founder and CEO of “Ms. In The Biz”/Actress/ Producer/Writer: Helenna created "Ms. In The Biz" as a hub for the next generation of female Hollywood Power Players. Since launching in May of 2013 "Ms. In The Biz" houses over 1100 articles with new posts 5 days a week from over 170 contributing writers.  The content is read in 195 countries by over 170,000 readers. Their first compilation book "Thriving in Hollywood! Tenacious Tales and Tactics from Ms. In The Biz" gives practical advice and insight for those pursing a career in entertainment while promoting growth, positive community, and entrepreneurial spirit. A proud member of Film Independent, Women in Film, and the IAWTV (International Academy of Web Television), Helenna can often be found on panels and in appearances at conventions such as “Comic-Con” and Stan Lee’s “Comikaze.” As an actress she has appeared in a wide variety of projects from feature films such as Universal’s “American Reunion,” (the fourth theatrical installment of “American Pie”), to high profile digital productions like “Black Box TV,” as well as a number of network television series. Helenna has produced and starred in a number of projects including the award winning short horror film “The Infected” the LGBT experimental short film “Similitude,", and is in development for the Sci-Fi creature feature “Specious” and the neo-noir heist flick “Snatched,” both of which she is producing with her husband Barry W. Levy through Mighty Pharaoh Films.

Natascha Hopkins, originally from Worms, Germany is a professional stuntwoman/actress and the founder/designer of Capo-Nata Apparel. From recently doubling Halle Berry in her hit series Extant, and Kerry Washington on Scandal, Natascha has been a busy lady. She not only also spent 6 months in West Africa doubling Zoe Krativz in the not yet released Mad Max 4: Road Fury, but also doubled Zoe on Divergent and just wrapped Insurgent. She has worked on numerous blockbuster hits including Transformers 1 and 3, Spiderman 3, Ironman, After Earth and Django. She is most known from her acting/stunt role "Vixen" in the comedy hit Paul Blart :Mall cop. Natascha loves being on set, however she found another passion when she realized there was a void in the activewear market. She designed obtained a Utitlity Patent, on the Lean Body Sports Bra, which integrates a non breathable material to promotes weight loss in the core area for all body types of women (and soon men). And now, Natascha and her team have an entire distinct collection of activewear which has birthed Capo-Nata, Meaning Born Leader in Italian.

Perrin Kaplan, Principal, Zebra Partners: Perrin is a marketing strategist with a diverse background in consumer entertainment marketing, politics and journalism. She drives strategic planning, corporate positioning, public policy and viral marketing efforts and is well entrenched in the gaming world. Prior to founding Zebra, Perrin was VP of Marketing and Corporate Affairs for Nintendo and oversaw many aspects of the internationally recognized marketing and public relations programs, including public affairs, investor relations and community relations. She also served as VP for The Rockey Company, a public relations firm; was in journalism with KING Broadcasting, Seattle’s NBC affiliate; and managed political communications for the state capitol and White House campaigns. Perrin has deep connections across traditional and citizen media and knows how to spark a viral fire that encourages an ongoing stream of impact to our client’s bottom-line.