ClexaCon Panelists & Press Speak OUT (AUDIO)

In this exclusive audio montage Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ caught up with several panelists at ClexaCon in Las Vegas to talk about their work and give us their spin on our LGBTQ issues. First we chatted with Susan SurfTone who is a retro rock guitarist and vocalist with several CDs released over the years, playing mostly surf and rockabilly music with a modern edge. Susan is also a lawyer and a former Special Agent for the FBI who gave us her insight on the current Russia investigation of the Trump administration. Currently Susan addresses political issues ahead of the curve for numerous LGBTQ publications. Then we talked to Rhonda Marable the principal strategist and chief project manager at Ronnie B Consulting based in San Francisco that specializes in helping companies that range from small starting businesses to Fortune 500 companies to find and fix branding problems that stem from inefficiencies in communication. When asked how she sees our LGBTQ community moving forward in this Trump administration Rhonda stated that we need to come together and talk about becoming good citizens. Marable is also a writer and working on a screenplay that was getting a lot of buzz at ClexaCon.

Next we chatted with Mona Elyafi the founder and CEO of ILDK Media, a boutique Public Relations company specializing in Entertainment and LGBTQ publicity and marketing campaigns. With over 20 years of experience in the field, Elyafi’s portfolio includes The Dinah Shore Weekend, tello films, Marlene Forte (The Fosters), Filmmakers Marina Rice Bader, Nicole Cohn, Francisco Lorite, transgender activist Michaela Mendelsohn and has been instrumental in providing dozens of her clients for OUTTAKE VOICES™. We concluded our podcast with Cuban actress and fierce LGBTQ ally Marlene Forte recently seen on Netflix’s Altered Carbon, Hulu’s Marvel’s Runaways, The Fosters, Fear The Walking Dead and Superstore. Forte loves the way ClexaCon is bringing women together and believes it’s a very important and powerful experience to have this opportunity for women to make connections and take charge.

ClexaCon was created and is run by Holly Winebarger, Ashley Arnold and Danielle Jablonski with the goal to provide a safe space and a world-wide community of LGBTQ+ women and allies who love TV, film, comics and books and to encourage more LGBTQ+ women to get involved in content creation and to embolden allies to improve representation for LGBTQ+ characters in their creative work. ClexaCon started as a simple meet-up to unite fans of LGBTQ+ pop culture and evolved into a full-blown convention with over 3500 attendees at its second conference at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. ClexaCon London, UK takes place November 3rd and November 4th 2018.
For More Info: clexacon.com

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ClexaCon Celebrities Talk Media LGBTQ Inclusion (AUDIO)

In this exclusive audio montage Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with celebrities on the red carpet attending ClexaCon’s Cocktails for Change event to benefit the True Colors Fund which works to end homelessness among LGBTQ youth. First we talked to film director and author Ji Strangeway about her graphic novel Red as Blue. Ji hopes her work will reach LGBTQ youth to give them hope and inspiration. Then we chatted with Cuban actress and fierce LGBTQ ally Marlene Forte recently seen on Netflix’s Altered Carbon, Hulu’s Marvel’s Runaways, The Fosters, Fear The Walking Dead and Superstore. Forte is excited to see more women involved in all facets of the entertainment industry. Next we talked with ClexaCon creator Holly Winebarger about the origin of this fabulous media and entertainment convention that creates a safe space for LGBTQ women and allies and that brings over 3500 actresses, directors, producers, writers, comic book illustrators, visual artists, academics and fans together globally to celebrate the best of LGBTQ TV and film and discuss how to improve our representation across all media platforms. Then we chatted with veteran actress Patricia Rae best know for her role on the Oscar nominated HBO feature film Maria Full of Grace and she also starred in the Lionsgate feature film The Big Wedding. Currently Rae just completed the pilot for Chiefs on CBS. Next we talked with actress Briana Venskus who appears on The Walking Dead, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Grace and Frankie. Briana has definitely found her niche as a badass woman in super hero programing. Then we chatted with actress Erica Luttrell best know for Salvation on CBS and Lost Girl. Erica hopes her work will change people’s lives by showing that they matter and that their dreams are relevant. Next we talked with actress Haviland Stillwell best known for her work on Freelancer’s Anonymous, Magic Mike XXL, Selma, UnREAL, Living the Dream, Sexy Civics, Baywatch, Stitchers, Unicorn Plan-it and upcoming films for SyFy and Hallmark. She hopes her work inspires women to be their best self and loves connecting with fans at ClexaCon.

Then we chatted with Natasha Negovanlis best known for playing the title role in the web series Carmilla that subsequently morphed into the feature film based on the series. Natasha loves being able to make positive difference by being a queer actress playing queer roles. Next we talked with Anna Silk who played Bo in the Showcase television series Lost Girl. She hopes she can influence her audience to be their authentic self. Then we chatted with Elizabeth Maxwell who appeared in Criminal Minds and Attack on Titan which is a Japanese breakthrough animation series that shows a lesbian relationship in a non-sexual way. Next we caught up with the team from Tello films including producer, director and award-winning performer Bridget McManus, who appears with Karman Kregloe, Cat Davis, Kristen Smith in the web series, Happy Wife, Happy Life directed by Christin Baker, President and CEO of Tello Films. Baker talked about how ClexaCon was a place for our tribe of people who love and support lesbian storylines and how critical it is to see ourselves on TV and in the media. Next we talked to Mandahla Rose best know for her Australian film All About E which has a positive storyline where her character wins the heart of the girl she loves and nobody dies. We concluded our red carpet coverage with Nicole Pacent who was at ClexaCon to appear on the panel “Anyone But Me: Ten Years Later Bisexual Representation in the Media, LGBTQ Actresses.” We talked to Nicole about her upcoming projects and how she hopes to empower women with her work.

ClexaCon started as a simple meet-up to unite fans of LGBTQ+ pop culture that evolved into a full-blown convention with over 3500 attendees at its second conference at the Tropicana in Las Vegas April 5th through April 9th and we can’t wait to attend the upcoming ClexaCon conference in London, UK November 3rd to November 4th 2018. Photos by Marilyn Rosen.
For More Info: clexacon.com

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Chef Rossi Talks “Raging Skillet” Play From Her Memoir (AUDIO)

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with Chef Rossi about her memoir “The Raging Skillet” that has morphed into a creative and hilarious stage production “Raging Skillet” by playwright Jacques Lamarre. The play opened last summer at TheaterWorks in Hartford, Connecticut to rave reviews and sold-out performances. Recently the Jewish Play Project’s Artistic Director David Winitsky presented the New York premiere of this future off-Broadway smash hit culinary and theatrical event with Judy Gold starring as Chef Rossi, the lesbian punk rock caterer and event maestro. The showcase was directed by John Simpkins and featured Katherine Kates as Chef Rossi’s mother and the versatile Jason Veasey played all the male leads. “Raging Skillet” is one woman's story about cooking her way through some of life's biggest challenges in New York City's most unlikely kitchens. As the rebel caterer parties at the launch event for her new tell-all book her Orthodox Jewish mother shows up unannounced - twenty years after she died - and guilt trips her into a reckoning with her rebellious past, her time with a Hassidic community in Brooklyn and the real meaning of a Jewish home. We talked to Chef Rossi about her inspiration for her memoir, the future of this fabulous play and her spin on our LGBTQ issues.

When asked what she would like to accomplish with her work Chef Rossi stated, “I think I would most like to see the empowerment of women especially in the culinary field would be great. I’d like to see the empowerment of young gay adults and gay teenagers. I’d like to see the empowerment of the underdog in general. I’m kind of a runaway, throwaway, white trash little kid from New Jersey who went from literally being homeless to whatever this thing is called Chef Rossi. I just think that my story really empowers people that are down and out or the underdog or minorities and I just hope I can help.”

Chef Rossi is the catering director, owner and executive chef of The Raging Skillet catering for the past twenty-six years. She has earned a reputation as the go-to company for out-of-the-box catering and weddings. The Zagat's Guide has called Rossi "the wildest thing this side of the Mason Dixon Line" and “The Raging Skillet” has been voted one of New York's Top Five Wedding Caterers by The Knot from 2009 through 2017. Currently Chef Rossi is working on a new memoir and the screenplay for “Raging Skillet”. The play “Raging Skillet” will be performed at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater August 2nd to September 15th 2018 in Wellfleet, MA.
For More Info: theragingskillet.com

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