I went to this conference on Saturday and thought it was invigorating: filled with people and panelists who are full of passion and creativity.
Portland State University in conjunction with the Oregon Commission for Women hosted the 2009 Gap Conference in Smith Memorial Student Union. This all-day conference was open to the public and admission was free.
The goal of the Oregon Commission for Women is to Bridge Gender Gaps in Education, Health Care, Employment and Leadership.
One way the commission is hoping to get more young women involved is by appealing to their interests in movies, theater and films.
Lana Veenker of Veenker Casting,
who helped with the casting of the Twilight movie last year in Portland, participated in a panel discussion, answering questions presented to the group with humor, passion and perspective. You can read her blog here.Lourrie Hammack
the President of Laika House, which produced the amazing stop-motion animated film CORALINE which was written by Newberry Award winning author Neil Gaiman was also on the panel together with Jan Johnson, 
also from Laika House. The panel was rounded out by Ellen Bergstone Beer,
who is involved with the Women’s Film Initiative and Film Action Oregon.It was an eye-opening panel discussion moderated by Susan Castner from the Oregon Commission for Women.
Nike’s own Phil Knight owns Laika House and his son, Travis, who is the CEO of the production company, which used to be Will Vinton Studios, here in Portland, Oregon and which became well known due to their advertising campaign for the California Raisins are taking Laika into new areas.
Laika House has recently done animated work for Dole, M&Ms, Soyjoy, Coca Cola, Carnation Breakfast Essentials, Apple, Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food, Nike, the Oregon lottery and more.
The Women’s Film Initiative is working to engage Portland Women in the film-making industry and has contributed more than $17,000 to help fund five different film-making projects: three documentaries and two narratives have been supported by these funds.
If you are interested in getting involved in this program, here is the contact information for the Oregon Commission for Women: 3218 Pringle Road SE, Suite 270, Salem, OR 97302, Phone: 503-378-2139, Email: oaco.mail@das.state.or.us
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