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The 2011 Gracie’s Choice Awards

Adrienne Papp — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 04:28:22 +0000

Presented by the Alliance for Women in Media

Chelsea Handler

By Adrienne Papp

Imagine a world where:

Every girls grows up with the self-esteem she needs to reach her full potential…,

Every woman enjoys feeling confident in her own beauty…,

We all help to build self-esteem in the people we love the most…,

That was the vision that this year’s sponsor, Dove skin care products proposed as part of their support of the 2011 Gracie Awards. As evidenced in this inspiring star-studded celebration of feminine power, this is a great time to be alive for women. In spite of many economic challenges, the progress made by so many disenfranchised groups in recent years has been breathtaking. And in a ballroom at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles it was thrilling to see so many women being honored for their creative efforts in communications programming created by women, for women and about women, across wide platform of media.

Erin and Juliana

The 36^th Annual Gracie Awards, held on May 25 2011, is a way of celebrating so many of the accomplishments of women in entertainment media. Presented by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation and sponsored by Dove skin care products, Disney, HBO, CBS Radio, TNT, the Ford Motor Company, Wells Fargo and a host of other sponsors, the Gracie Award show is an extravaganza toasting the best and brightest women in media, a broad cross section of female talent from all walks of life, individuals who have made exemplary contributions in their respective fields.

Hosted by Patricia Heaton of ABC’s hit show “The Middle,” the 2011 Gracies was a virtual Who’s Who of professional women in media. Among the awardees were the CBS “60 Minutes” interview with Academy-Award winning director Kathryn Bigelow, Meredith Vieira as Outstanding Anchor News for the NBC News produced Today Show, TV star Joan Lunden for Outstanding Talk Show, the ubiquitous Betty White as the Outstanding Female Actor in a Comedy for “Hot in Cleveland,” Claire Danes for Outstanding Actor in a Drama for HBO’s “Temple Grandin,” and Shaun Robinson, who received the Dove Real Beauty Award presented by Lauren Harper and Holly Robinson Peete.
It is the Gracies Awards and an ever-increasing number of female-centric programs that recognize women in the arts, education and entertainment that help make the world aware of the accomplishments that women have been providing all along. In spite of the glass-ceiling syndrome, which is now cracking and is in the process of disintegrating, women have made incredible but sometimes overlooked, inroads in modern culture. Kathryn Bigelow, it should be noted, became the first woman to win the Academy Award for Best Director,the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing, and the BAFTA Award for Best Direction for her war film The Hurt Locker, a trifecta that has never before been accomplished by a woman.

Meredith Vieira

Laura Ziskin, although not a recipient at the show, should be also mentioned alongside this group, as she recently passed away from breast cancer and was an incredibly strong force in Hollywood. Ziskin is perhaps best known for producing the three Spider-Man movies starring Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst that grossed $2.5 billion at the box office worldwide. In 2002, she became the first woman to produce the Oscar broadcast solo and also produced the 2007 ceremony (and was the women who convinced Woody Allen to appear on the show). In 2008 Ziskin, along with other entertainment notables including newswoman Katie Couric, co-founded Stand Up To Cancer, an advocacy group for cancer research. At the age of 61, she passed away far too early.

There was so much to be proud of and so much recognition for the accomplished women in our world, which however would be impossible to list within the scope this article. But what is important to take away from a show like the Gracies is the strong spirit that is present in the vast community of women who put their soul and intelligence into projects that make everyone’s life so much richer. From the women who broadcast the outstanding sports program on ESPN, to investigative reporting that gets inside the most important stories of our time, to biographies and comedies and reality shows, women are no longer just the worker bees behind the scenes. They have now stepped into the spotlight and are the ones who have become the creators, the voices, the messengers that bring a kinder, gentler, more intuitive approach to the entertainment, news and educational programs we benefit from.

The amazing and exemplary women who were publicly recognized at the Gracies Awards have been recognized for their greatness because they refuse to be relegated to secondary citizen status and strive for the self-fulfillment they receive by being true to themselves. A public awards show like the Gracias and the light it shines on these women can be an inspiration to the younger generation, a clear indicator that the traditional roles that women were relegated to don’t have to be accepted anymore. Along with the elegance and grace of the event a new and exceptionally talented young fashion designer, Rachel Weathersby stood out of the crowd, not by her personal presence, but by the dress I wore made by her. She is the only female designer known today who preserves the trends of times and brings about the beauty of the royal ages before us into an elegance that is not only timeless, but memorable.

It must be noted that the Women in Media alliance is getting more and more recognition. The 36^th Annual Gracie Awards will air on the Hallmark Movie Channel on August 8, 2011, during prime time, and then again as a daytime encore on August 12.

Christy Turlington

The Gracies is a call to women everywhere to follow their own individual path, listen to the personal voices that speak to them, tell the stories, write the books and make the movies that they imagine in the depths of their creative spirit. If women do this, they will bring about a whole new world! And, in that world, men and women will both feel much more appreciated!

About the Author of This Article: Lady Adrienne Papp is a recognized journalist who has written for many publications including Savoir, Beverly Hills 90210, Malibu Beach, Santa Monica Sun, The Beverly Hills Times, Brentwood News, Bel-Air View, Celebrity Society, Celeb Staff, It Magazine, Chic Today, LA2DAY, West Side Today among many others. She is the President and CEO of Los Angeles / New York-based publicity company, Atlantic Publicity and publishing house, Atlantic Publisher. Adrienne writes about world trends, Quantum Physics, entertainment and interviews celebrities, world leaders, inventors, philanthropists and entrepreneurs. She also owns Atlantic United Films that produces and finances true stories made for theatrical release or the silver screen. Spotlight News Magazineis owned by Atlantic United, Incwith Adrienne Pappbeing the majority shareholder.

Adrienne Papp wearing a 17th century classic creation by Rachel Weathersby

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Spotlight on the Cannes Film Festival 2009, By Adrienne Papp

Adrienne Papp — Thu, 28 May 2009 02:26:23 +0000

By Adrienne Papp

Drinking champagne in Air France’s business class en route to the Cannes Film Festival is how most days should be. Ah, but the French are notorious for all things “Franchie-fabulous,” just like their elegant welcome and superb service on their flights. A graciously tasteful presentation with a touch of perfection, unparalleled personal attention, and that special European etiquette is the sweet prelude of the next two weeks in France. The food alone is magnifique and makes the choice of flying the official airline of the festival more than worthwhile. Air France is really the best: their world of elegance and gracious hospitality goes really well with the exquisite yet flirtatious glamour of Cannes.

It was good to see that there was little sign of economic hardship along the French Riviera. The place was buzzing busy, with local scooters zipping around everywhere, limos dropping off celebs creating the aura of glitz and glamour brought to the world’s most famous film festival by the international film community. The French are famous for lots of things, but their espresso is an important accompaniment to the hundreds of parties starting in the late afternoon and ending in the wee hours of the morning with champagne and wine flowing like the body of water holding up the multi-million dollar yachts that are home to most cocktail receptions.

The Festival opened, in a big break from tradition, with the Premiere of a delightful animated Pixar production. The studio responsible for Monsters Inc. and Finding Nemo was given the honor of showing Up, a heartfelt film enhanced with 3D technology. The French have always been great admirers of animation, and their instincts were right on this one–it was a real crowd pleaser. John Lasseter, Pixar’s Chief Creative Officer confirmed that all new Pixar and Disney animations will be made in 3D going forward adding an additional “wow” factor to the impressive visuals. Another interesting development based on animation was the announcement of a six-country effort to produce a live-action version of the Japanese anime series Bubblegum Crisis, a popular cyberpunk, sci-fi-style anime set in the distant future. It will be the first ever Singapore-Japan-Australia-Canada-China-United Kingdom co-production. Could not be more international.

The press screening of Up was followed by the first competition entry, Spring Fever, which depicted complicated sexual relationships with a realism that ensures it certainly won’t be released in the country in which it was made: China. Afterward, Director Lou Ye preferred to talk about free artistic expression, and not so much about the commercial market for his film in China. The dark film set the tone for what was to be a fairly dark slate of entries at the Festival.

Other highly anticipated films shown during the festival were Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, which clocks in at 2 hours and 40 minutes. It’s an ambitious film that reinvents history with a plot about Jews killing Hitler, and has added star power with the comic acting of Brad Pitt as an Army Lieutenant, and Christoph Waltz as his SS nemesis. It was the only American film to win an award at Cannes, with Waltz taking the award for top actor.

Lars von Trier, the adventurous Danish filmmaker, was also on hand with the extremely violent Antichrist, his first attempt at a horror film, which earned a best actress award for Charlotte Gainsbourg. Gainsbourg tearfully thanked her mother, actress Jane Birkin, and her father, the late singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg at the award ceremony.

With French actress Isabelle Huppert serving as president of the jury, three of the eight prizes went to French filmmakers. The Palme d’Or for best film went to director Michael Haneke for The White Ribbon, which was a return to German-language filmmaking for him. His previous film, Caché, was made in French.

The two most popular awards went to French films. Jacques Audiard’s A Prophet that some attendees thought was the best film of the festival, got the Grand Prix, which is considered Cannes’ runner-up prize. The Special Prize, Cannes’ version of a lifetime achievement award, went to 87-year-old director Alain Resnais, whose film Wild Grass was sophisticated, visually inventive, and a crowd-favorite.

At Cannes 2009, the jury seemed to prefer films with darker, edgier themes, ignoring films that were more conventional and upbeat. Included in the latter category were Bright Star, Jane Campion’s exceptionally well made story of the romance of poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne, along with Looking for Eric from British director Ken Loach, a crowd pleasing story about a postman who uses a real life football star to advise him on his problems.

Cannes also offered the world premiere of the UCLA Film & Television Archive’s restoration of 1948’s The Red Shoes, which was shown to a large and enthusiastic sold-out crowd and was introduced by director Martin Scorsese, who told the crowd he’d first seen the film as an 8-year-old in 1950. The restoration couldn’t have found a better place to debut than this exciting, passionate, appreciative festival.

Also getting high marks for the color red were Monica Bellucci and Sophie Marceau, who showed up at the premier of their film Don’t Look Back (Ne Te Retourne Pas) in stunning red dresses. Monica showed off her famous curves in an off-the-shoulder red Christian Dior silk gown, which she teamed with a red Dior clutch purse and diamonds. Looking equally statuesque was former Bond girl Sophie in an Yves Saint Laurent Editor Soir strapless column dress and killer red heels.

The Cannes Premier of Anvil! The Story of Anvil was a real delicacy directed by Sacha Gervasi about a legendary rock band reinventing themselves. The documentary is expected to score high this year in its own category at various awards.

Disney pulled an impressive and surprising publicity stunt when they produced snow- flakes and a humongous Christmas tree overnight to market their new production, A Christmas Carol starring Jim Carrey, which will be released in the winter of 2009. It is never too early to advertise especially when one creates a snowfall in the middle of summer to create a lasting impression.

Once you’re at Cannes the screenings and parties never seem to end with their abundant supply of fascinating people shaping the world of art through their extraordinary talent. The Festival was also exceptionally well organized this year due to the amazing job done by Gérald Duchaussoy and Christine Aimé. Their hard work made such a complex event easy to follow in terms of schedule and orientation. It was a privilege for us all to attend this year.

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About the Writer: Adrienne Papp is a recognized journalist who has written for many publications including Savoir, Beverly Hills 90210, Malibu Beach, Santa Monica Sun, The Beverly Hills Times, Brentwood News, Bel-Air View and Celebrity Society, among many others. She is the President and CEO of Los Angeles/New York-based publicity companies, Atlantic Publicity and Atlantic Publisher. Adrienne writes about world trends, Quantum Physics, entertainment and interviews celebrities and world leaders.

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