Speakers
Kristin Hahn
Executive Producer, The Morning Show
After graduating from USC Film School, Kristin Hahn began her career as a theater producer, shepherding six acclaimed productions including Maps for Drowners, the first play in Los Angeles to address the AIDS epidemic, and the West Coast premier of The Survivor, which originated on Broadway and told the true story of nine children’s experiences of the Warsaw ghetto during WWII.
Hahn co-directed, wrote and produced the documentary feature, Anthem, a ‘time-capsule’ exploration of American identity at the turn of the century, featuring interviews with Hunter S. Thompson, Willie Nelson, Robert Redford, George McGovern, Studs Terkel and poet laureate, Rita Dove. The documentary was dubbed “essential viewing” by Variety, “illuminating” by The Hollywood Reporter, and “one of the most charming and thought-provoking documentaries of the year” by Chicago Tribune. Anthem won the Fipresci International Critics Jury Prize. Hahn also co-wrote the companion book, Anthem: An American Road Story, published by HarperCollins.
Hahn’s second book – In Search of Grace (Harper Collins) – examines religious and spiritual practices as a layperson’s guide to comparative religion. Described by The Washington Post as “a brave book,” and by The Boston Globe as “illuminating,” Publishers Weekly adds, “Hahn’s writing is astonishingly vivid... she describes her encounters with a cocktail of good humor, respect, curiosity, admiration, and the occasional wry but gentle criticism. It is especially remarkable that she can review the basic elements of religion and somehow make it all seem fresh and fascinating.” In Search of Grace is a central part of the ethics course curriculum at Indiana University.
Following the publication of Grace, Hahn formed Plan B Entertainment with Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt, where she originated and supervised a large slate of pictures, including A Mighty Heart (directed by Michael Winterbottom), Time Traveler’s Wife (directed by Robert Schwenke) for which she served as co-producer, and the Academy Award-winning The Departed (directed by Martin Scorsese), for which she served as executive producer.
Aniston and Hahn subsequently formed Echo Films through which they executive produced The Switch, starring Aniston and Jason Bateman. Aniston and Hahn also created and executive produced the franchise television project, Five, an anthology of five short films designed to entertain and spotlight a topic of social import. The first Five tackled breast cancer and starred Patricia Clarkson, Ginnifer Goodwin, Rosario Dawson and Jeanne Tripplehorn; the latter installment – Five: Call Me Crazy – starring Octavia Spencer, Jennifer Hudson, Melissa Leo, and Brittany Snow explored mental illness and how it affects nuclear families and societies at large. Under their Echo banner, Hahn also produced the independent feature film, Cake. The film starred Aniston, Sam Worthington and Anna Kendrick, and earned Aniston Screen Actors Guild and Golden Globe Award nominations for her performance as a chronic pain sufferer. Also under Echo, Hahn executive produced The Yellow Birds, written by David Lowery and directed by Alexandre Moors, starring Tye Sheridan, Alden Ehrenreich and Aniston.
Under Hahn’s solo banner – Hahnscape Entertainment – she produced Tumbledown, starring Jason Sudeikis and Rebecca Hall. Additionally, Hahn adapted the Jerry Spinelli novel, Stargirl, which she produced alongside Gotham Entertainment. Stargirl follows the story of ‘Leo’ (Graham Verchere) who becomes intrigued by a mysterious and quirky student named ‘Stargirl’ (Grace VanderWaal).
Hahn adapted Julie Murphy’s New York Times bestselling novel, Dumplin’. The film stars Danielle MacDonald (PATTI CAKE$) as a plus-size teen and Jennifer Aniston as her former beauty queen mother. Hahn also served as producer for the film, which features Dolly Parton originals as well as newly recorded collaborations of her classic songs. Deadline called the film “a triumph for all the women behind, off, and in front of the scenes”, with The Atlantic saying “The movie itself represents a new, valuable kind of narrative.”
Most recently, Hahn co-wrote Spirit Untamed, which received a 95% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. From 2021-2022, Hahn served as the Kelley School of Business Poling Chair of Business and Government at Indiana University, where she taught leadership styles and ethics in the workplace.
Hahn serves as Executive producer on The Morning Show starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. She received a PGA Award nomination for her work on the show in 2022.
Sophie de Rakoff, Costume Designer, The Morning Show
Sophie de Rakoff is a costume designer who first began working in the arts as a music and culture journalist. Born in London, de Rakoff moved to New York in the early ’90s, and as a journalist wrote for such publications as Vogue, Dazed and Confused, Vibe, Paper Magazine and Detour.
After moving to LA, de Rakoff switched tracks and segued into the film business. After a powerhouse career as a commercial and music video stylist, de Rakoff is now an award-winning costume designer, perhaps best known for her iconic costume design in the classic comedy Legally Blonde, as well as other classics such as In Her Shoes, Sweet Home Alabama, and Pop Star to name a few. As well as continuing to design, de Rakoff has curated costume and fine art programs for the LA Film Festival, is an executive member of the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Science, and writes photo books reviews for numerous outlets. de Rakoff is also the author and editor of The Women of Woodcock, a female-centric behind-the-scenes journey through the world of Paul Thomas Anderson’s Oscar winning feature Phantom Thread. De Rakoff is currently engaged as the costume designer on The Morning Show for Apple TV+.
Moderator
Hal Rubenstein, author of Dressing the Part: Television's Most Stylish Shows
Hal Rubenstein’s lifelong mission has been to live well, discover the best of all that’s fresh and new, and persuade everyone to savor the same. Consequently, the writer, designer, lecturer, consultant, podcaster and pop culture obsessive has had a busy career. One of the founding editors of the groundbreaking InStyle Magazine, and its Fashion Director for 15 years, Rubenstein was also simultaneously the chief restaurant critic for New York magazine. Prior to that, Rubenstein was Men’s Style Editor of The New York Times Magazine, a founding editor of Details, POZ, and 7 Days magazines, in addition to creating and editing the cult classic Egg magazine, which gave Annette Benning, Liam Neeson and Vanessa Williams their first magazine covers.
Rubenstein’s newest book, Dressing the Part: Television’s Most Stylish Shows, a juicy celebration of the medium’s dynamic, 7-decade long influence on how we perceive fashion, style and beauty, will be published by HarperCollins on October 31, 2023.
The author of 7 other books, including the best-selling Paisley Goes with Nothing: A Man’s Guide to Style and 100 Unforgettable Dresses, Rubenstein also designed an eponymous clothing line sold on HSN, has lectured at art museums in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Vero Beach, The Fashion Institute of Technology, Parsons School of Design, The Savannah College of Art & Design, on the Queen Mary 2, and at California’s Governor’s Conference on Women and Children.
A design consultant for such diverse brands as DKNY, Tod’s, BR Guest Restaurants, Todd English, Gabriel & Co. Fine Jewelry, Rubenstein has been seen on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Top Chef, The View, Iron Chef, Oprah, Dateline and Extra.
Among numerous accolades, Rubenstein is proudest of his Founder’s Award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) for his lifetime contribution to fashion.
In addition to Dressing the Part, Rubenstein is excited about the 2023 launch of his next act, THE HAPPY GROWNUP, a multimedia platform celebrating the opportunities, challenges, and joy to be found in life after 50. www.thehappygrownup.com