M+E Connections

The nominees are in for Women in Technology Hollywood’s (WiTH) 5th Annual Leadership Awards, to be presented at the SoCal Women’s Leadership Summit, taking place Nov. 4 at Citizen News Hollywood in Los Angeles.

Honoring leaders and advocating for women in the entertainment technology field, the Leadership Awards recognize those who exemplify WiTH’s pillars in both their work and communities, with a focus on those who excel in professional development, mentoring and networking, and community engagement.

The nominees are:

• Theresa Alesso, president, imaging products and solutions, Americas, Sony Electronics
• Victoria Alonso, president of physical, postproduction, VFX and animation, Marvel Studios
• Rebecca Beam, founder and CEO, Zavikon
• Albertina Cardiel Chavez, cybersecurity evangelist, IT governance, risk and compliance director, diversity and inclusion leader, Softtek
• Annie Chang, VP, creative technologies, Universal Pictures
• Hollie Choi, managing director, EIDR
• Anna Claiborne, CTO, PacketFabric
• Marcela Escobar-Alava (formerly Bailey), special assistant to the president and deputy director of technology, The White House
• Eric Iverson, director of product, Amazon Studios
• Lian Li, developer relations, Loft Labs
• Zorina Ohanian, EVP, Sony Pictures
• Janice Pearson, SVP, sales and strategy, XL8 Inc
• April Schneider, executive director of IT, TV distribution, Sony Pictures
• Nina Skorus-Neely, CEO, Stirling
• Kelly White, VP, consumer experiences and product strategy, Disney Streaming

Past winners of the award included Christina Aguilera; head of technology workflow and strategy for Amazon Studios, Nancy Faginas-Cody, former SVP of enterprise business systems for The Walt Disney Co.; Cristina Mancini-Jones, chief marketing and engagement officer for Salesforce; and Theresa Miller, EVP and CIO for Lionsgate.

WiTH is an organization that serves as a catalyst for the advancement of women in entertainment technology, and the WiTH Steering Committee, which selects the Leadership Awards winners, includes representatives from women’s organizations at Amazon Studios, Discovery, Google, Lionsgate, NBCUniversal, Paramount, Sony Pictures Entertainment, WarnerMedia, and The Walt Disney Company.

Founded in March 2014, WiTH facilitates cross-studio women’s group communications and addresses pressing issues specific to women technology executives in Hollywood, covering leadership, business and technology skills development, mentorship, negotiation, career development, vision, management, community engagement, empowerment, self-confidence and work/life balance.

The SoCal Women’s Leadership Summit 2022 will be held in conjunction with the Infinity Festival, running Nov. 2-5, and the in-person morning keynote of the event will be Karen P. Layng, president of the Girl Scouts of the United States of America, and president and founder of M.A.I.T. Co., a consulting firm that specializes in development and strategic governance, ethics, compliance reviews, arbitrations and mediations.

For more information about the WiTH Leadership Awards, please contact [email protected].

To sponsor SoCal Women’s Leadership Summit 2022, contact Garrett Finley at [email protected].