Latest news with #Sunnie
7NEWS
4 days ago
- 7NEWS
Four Vietnamese exchange students who vanished in Adelaide, South Australia, still remain unaccounted for more than 18 months later
Four Vietnamese exchange students who vanished more than 18 months ago while staying with South Australian host families have still not been found. Sunnie Nguyen, then 17, was discovered missing from her room after having dinner with her host family at their South Plympton home, in Adelaide's inner-south, on January 8, 2024. Several personal belongings — including the Year 11 student's backpack, laptop, ID documents, and some clothes — were also gone and her phone was switched off and social media accounts wiped. As Sunnie's host mother May Zervaas made a public appeal for help to find her, it was revealed three other international students were reported missing between December 2023 and January 2024. SA Police are yet to locate the four teenagers, who they believe are 'actively avoiding authorities', a spokesperson confirmed to this week. 'There is no information or evidence uncovered to date which would indicate these youths are in immediate danger,' the spokesperson said. 'SA Police are working with other agencies to help locate these youths and ensure their welfare. 'Contact has been made with the families of the youths in Vietnam, during this contact families have not shared any concerns for the student's welfare.' The four students are believed to have been attending Hamilton College when they disappeared. They each went missing at separate times and it is understood police are investigating whether they travelled interstate. Sunnie had appeared to be happy and had no reason to run away or hide as her visa was still active for another three years, Zervaas told 7NEWS at the time. Anyone with information is urged to contact SA Police on 131 444 using report number 2400009568.
Daily Mail
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Reese Witherspoon oozes class in a sophisticated black midi dress at Tate Modern's star-studded 25th Anniversary Gala
Reese Witherspoon exuded elegance as she arrived at the star-studded Tate Modern 25th Anniversary Gala in London on Wednesday night. The American actress, 49, looked effortlessly chic in a sophisticated black midi dress as she posed up a storm for photographers outside the iconic venue. Her elegant ensemble featured an asymmetrical neckline, a black leather belt with gold hardware, and a figure-hugging silhouette. Adding a touch of height, Reese teamed the look with classic pointed black court heels and carried a sleek gold clutch. Other A-list guests in attendance included Daniel Craig, Bianca Jagger, Sir Grayson Perry, Gwendoline Christie, and Tracey Emin. Reese's outing comes after she announced Sunnie, a Gen Z-focused spin-off of her Hello Sunshine label, at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity earlier this month. The actress put on a leggy display in a chic white mini dress, featuring short puffed sleeves, a scoop neckline, a figure-hugging design, and exposed stitch detailing. Flaunting her long, toned pins, Reese added inches to her frame with a pair of white stiletto heels, which featured a large buckle fastening. On stage, Reese described Sunnie as a 'celebration' of young women's creativity, curiosity and agency. She said: 'It's been a dream of mine to build a space where young women can be the truest version of themselves, 'We've discovered that young women are not defined by doom and gloom as they're often portrayed in media – they're complex, creative individuals with incredible agency. 'Sunnie will be a celebration of that spirit, giving them the tools and community to navigate life's challenges while embracing their authentic selves.' According to The Hollywood Reporter, the multi-platform brand will feature collaborations with such Gen Z creators and celebrities as YouTuber Lana Condor, Canadian high diver and social media personality Molly Carlson, and Young Sheldon actress Raegan Revord. The group announced strategic alliances with organizations including Child Mind Institute, IF/THEN Initiative, and Purdue University, which will serve as the brand's official university partner. The Sunnie ecosystem will span social content, digital zines, book clubs, custom curriculum, and real-world events. Maureen Polo, head of direct-to-consumer at Hello Sunshine said: 'Young women – despite the many pressures they face – are intentionally creating space for joy, 'They're writing their own stories, setting boundaries, finding community, and embracing both digital and real-world connections on their terms. 'And yet, 75 percent say advertising rarely reflects how they actually talk, dress, or act — a clear signal that the industry still isn't truly seeing them. 'Sunnie will support and amplify these efforts, providing content, curriculum, and experiences that resonate with how they actually live their lives, not how adults assume they do.' Hello Sunshine was launched in 2016 by Reese and Sarah Harden and has produced TV series such as Big Little Lies and The Morning Show. It was acquired by Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs' Candle Media in 2021, according to the publication.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Purdue University and Hello Sunshine partner on new platform to inspire the next generation of bold, curious young women
Sunnie will work to foster community among Gen Z girls, empowering them to envision bright futures – including careers in STEM WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., June 25, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Purdue University is the official university partner of Sunnie, a multi-platform media brand geared toward Gen Z girls and young women. The multifaceted platform was created by Hello Sunshine, a next-generation media company founded by award-winning actress, author and entrepreneur Reese Witherspoon. The new platform – built by and made for Gen Z girls and women – strives to amplify female voices and empowers them to live up to their potential through storytelling across platforms, including experiential, digital content and editorial. Sunnie aims to build community among Gen Z girls and young women, emboldening them to imagine possible careers, including STEM fields. Powered by Purdue's commitment to accessibility and academic rigor in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, the university will help design curricula that not only respond to the demands of the evolving tech workforce but also engage and inspire Gen Z girls by aligning with their academic interests, personal values, and creative passions. 'Purdue and Hello Sunshine share a powerful belief that when girls can see paths forward that reflect their interests, their dreams and their potential, there's no limit to what they can imagine or achieve,' said Kelly Hiller, chief marketing officer for Purdue University. 'At a time when social media can so profoundly shape how girls see themselves and their futures, we are excited to help support a space that replaces pressure with positivity, where storytelling meets passions, like STEM, and girls are inspired to see themselves as confident, curious and capable of shaping the future.' The national brand launch of Sunnie and the Purdue partnership were announced Wednesday (June 18) at The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in Cannes, France. The festival, often described as the 'Oscars of the advertising world,' is one of the most prestigious global events in the fields of advertising, marketing, communications and creative media. 'Gen Z isn't waiting for permission — they're boldly shaping culture, community, and conversation in ways that are deeply intentional and inspiring,' said Maureen Polo, Head of Direct to Consumer at Hello Sunshine. 'That's why we're so excited to partner with Purdue University as the official University partner of Sunnie. Their team has been instrumental in helping launch this exciting venture for Hello Sunshine. Purdue's commitment to research, innovation, and student empowerment aligns perfectly with our mission to create spaces where young women feel truly seen, heard, and supported." As part of the new collaboration, Sunnie and Purdue will co-develop custom content, engaging curriculum and online resources that will serve as a 'playbook' centered around relevant subject matters, such as the building blocks for a STEM career. In addition, Purdue will also be a part of IRL (in real life) events planned to add a deeper layer of connection and community to the initiative. The platform will also offer continuing education opportunities for caregivers of Gen Z'ers, including certification programs, through Purdue University's online programs. This partnership reinforces Purdue's national leadership in STEM by showing up in modern, culturally relevant areas and aligning directly with the university's institutional priorities to expand access, drive enrollment and cultivate the next generation of trailblazers. 'The path to innovation begins long before college,' said Lucy Flesch, Frederick L. Hovde Dean of the College of Science. 'As a scientist and an educator, I've seen how early exposure to STEM can spark ambition and agency — especially for girls who may may not yet see themselves in these fields. It's important to show them how it can connect to their passions — we unlock potential that might've otherwise gone unseen.' Amplified by Purdue's colleges of Engineering and Science, Purdue Polytechnic Institute, and the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue has the largest undergraduate STEM enrollment of any top 50-ranked university in the country. 'This directly supports a five-year goal of making Purdue the most desired STEM destination for young women,' said Arvind Raman, the John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering.'Gen Z girls are growing up in a world shaped by technology, and we want them not just to keep up—but to lead.' Industry partnerships are a hallmark of excellence for Purdue University and Purdue Brand Studio, the university's in-house marketing agency, as they play a central role in advancing the university's mission of innovation, impact and intellectual leadership on a national and global scale. Recent key industry partnershipsBrand Collaborations Leveraging the momentum of Taylor Swift's 'Eras Tour' last November in Indianapolis, Purdue hosted 'In Our STEM Era,' an immersive event in partnership with global beauty company e.l.f. Cosmetics, that attracted over 10,000 attendees. Purdue Brand Studio produced and premiered its first-ever feature film. 'Boilers to Mars' follows the academic and professional careers of four fictional Purdue students who ultimately take part in a historic first mission to Mars. The film was supported by SpaceKids Global, an organization that aims to inspire and empower young people by introducing them to the range of careers available in space exploration and technology. In April 2024 Purdue collaborated with two globally recognized brands — the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and NASA — for the Total Solar Eclipse Viewing Event. The interactive outdoor event, held at the famed raceway, was the largest single day of earned media exposure in Purdue history. Scientific Alliances In May Eli Lilly & Company committed $250 million to an eight-year research partnership with Purdue, focusing on AI-driven drug discovery, development and manufacturing. In January Purdue announced the Young Institute Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Consortium in partnership with Lilly and Merck & Co. Inc. to revolutionize pharmaceutical manufacturing. Purdue and Elanco Animal Health are co-developing the One Health Innovation District in Indianapolis. The initiative will advance knowledge and innovation related to animal, human and plant well-being through novel interdisciplinary initiatives and partnerships with industry. About Purdue University Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 107,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 58,000 at our main campus in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue's main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its comprehensive urban expansion, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at About Hello SunshineFounded by Reese Witherspoon, Hello Sunshine puts women at the center of every story it creates, celebrates and discovers. Hello Sunshine tells stories across all platforms — from scripted and unscripted television, feature films, animated series, podcasts, audio storytelling and digital series — all shining a light on where women are now and helping them chart a new path forward. Hello Sunshine is also home to Reese's Book Club. Fast growing in reach and influence, this community is propelled by meaningful connections with stories, authors, and fellow members. Hello Sunshine is part of Candle Media, an independent, creator-friendly home for cutting-edge, high-quality, category-defining brands and franchises. By bringing together elite talent operating at the intersection of content, community and commerce, it helps to position leading entertainment businesses for accelerated, sustainable growth in the current market and beyond. Candle is run by its co-chairmen and co-CEOs, leading entertainment executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, and backed by investment capital from funds managed by Blackstone's flagship private equity business. Media contact: Wes Mills, wemills@ in to access your portfolio
Fast Company
24-06-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
Inside Sunnie, the Hello Sunshine spin-off Reese Witherspoon just cocreated with Gen Z
For brands, trying to reach Gen Z is hit or miss: New product launches can be lost to the ether just as easily as they can go viral. But failing to connect with the younger generation is no longer an option, and Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine knows it. On June 18 at Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, Witherspoon announced that Hello Sunshine's newest launch—a Gen Z-focused platform called Sunnie—will come to life via Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, a website, a virtual zine and in real life, including media content, events, and mentorship opportunities. Gen Z consumers, roughly between the ages of 13 and 28, have already shown interest in Hello Sunshine's content, particularly thanks to projects like Daisy Jones & the Six and the Legally Blonde prequel, Elle. The idea for Sunnie first came during the company's flagship live event, Shine Away, with organizers noticing attendees bringing their daughters along. With Hello Sunshine founded as a platform to fill in the white space of women representation in media, the team noticed a similar vacuum absent for the younger generation. 'That piqued our curiosity. It's like, what is this younger generation looking at differently and what do they need?' Hello Sunshine CEO Sarah Harden tells Fast Company. 'We're bringing Sunnie to life very similarly to how we brought Hello Sunshine to life—in digital communities, in real life, and in real connections.' And while the overarching mission of Sunnie and Hello Sunshine align, targeting a particular demographic was a new challenge, in need of new approaches. To do so, the company put intentionality front and center, bringing research and real Gen Z voices to the table, and partnering with those who have it figured out. 'Changing the way girls feel about themselves' Founded in 2016, Hello Sunshine sold to Blackstone-backed Candle Media in 2021 for $900 million, Fast Company reported at the time. While the young company had only a handful of movies and TV series at that point, its projects were top drivers of user engagement on streaming platforms. Prior to launching Sunnie, the company partnered with YPulse, a marketing research and insights company focused on Gen Z and millennials, and mentorship platform Être, to better understand just what Gen Z is actually looking for in media. Surveying 1,000 teen girls aged 13 to 18, the study found that 76% of Gen Z believe that advertising does not reflect them, underscoring a clear gap between companies and young consumers. The study also explored what Gen Zers are actually looking for and the lasting impact that media can have. Finding that 7 in 10 young girls actively seek opportunities to connect and wish they had more community in their lives, Sunnie is focusing on fostering that community online, and in-person, with upcoming live events. 'We had years of working with Gen Z, and then the research came back and told us what we had already learned from the Gen Z customer ourselves, but it's validating,' says Maureen Polo, Hello Sunshine's head of direct-to-consumer. The findings also reignited a sense of purpose for the ambitious initiative, revealing that 91% of respondents value brands that provide them with tools to express their individuality, and 63% seeing themselves as someone who can make a difference in the world. 'It is proof that storytelling doesn't just reflect culture, it actually helps build confidence, purpose, and possibility in girls,' Harden says. 'What the research showed is if we do that well, we will play a part in changing the way girls feel about themselves and their confidence.' Bringing Gen Z into the equation At Sunnie, Gen Z is not left out of the conversation; they are leading it. A major insight from the study revealed that 87% of respondents believe brands should involve girls early in their design and planning processes. 'It's moving beyond representation and young women being better seen in their media—which they told us they weren't—but moving from that to not just speaking to them, but actually cocreating with them,' Polo says. To do so, Sunnie and Être gathered a Gen Z advisory board of 22 girls and young women, providing insights on everything from programing and content to even the platform's name. Additionally, Sunnie and Hello Sunshine's programming aims to foster deeper relationships between Gen Z and their parents. While Hello Sunshine's data showed Gen Z is its fastest growing digital audience, 52% of its base audience is mothers and caretakers of Gen Z girls, inspiring a multigenerational approach. 'We reach these moms of young girls and moms of teenage girls,' Polo says. 'We're helping them understand this next generation as we're learning about them, and we're actually translating that back.' Partner with those who get it right In the spirit of cocreation, Sunnie not only tapped into Gen Z expertise, but also that of brands and institutions that have the Gen Z connection figured out, such as the makeup and skincare brand e.l.f. Beauty. 'We started looking at the brands that are out in the world doing an amazing job talking to consumers, and in some cases, some of the world's most powerful brands are actually product companies,' Polo says. 'We started partnering really thoughtfully and strategically to talk to the next-generation audience with brands that we believe super serve them to learn together.' Kory Marchisotto, e.l.f Beauty's CMO, says the secret to forging connections with consumers is simply listening and responding to their needs. 'It's very simple, and it's called putting your ear to the ground and tuning the outfit,' Marchisotto says. 'We don't make this stuff up. They tell us, we listen, and we act on what we hear.' Inspired by e.l.f Beauty's work, which includes activations on Roblox and Twitch, Sunnie aims to foster similarly meaningful connections. For instance, the beauty brand often follows up on popular requests left on social media, and talks directly with consumers. On a recent TikTok live, Marchisotto, who will be a Sunnie mentor as well, jumped on a popular trend of reusing the brand's packaging to create a giant lip gloss, following the instruction of users who were tuned in. 'We did it together,' she recalls. 'And I asked them why the hell they were doing it. And at the end, I really understood why—because there's no distance between me and the community as the CMO. There's no ivory tower.' Sunnie also partnered with other institutions, creating an ecosystem of mission-focused experts, including Child Mind Institute, Lyda Hill Philanthropies' IF/THEN Initiative, Step Up, the Women's Sports Foundation, and Purdue University, harnessing their individual expertises for various projects. If Sunnie succeeds in its mission, its launch could provide other companies with a framework to connect more effectively with a younger generation of consumers. 'It's really listening with a scalpel,' Marchisotto says. 'But more important than listening is acting on what you hear so that you can shape culture together.'
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine Launches Gen Z Label
Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine has launched Sunnie, a Gen Z-focused label 'designed to inspire the next generation of young women to reclaim their time, follow their curiosity and step into their power.' Unveiling the label at Cannes Lions, Witherspoon said Sunnie will feature collaborations with Gen Z creators and celebrities, including Lana Condor and Hello Sunshine Collective talent like Molly Carlson and Raegan Revord. The label will focus on social content, experiential events, book clubs and digital zines, all designed for the Gen z generation. Sunnie's foundational partner e.l.f. Beauty. It kicks off with strategic alliances with the likes of Child Mind Institute, Être, Lyda Hill Philanthropies' IF/THEN Initiative, Step Up, the Women's Sports Foundation, and Purdue University. More from Deadline Disney & Amazon Advertising Units Team Up: "We're Breaking Down Traditional Barriers Between Content And Commerce" Netflix Adds Yahoo To Its Roster Of Programmatic Advertising Partners 'The Morning Show' Season 4: Everything We Know So Far 'It's been a dream of mine to build a space where young women can be the truest version of themselves,' said Witherspoon. 'We've discovered that young women are not defined by doom and gloom as they're often portrayed in media – they're complex, creative individuals with incredible agency. Sunnie will be a celebration of that spirit, giving them the tools and community to navigate life's challenges while embracing their authentic selves.' The announcement was made at Cannes Lions, where the likes of Jamie Lee Curtis and Sterling K. Brown have been speaking. Hello Sunshine, which is owned by Candle Media and is making a Legally Blonde prequel series, already has partnerships with the likes of Making Space Media. Yesterday at Cannes Lions it unveiled a podcast deal with iHeartMedia for Witherspoon's monthly book club. Best of Deadline 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More 'Stick' Soundtrack: All The Songs You'll Hear In The Apple TV+ Golf Series 'Stick' Release Guide: When Do New Episodes Come Out?
