Friends of the Academy Awards Gala–by Adam Sandel

Bay Area Reporter

2/19/2009

To the rescue! Film; Academy of Friends throws a superhero Oscar gala

by Adam Sandel

Superheroes, Villains & Divas

Look up in the sky. It’s a bird, it’s a plane – it’s hundreds of tuxedoed partygoers coming to the rescue of HIV/AIDS organizations at the Academy of Friends’ annual Oscar gala! This year’s ultimate A-List event on Sunday night at Fort Mason, A Night of Superheroes, Villains & Divas, promises to be especially exciting. In addition to supporting HIV/AIDS groups that are financially strapped in these tough times, gala attendees can cheer on two of the most uplifting Oscar nominees in years: Slumdog Millionaire and the gay community’s very own Milk.

In addition to enjoying Hollywood’s finest, and hunky Oscar host Hugh Jackman, gala guests will be treated to live performances by the dance sensations of Burn the Floor and that ultimate villain/diva from the cast of Wicked .

Also on hand will be Jack Mackenroth, the HIV-positive fashion designer and TV personality from Project Runway, who’s launched the national HIV/AIDS education campaign Living Positive by Design in partnership with Merck & Company.

Charming, talented, and ridiculously handsome, Mackenroth provides one of the best possible faces of HIV, and in the words of his former mentor Tim Gunn, he recently agreed to “talk to me.”

“I’ll be 20 years positive this August, right after my 40th birthday,” said Mackenroth. “I immediately needed support when it first happened, so I came out as positive to close friends, and then to my family in the mid-90s. I was doing well on the meds, and after a few years some of the fear dissipated.”

His appearance on season four of Project Runway was Mackenroth’s launching pad to national exposure. “I discussed being positive on the show, and it became a great opportunity for outreach. It wasn’t a big plan, I just wanted to live my life openly. Everyone who talks about it helps to alleviate the anxiety.”

Through the Living Positive by Design campaign, he hopes to help combat the stigma associated with HIV, and encourage people living with HIV to have a positive outlook on life while effectively managing their disease. “The goal is to get people to work with their doctors to get to an undetectable viral load, and to be proactive about their health.”

The public response, especially now that Project Runway is airing overseas, has been very, well, positive. “Once a day I get an e-mail or message on my Facebook or My Space page from people saying, ‘Thank you for being a positive role model.’ I expected a backlash, but there really has been none.”

A graduate of UC Berkeley, Mackenroth is no stranger to San Francisco, but this will be his first AOF Gala. In addition to sharing his Living Positive by Design promos, he says, “I’m looking forward to mingling, having fun, and commenting on the Oscar fashions.” And guys? I asked. He’s single.

New York Fashion Week. Michael Kors and 1909 Victorinox

I was really looking forward to the Michael Kors show. I have not seen him in forever and I was supposed to have a brief pre-show interview with him but when I arrived his PR team had already packed up the check-in. Oh well. I figured I would try for post-show. Right. Not.

The show was excellent. I know that everyone is talking recession doom and gloom but you couldn’t tell from the Kors collection. First of all he did not scrimp on the models. He had some of the top girls right from the get-go. Carmen Cass, Frankie Rayder, Chanel Iman, Raquel Zimmerman, Coco Rocha and my FAVE model of the moment, Tanya Dziahileva.

Model Tanya Dziahileva

Model Frankie Rayder

One thing that Michael does extremely well is style an entire head-to toe look. With many designers I like certain pieces but not a full look. Kors models look as if the could walk right off the runway and onto an awaiting private jet.

Carmen Cass and her accessory.

The show started with black wool and cashmere luxurious pieces that were soon infused with neon green accents followed by grey and white tweeds and leathers. He moved onto a more neutral mid section with tans and olive fabrics and furs. Neon green, pink and orange were scattered throughout.

Watch the whole show here. Click the PLAY tab.

I was green with envy.

Michael's final walk

I went backstage after the show but Michael was MOBBED by press. I just stood in the corner waiting for a moment but it never happened. INSTEAD I chatted with Jane Krakowski from 30 Rock and various Broadway productions. She was SO nice. She is my new BFF and Nicole Richie is out. I’m fickle like that.

The lovely and HILARIOUS Jane Krakowski.

Then Heidi Klum arrived backstage with a throng of press and madness ensued. She is always very kind to me so I applaud her for that especially since she is constantly hounded. She always takes time to kiss kiss and say “hi”.

On the contrary my reception from Ms. Kors was quite chilly. When I finally approached him he said, “Oh, hi.” and stuck out his hand. I thought that was strange. I know we are not bosom buddies but we did go through quite an experience together. Anyway–I will assume he was just exhausted and OVER it at that point.

Since I couldn’t really get face time with Michael I got the next best thing: his adorable mom Joan Kors.

The fabulous Joan Kors

Done with that madness I headed over to the New York Public Library for the 1909 Victorinox menswear collection by Pierre-Henri Mattout. He’s super handsome and really cool. I enjoyed chatting with him immensely. Victorinox/Swiss Army was founded 125 years ago so Pierre-Henri is modernizing the collection by designing a more cutting edge younger line. It’s his second season as Creative Director and I loved the collection.

Designer Pierre-Henri Mattout. Sorry he has a husband.

He told me he was inspired by the Amish rumspringa where adolescents explore the world and decide if Amish life is right for them after their worldly adventures. The looks were a combination of comfort, function and fashion. Below are some of my favorite looks.

I was backstage for about and hour before the show and I just want to mention one thing. The models were all flawless of course but there was one kid named Jamie Jewitt from VNY models who was REDIC. Most of the models are straight now and when you hear them talk you remember that they are 19 but it’s fun to imagine. Anyway–Book him. He’s gorgeous. Call me Jamie.

Jamie Jewitt at Victorinox

more Jamie.

Also 1909 Victorinox gets the award for BEST INVITATION so far. It was printed on a piece of wood. Very cool.

got wood?

Living Positive Means Positive Living for Jack Mackenroth

By Paul E. Pratt–Originally published in the San Francisco Bay Times.

Jack Mackenroth is a busy man. Up to his crystal blue eyes in New York’s Fashion Week, which he is covering or gay TV network LOGO, the  muscular, HIV-positive designer forced off Project Runway Season 4 due to a nasty staph infection boards a plane later this week to catch the Academy Awards in San Francisco.

As part of the new Living Positive By Design program, Mackenroth appears at the Feb. 22 Academy of Friends Gala at Fort Mason. Raising monies for a dozen local AIDS service organizations, the posh Oscar’s night event is the fourth stop for spokesperson Mackenroth and the program created by pharmaceutical company Merck to spur frank conversation about HIV/AIDS.

Here Mackenroth, who was diagnosed with HIV shortly after leaving U.C. Berkeley for design school nearly 20 years ago, discusses his experience as an HIV-positive role model, thoughts on Fashion Week and passion for his HIV education partnership with Merck on Living Positive By Design.

(Bay Times) How did you get hooked up to cover New York Fashion Week for LOGO?

(Mackenroth) I’ve done stuff for LOGO before, little vignettes and pieces. I’m familiar with the people there, so they approached me to blog about Fashion Week. We’re doing two days of live shooting. They have a show called Pop Lab, which is video-based. I don’t exactly understand their format, but I was like, “I’m on camera? Sign me up!” (Laughs.) We’re taping two days live from the tents and the rest is me blogging. It actually sounds a lot more glamorous than it is. I can maybe handle six shows a day. Then you have to go home, recap, blog, download photos, and all that stuff. The shows start at 9 a.m., and sometimes they end at 9 p.m., so it’s a full day of fashion. Just watching a fashion show is super fun. I went to a show today and sat directly behind Kate Bosworth and Nicole Richie. If I wasn’t actually looking at the clothes and thinking about what I was going to say, I’d be like, “Oh, my God! I’m sitting next to Nicole Richie!” When you have actually work it, it kind of takes the fun out of it and makes it a drag – and not “drag” in a good sense either.

Your goal on Project Runway was to be at Fashion Week as a designer. You gave up that opportunity when you left the show because of staph infection. What’s it like being there in a different capacity?

First of all, the mood is so different because of the economy, I’m kind of glad I’m not doing my own line right now. I’ve been going to the shows forever. There’s no bitterness, like, “Oh, God! I wish that was me!” I know how hard it is for designers right now. About a quarter of them dropped out of Fashion Week altogether. There are tons of [designers] missing. I’m surprised, though, because the energy is still really good. There are a lot of people there covering it. It’s really crowded when there are shows. It’s kind of mayhem.

Soon you’re rushing to San Francisco for the Academy of Friends gala and fundraiser, where you’re representing Merck’s Living Positive By Design Program. Tell me more.

This is actually our fourth city. We did Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta, New York, we’re coming to San Francisco, then we’re going to Houston. Anybody can go to LivingPositiveByDesign.com. It’s all about speaking directly to HIV-positive people. It’s a partnership with Merck. We’re encouraging HIV-positive people to be vocal and talk about HIV as much as they are comfortable. In doing so, it will help combat the stigma for everyone. Beyond that, we’re trying to encourage HIV-positive to become their own health care advocates, partner with a health care provider they are comfortable with and get on a treatment regimen that works for them and maximizes tolerability by minimizing side effects so they take their medication. We all know everyone responds differently to different medications, so make sure it works for you. And the ultimate goal for an HIV-positive person is to keep their viral load at undetectable. That’s kind of it in a nutshell. I think the great thing about “Living Positive By Design” is so many of the HIV education programs speak to prevention, which is important obviously. But there are a million people living in the U.S. with HIV, yet I can count on one hand the people who are “celebrities” or public personalities who are openly HIV-positive. That’s unfortunate. I think the more we talk about it takes away some of the shame. It makes those who are positive feel more comfortable, and they will more readily get the medical attention and care they need.

You were tapped as spokesperson for this program because you have lived with HIV for nearly 20 years. What kind of response do you receive about your openness on the subject?

I turn 40 in April, and then I’ll have my 20th HIV Anniversary in August. It’s a big year of milestones for me. The response has been really positive, no pun intended. (Laughs.) I usually get a dozen messages a week – there’s so many different ways with Facebook and MySpace and email now – from people. Project Runway is international now, so I get them from people in all different countries saying “Thank you for being so open about your status.”

A lot of people still, unfortunately, have misinformation that HIV/AIDS is still a death sentence. Not that I’m trying to glamorize HIV in any way, but I think people are happy to see there is someone who can be healthy, go on to pursue their dream, be HIV-positive and by following the steps in “Living Positive By Design” maintain their lives. By making my healthcare a priority for myself, I can go on and do good things. I’m not saying, “Do what I do. It’ll work for you.” That’s not what I’m pushing. There are a lot of treatment options available, so that’s why we need to advocate for ourselves and find what’s best for each person.

For more information, visit:  http://www.LivingPositiveByDesign.com