Avis Boone, Michelle C. Bonilla, Nicole Cyrille and Shiva Negar join a conversation on diverse women reshaping the screen, followed by a cocktail party with panelists
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 10/11/26 – SAG-AFTRA, a lead sponsor of the 22nd annual LA Femme International Film Festival, will present the panel “Mosaic in Motion: Diverse Women Shaping Modern Cinema and Redefining the Screen” on Friday, October 23rd at 6PM. Afterward, the festival will host a cocktail party for panelists, filmmakers and guests.
SAG-AFTRA Vice President of Actor/Performers Shari Belafonte moderates. An actor, producer, director, singer, photographer and cinematographer, Belafonte recurs on Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show” and BET’s “Sistas.” She also serves on SAG-AFTRA’s National Board and its National Women’s, Diversity and Native American committees.
Avis Boone is an actor, producer and host whose credits include “Salt” and “Fringe,” and she produces and hosts “That’s How We Role,” a podcast celebrating women leaders in entertainment, business and the arts. She serves on SAG-AFTRA’s National and New York Local Boards, co-chairs the National Women’s Committee and is co-president of the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition.
Michelle C. Bonilla, a Chicana actor, writer, voiceover artist and director born and raised in Hollywood, recurs on Season 2 of Amazon’s “Cross” and voices Detective Renee Montoya on “Batman: Caped Crusader.” An ALMA Award winner and three-time SOVAS Award nominee, she recently made her directorial debut with “I Just Wish You Told Me,” and her award-winning short “Slip Away” has screened around the world.
Nicole Cyrille is an actor, audio description voice artist and disability advocate who has narrated episodes of “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Station 19” and brought accessibility to live broadcasts of the Grammys, Emmys and Tonys. She chairs SAG-AFTRA’s Los Angeles Local Performers With Disabilities Committee.
Shiva Negar, an Iranian-born Canadian actress, producer and writer, broke out opposite Dylan O’Brien and Michael Keaton in Lionsgate’s “American Assassin.” She starred in and executive produced “Deadly Vows,” which earned her Best Actress at the Golden Dunes Dubai International Film Festival and screened at LA Femme last year. She serves on SAG-AFTRA’s National Board and as co-vice chair of the Los Angeles Local EEOC Committee.
The SAG-AFTRA session is one of six festival panels on the issues shaping film and television, from diversity, equity and inclusion to vertical filmmaking, pitching, launching a career through shorts, and financing and distribution in the age of AI. SAG-AFTRA also sponsors opening night on Thursday, Oct. 22, the West Coast premiere of Saila Kariat’s “Jesus Land,” starring Juliette Lewis and Ella Anderson.
Running Oct. 22 to 25 at the Regal Sherman Oaks Galleria, this year’s festival showcases 110 films and honors Mena Suvari with the Humanitarian Award and Rachel Feldman with the Visionary Award. The festival closes Sunday, Oct. 25 with an awards ceremony at Harmony Gold Theater in Hollywood.
Event Information
“Mosaic in Motion” SAG-AFTRA Panel + Cocktail Party
Friday, October 23rd at 6PM, with a cocktail party to follow
Regal Sherman Oaks Galleria, 15301 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
Tickets
