Regent's College

Texas Christian University

Award-Winning Filmmaker and Start-Up Founder

Austin, Texas, United States

Samsara will be the first global health ecosystem and lifestyle brand empowering women with autoimmune diseases and their loved ones. Beginning with a focused health tech toolkit and CPG suite, Samsara will be the leading empowerment companion with a multi-phase pipeline to improve autoimmune health outcomes. Currently raising a Seed round for a Q4 2022 launch.

SAMSARA

Founder & CEO

Global Wellness Institute

Women in Leadership Committee

ConnectHER

Consulting Executive Producer

- One of the Most Innovative, Interesting, and Purpose-Driven Women Led Startups to Watch.” —Inc. Magazine. Women Rising was founded in 2013 by entertainment industry executive Sara Hirsh Bordo with the mission of creating content and experiences to empower women and girls.

Women Rising has led several high-profile events such as the first TEDxAustinWomen in partnership with the United Nations Foundation, the Women’s March on Austin rally, which became the largest  largest gathering of women in Texas History, as Executive Producer of March for Our Lives NYC, and as Director and Executive Producer for the United State of Women Summit in Los Angeles.

In film production, Women Rising set out to explore social narratives while championing female heroes. With a world premiere at SXSW Film Festival, A Brave Heart: The Lizzie Velasquez Story went on to win awards at all 10 festivals it played, qualified for the Academy Award, secured domestic distribution through LifetimeTV and international through the National Geographic Channel, became an envoy for the U.S. Department of State’s American Film Showcase, and became a double honoree by the Webby Awards. In a second venture into championing female heroes, Women Rising proudly produced Tightly Wound, a brave and personal exploration of chronic pelvic pain authored by Shelby Hadden, acquired by Conde Nast, and played over 10 Million times. As a third production, combining film and live experiences, Women Rising directed and produced the ProtectHer Documentary Series, premiered at Carmel International Film Fest. A first of its kind interactive curriculum, the program aims to help prevent sexual assault on campuses by empowering male athletes.

Women Rising's client film work includes national storytelling and strategy for Toyota's Hiring Our Heroes, Warner Bros.' Wonder Woman 2, Farmhouse Fresh, Tri-Delta, Official Women in Football at the Super Bowl, Sony Pictures' Charlies Angels 2 and Lionsgate's The Spy Who Dumped Me.

Women Rising

Founder and CEO

Keynoted by Former First Lady Michelle Obama, and featuring Jane Fonda, Sen. Kamala Harris, Tracy Ellis-Ross, Tarana Burke, Yara Shahidi, Sophia Bush and others, directed a multi-camera production live-broadcast via our exclusive deals with Facebook and YouTube.

the United State of Women (USOW)

Director & Executive Producer

March For Our Lives

Executive Producer

When Delaney Colaio was nearly three years old, she lost her father and two uncles in the 9/11 attacks. After being asked in 2017 to deliver a victim’s statement at Guantanamo Bay against the men accused of the attacks, Delaney realized that she was not comfortable speaking on behalf of the 3,050 other kids who lost parents who she never knew, and quickly began her journey to meet them for the first time. As filming progressed with more than fifty 9/11 Kids filmed, so did the world: Manchester. Las Vegas. Parkland. Delaney recognized how deeply connected survivors of trauma are, and in doing so, has taken a stand to ignite a global community of others holding candles of hope and activism. From the surviving loved ones of victims from the attacks of September 11th, Newtown, Orlando, Manchester, Las Vegas, and Parkland, comes WE GO HIGHER: a light-bearing documentary that teaches us of the power of belonging, inspires healing resilience, and transforms darkness into hope. Film completed 2020.

We Go Higher Film

Director and Producer

The Women's March of Texas

Acquired by Amazon Prime, ProtectHer is a first of its kind sexual assault prevention film series that focuses on empowering male athletes to better protect girls on college campus. One locker room at a time.

ProtectHer

Acquired by Conde Nast and with 10mm views and counting, Tightly Wound is an award-winning animated documentary short produced in association with Women Rising, this story starts with a moment every woman remembers: getting her first period. Filmmaker Shelby Hadden was 14 years old and her mom handed her a box of tampons and a jar of vaseline. When she attempted insertion, it felt like she was trying to force it into a hole that didn’t exist, causing excruciating stabbing pain. Every month, her mother would be on the other side of the bathroom door trying to coach her through it, insisting it was all about finding the right angle – but Shelby never found it.

Tightly Wound follows Shelby’s experience with vaginismus; a pelvic floor condition characterized by involuntary contractions of the pelvic floor muscles that tighten the vaginal entrance, causing pain, penetration problems, and inability to have intercourse. It chronicles the various ways it has affected her life – how health professionals have failed her, men have rejected her, and shame, anger, and hatred have plagued her body. Tightly Wound won IndieWire's Project of the Week, Project of the Month, has played in 22 festivals around the world, was acquired by Conde Nast in 2018, and has been viewed more than 10 Million times.
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"Tightly Wound"

Sara’s directorial debut, A BRAVE HEART: THE LIZZIE VELASQUEZ STORY, broke Kickstarter records with its fundraising campaign in 2014 and went on to win top honors in each of the 12 film festivals it played in 2015 including its worldwide premiere at SXSW, Michael Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival, Geena Davis' Bentonville Film Festival, and Carmel International Film Festival. The film was domestically distributed by Cinedigm day and date on September 25 for an Academy qualifying run, on DVD in over 2,000 Walmart’s in January 2016, and will have its broadcast debut on Lifetime TV Fall 2016. The film will have its International theatrical, broadcast, and digital release beginning Spring 2016.   A BRAVE HEART has received a 93% Rotten Tomatoes Critics Score and 100% Audience Score.  NY Daily News called A BRAVE HEART “An Unblinking Well-Directed Film”,  Access Hollywood called it “Inspiring Beyond Belief”, and Fandango’s Dave Karger listed it as “One of the 25 Best Films of 2015."

A BRAVE HEART: The Lizzie Velasquez Story

TEDxAustinWomen

Jetset Studios

Chief Operating Officer

NowLive

Co-Founder & CEO

Vice President of Digital Marketing

SocialVibe is a new social media platform that facilitates interaction between people, the brands they love, and the causes they care about.  SocialVibe recognizes the influence people have online and has created an easy way for people to use that influence for social good.

Social media opportunities are plentiful, however SocialVibe’s unique platform empowers communities of real people to make a real difference.  With SocialVibe, people enhance their online experiences by getting sponsored by brands to support the causes they believe in.

Launched in 2007, SocialVibe’s funding is led by Redpoint Ventures.

SocialVibe

SVP, Marketing

- Expanded theatrical interactive marketing for all Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks SKG and DreamWorks Animation titles from traditional media buys to first-of-their kind strategic studio-exclusive online programs. Partners included Yahoo!, AOL, YouTube, Google, MySpace, Facebook, XBOX, Clearspring, Variety and BET

-  Aggressively targeted and content-rich campaigns with above partners resulted in record-breaking results for engagement, media awareness at exit polls and online ticket sales

-  First studio of 2007 to reach $1 billion in box office supported by key online initiatives for Blades of Glory, Disturbia, Shrek the Third and Transformers

-  Worked hand-in-hand with the three online creative directors in the site and content strategy, design and production of all film websites, social networking destinations, banner and promotional creative

Paramount Pictures

Executive Director, Interactive Marketing

eBay
-  Spearheaded first-of-their-kind integrated partnerships for
Paramount Pictures’ The Longest Yard and War of the Worlds,
DreamWorks SKG’s The Island and 20th Century Fox’s In Her
Shoes
-  Forged first promotional relationship between eBay and
Hollywood with In Her Shoes that later became the sites’ main
business model for partnerships

National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences/ GRAMMY Awards
-  Generated new brand extensions to expand brand relevance
amongst opportunity audiences
-  Recommended and managing creative re-branding efforts
including telecast logo design, sponsorship sales and network
relations materials via third party design firm

FirstFireworks

Account Director

Johnson and Johnson Skincare: AVEENO and RoC

-  Achieved J&J record increase boosting AVEENO body category rank from #13 to #6 in one year
-  Lead strategic repositioning of the RoC brand by redefining target and U.S. business model, resulting in #1 Facial Moisturizer at two national retailers and a 25% sales increase above projections
-  Developed online rationale and strategy for J&J on building websites for all brands which was approved and executed
-  Worked in tandem with senior creative team to create, produce and clear all broadcast and print advertising

Account Supervisor

Kinko’s
-  Spearheaded design and production of campaign launch elements including redesigned corporate website, consumer and trade print, B2B brochures, collateral, in-store and trade show materials
-  Awarded Silver Effie for In-store Creative Communication, 2002

UnitedHealth Foundation
-  Built alliances with the National Cancer Institute, the National Patient Safety Foundation, and the Department of Health and Human Services for UHFs first educational on and offline campaign
-  Named as One Show Finalist for Consumer Print Advertising, 2001

GSD&M

Account Manager

- Served as key liaison between Global Communications team and all Lauder brand PR teams
-  Supervised development of print collateral, managed external partners for production and assisted in planning, coordination and execution of PR events and promotions for the Lauder family