Students, faculty, guests, panelists and friends gathered in the Folino Theater for this year’s spectacular Women in Focus conference.  Take a look at some of the best quotes and reactions students shared on Twitter!

This is just a snippet of the whole conversation; to read all the reactions, head on over to the Storify page which captures the entire dialogue!


As always, the bulk of the event is the discussion in the Folino Theater.  In a simple conversational style, moderator and professor Dawn Taubin led the group through highlights of their careers, asking the kinds of thought provoking questions that draws an enthusiastic audience and keeps students firmly planted in seats, even during the busiest academic time of the year.

Women in Focus panelists 2013

While the conversation revolves around the issues and complexities of the role of gender in the industry, the advice and experiences panelists share is more often than not just as applicable to anyone looking to make a start in media.

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The topic this year is a new one, “Women in Comedy” – and the panelists ran with it.

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Again this year, attendees submitted questions for the panel via social media, both to give them time to prepare, and to squeeze even more time into a necessarily short Q&A session.

Women in Focus Tweet Capture

Students showed their enthusiasm with whoops and cheers, and let their support resonate throughout the afternoon:

Women in Focus Tweet CaptureWomen in Focus Tweet Capture   Maya Rudolph poses with students at the 2013 Women in Focus Conference

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Of all the hilarious, memorable, and thought-provoking quotes that resonated with students, Maya Rudolph undoubtedly stole the prize for her trio of off-the-cuff one-liners:

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Finally, Diablo Cody reminded the audience that as much as we have to learn from these powerful and creative women, they had something to learn from us – especially the students – as well.

Women in Focus Tweet Capture


A big thanks to all the students who shared their reactions with us – we had more than a few Tweets from people who couldn’t make it, but enjoyed being able to experience it second-hand.

We’re already looking forward to next year’s event.  Here’s your chance to chip in: 
what topic or theme would you like to see discussed at the 2014 Women In Focus conference?
  Let us know in the comments below!